Introduction Input Descriptions Output Descriptions
This section provides example descriptions of input and output items referenced in the Architecture Development Method.
Note that not all the content described here need be contained in a particular input or output. Rather, it is recommended that external references be used where possible: for example, the strategic plans should not be copied into the Request for Architecture Work, but rather the title of the strategic plans should be referenced.
Also, it is not suggested that these descriptions should be followed to the letter. However, each element should be considered carefully: ignoring any input or output item may cause problems downstream.
Finally, note that versioning is used to indicate that input or output items may undergo change as the ADM is executed. As an input or output item is updated, a new version may be produced. The initial version is named Version 1, and subsequent versions are named Version 2, Version 3, etc.
Organization sponsors
Organization's mission statement
Business goals (and changes)
Strategic plans of the business
Time limits
Changes in the business environment
Organizational constraints
Budget information, financial constraints
External constraints, business constraints
Current business system description
Current architecture/IT system description
Description of developing organization
Description of resources developing organization has available
See Part IV, Architecture Principles, for guidelines and a detailed set of generic Architecture Principles, including:
Architecture documentation and models from the enterprise's Architecture Continuum.
Functional descriptions of products that are candidates for the implementation
Architectural descriptions of elements that are candidates for the implementation
New developments in potentially relevant technology
Statement of work title
Project request and background
Project description and scope
Architecture vision
Managerial approach
Change of scope procedures
Responsibilities and deliverables
Acceptance criteria and procedures
Project plan and schedule
Support of the enterprise continuum
Signature approvals
- Problem Description
- Purpose of Scenario
- Detailed Objectives
- Environment and Process Models
- Process Description
- Process Steps Mapped to Environment
- Process Steps Mapped to People
- Information Flow
- Actors and Their Roles and Responsibilities
- Human Actors and Roles
- Computer Actors and Roles
- Requirements
- Resulting Architecture Model
- Constraints
- IT Principles
- Architecture Supporting the Process
- Requirements Mapped to Architecture
- Baseline Business Architecture
- Business Goals, Objectives and Constraints
- Business requirements and key system and architecture drivers
- Business return given required changes
- Assumptions (e.g. business, financial, organizational, or required technical functionality)
- Business Architecture principles
- Business Architecture Models
- Organization structure
- Business functions
- Business roles
Correlation of organization and functions- Business Architecture building blocks list (e.g., business services)
- Business Architecture building blocks models
- Candidate solution building blocks list
- Candidate solution building blocks models
- Relevant business process descriptions, including measures and deliverables
- Technical requirements (drivers for other Architecture work)
- Baseline Technology Architecture
- Objectives and Constraints
- Technology requirements and key system and architecture drivers
- Assumptions (e.g. business, financial, organizational, or required technical functionality)
- Technical architecture model(s)
- Architecture building block models of views (minimally model of functions and a model of services)
- Architecture building block models of service portfolios (enterprise specific framework)
- Technical architecture specification
- Per architecture building block:
- Details of the technical functionality
- Fully defined list of all the standards
- Description of building block at the levels necessary to support implementation, enterprise wide strategic decision making, and further iterations of the architectural definition process
- Rationale for decision taken that relate to the building block, including rationales for decisions not to do something
- Specification identifying the inter-working with other building blocks and how they do so
- Guidelines for procuring
- Standards summary list
- Requirements traceability
- Acceptance criteria
- Criteria for choosing specifications
- Criteria for selection of portfolios of specifications
- Criteria to test merits of architecture (key question list)
- Report on cost/benefit analyses
- Report on how the proposed architecture meets the business goals and objectives
- Criteria response answers to key question list to test merits of architecture
- Gap report
- Report on gap analysis
- Report of gap analysis matrix
- Mapping of the architectures in the Enterprise Continuum
- Change requests for extensions or amendments to related architectures
- Project list
- Name, description and objectives of each impacted project
- Prioritized list of impacted projects to implement the proposed architecture
- Time oriented migration plan
- Benefits of migration, determined [including mapping to business requirements]
- Estimated costs of migration options
- Implementation recommendations
- Criteria measures of effectiveness of projects
- Risks and issues
- Solutions building blocks - description and model
Typical contents of an Architecture Design and Development Contract:
Introduction & Background
The nature of the agreement
Scope of the Architecture
Architecture and Strategic principles and requirements
Conformance requirements
Architecture development and management process and roles
Target architecture measures
Defined Phases of deliverables
Prioritised Joint Workplan
Time window(s)
Architecture delivery and business metrics
Typical contents of a Business Users' Architecture Contract:
Introduction & Background
The nature of the agreement
Scope
Strategic requirements
Conformance requirements
Architecture adopters
Time window
Architecture business metrics
Service Architecture (includes Service Level Agreement)
This contract is also used to manage changes to the Enterprise Architecture in Phase H, Architecture Change Management.
Reference to specific Requirements
Stakeholder Priority of the Requirements to date
Phases to be revisited
Phase to lead on requirements prioritisation
Results of Phase investigations and revised priorities
Recommendations on Management of Requirements
Repository reference number
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