Sunday, July 26, 2009

Common frameworks and reference models

I believe what is neeeded is a consistent meta-framework for describing how information about an industry/sector and enterprise (federated or stand alone) is organised.

There have been a number of frameworks which may provide insights into what is required in a meta-framework - some are generic and some are industry specific.

Generic
  • Zachman framework - has two dimensional taxonomy with rows indicating different the views of different roles (business to technical) and columns indicating data, function, network, organisation, time and motivation
  • IFW - has a taxonomy and reference models. It is for analysing and structuring information. It is portrayed with 10 columns representing types of information (e.g. strategy, organisation, data, skills, functions, interfaces, network and platform - and either "workflow & solution" or "involved parties, products/ arrangements") and rows based on types of analysis (conceptual categories for analysing information, terms and terminology, principles for structuring different types of information, detailed designs that use information, how to implement these designs).
Industry specific frameworks (which could be called Industry Architectures - Cf. "Enterprise Architecture" include:
  • Government agencies - FEAF which has a set of reference models and a some methods for a applying them (particularly around alignment, investment planning and business case creation). The reference model set includes: Performance, Functions (BRM), Services (Applications), Data and Technology
  • Telecommunications - TM Forum's reference models for: process (eTOM), information (SID), and applications/services (TAM).
  • Hotel Industry - which I have not yet seen a published structure for.
  • Insurance - IAA which has business processes and activities, ACORD's eMerge (information exchange). IAA (IBM) is a sets of that trace out: information, data and component-architectural infrastructures and describe business objects and the components owning these objects. IAA contains a Business Model, Interface Design Model (components, interfaces and messages), Specification Framework (product definition and agreement administration), IIW (models creatimng data warehouses)
  • Health - Healix established a framework consisting of a set of reference models oriented at: strategy; policies and rules; function and process; information; components (applications and services).
The purpose of this entry is not to define the answer - but to outline some things to consider. See also:
  • http://enterprisesto.blogspot.com/2009/01/structure-for-thinking-about.html-
  • http://enterprisesto.blogspot.com/2009/01/introduction-to-reference-models.html
It is important to realise that IT industry as a whole has a lot to loose if a consistent way of deal with these issues arises - so one can expect opposition for the major incumbent/dominant vendors of IT products and IT services. This opposition is most likely come from activite participation in any groups attempting to establish standards i.e. embrace and smother (rather than the old fashioned FUD strategy which people are becoming resistent to).

The reason is for opposition is that standardised ways of doing things will allow many things to be demystified and commoditised i.e. reducing the amount can be charged for products or services as informed contestable selections becomes viable, and best practice becomes common and public.

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