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Architect Interfaces for Business Needs

			Solution - Architect Interfaces for Business Needs - (.PDF 136KB)

The Challenge

Complex value chains and business models emerge from modern business as technology continues to converge with business. In many scenarios, historical implementations constrain the business through a lack of data availability, inability for technology to adapt to changes in business needs quickly, or failure to fully understand and meet the needs of business partners. Those who implement levels of integration often fail to empower the business as needed, lacking vision compatible with needs. The lack of discipline surrounding business enablement and not just technology implementation often leads to constraints rather than desired business capability.

The Approach

Interfaces tie partners together with the intention to collaborate for effectiveness. When business integration does not accommodate required business flexibility and agility the desired results cannot be achieved. It is important to define the business architecture from the relationships and required performance through to technology to ensure current and future interfaces can accommodate the most critical needs. With a focus on quality attributes like security, agility and other similar factors the right solution can support both business and technology goals.

The Solution

More and more business relationships are built, enjoyed and terminated based on the ability to integrate business models successfully. From initial relationship building and contract initiation through detailed process and application integration the key facet of integration becomes sharing the right information at the right time to serve very specific needs. Service Oriented Architecture introduces new opportunities and challenges that can heighten the importance of really understanding what two or more parties need as an integrated solution for the types of activity they need to perform operationally, tactically and strategically. Business changes comparable to mergers, acquisitions or changing strategic direction could be cause for significantly different and complex integration among value chain participants. Still, the business needs have to drive the requirements for integration. These need to be prioritized and the full lifecycle of interaction for critical relationships needs to be modeled to be sure that technology can support it. Integration strategy needs to include ways to plan for likely future changes to ensure that methods selected for integration do not constrain the enterprise if the potential for change is reasonably high.

The Benefits

Application of this solution has resulted in broader implementation of business relationships rather than technical interfaces that limit business potential. Through application of improved lead-time planning the value chain participants are all better prepared to support an integration strategy. When data needs are understood in context of business, the options for satisfying needs become much more evident and simple. By avoiding technology developed in silos, the business is better positioned to interact with partners in the diverse ways required to support the business model. Business effectiveness increases and cost of integration is significantly reduced.

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