Business Architecture concepts and components: BA shared infrastructures, capability modeling and guiding principles

Transcription

1 Business Architecture concepts and components: BA shared infrastructures, capability modeling and guiding principles Giulio Barcaroli Directorate for Methodology and Statistical Process Design Istat ESTP Training Course Enterprise Architecture and the different EA layers, application to the ESS context Advanced course Rome, October 2016 THE CONTRACTOR IS ACTING UNDER A FRAMEWORK CONTRACT CONCLUDED WITH THE COMMISSION

2 Outline 1. BA shared infrastructures 2. Capabilities and capability modeling 3. Guiding principles 2

3 1. Business Architecture Shared Infrastructures In the Business Architecture model the infrastructures enable the execution of the production processes, and in this sense they are considered as capabilities.

4 BA Infrastructures The most important infrastructures are the Repositories. At least four of them should be made available: o the Repository of Human Resource Competencies (RHC); o the Repository of Data and Metadata (RDM); o the Repository of Methods and Guidelines (RMG); o the Repository of Tools and Applications (RTA).

5 Repository of Human Resource Competences (RHC) This Repository contains all the information regarding the skills (competences) available in a given organisation. The RHC should be used in the Production Business Line when: o designing or re-designing a new or existing process; o implementing the process; o monitoring the process. As any other capability required to execute a process, human competencies must be individuated and allocated in that process.

6 The Istat case: methodological competences In Istat a complete Repository containing information on human resource competences is not yet available, though its implementation has been planned. Its design will be based also on an experience Istat has made in last years, regarding a subset of competences, the methodological ones. In order to build a Database of the Methodological Competencies, an internal survey was carried out in 2011, and since then a db containing information on persons who declared methodological information is available and can be updated by those who participated to the Network of Methodologists.

7 The Istat case: methodological competences Online survey, data collection: January-February 2011 (updated June each new candidate for entering the network). Reference list: all graduated workers (about 1,400). Three main objectives: 1. identifying knowledge and competences in a broad range of statistical areas; 2. volunteering for participating to the Centers of Competence; 3. preliminary mapping of informal relationships among Istat researchers and their relationships with other national and international researchers and Institutions.

8 The Istat case: methodological competences The DB currently allows: o updating the database for candidates entering the network through an online o questionnaire; producing statistics on Istat methodological competencies o finding resources with specific skills in some 140 subject areas.

9 The Repository of Data and Metadata (RDM) The availability of the Repository of Data and Metadata is crucial for the integration of the processes. The RDM should be used in the Production Business Line when: o designing or re-designing a new or existing process; o implementing the process; o monitoring the process.

10 RDM (Data): a Register-based production system In a modern, integrated system, all the collected and processed information should aliment centralised archives, related to the most important populations of interest, from which the statistical production should be produced and disseminated.

11 RDM (Metadata): structural and reference metadata Structural metadata Structural metadata are needed to identify, use, and process data matrixes and data cubes, e.g. names of columns or dimensions of statistical cubes. Structural metadata must be associated with the statistical data, otherwise it becomes impossible to identify, retrieve and navigate the data. Statistical concepts, key families and code lists are defined by a centre institution (usually for the exchange of statistical information with its partners). In Istat, structural metadata are contained in the Unified Metadata System (SUM)

12 RDM (Metadata): structural and reference metadata Reference metadata Reference metadata describe the contents and the quality of the statistical data. should include all of the following: a) "conceptual" metadata, describing the concepts used and their practical implementation, allowing users to understand what the statistics are measuring and, thus, their fitness for use; b) b) "methodological" metadata, describing methods used for the generation of the data (e.g. sampling, collection methods, editing processes); c) c) "quality" metadata, describing the different quality dimensions of the resulting statistics (e.g. timeliness, accuracy). In Istat, reference metadata are contained in the Quality Information System (Sidi-Siqual)

13 The Unified Metadata System (SUM) The system acquires and manages the metadata of systems that contain data, from the acquisition phase to the diffusion phase, with the objective of 1. allowing the search of candidate metadata harmonization (both within a production process, both between different processes), 2. to trace the production of each data item describing the processing of the data and accompanying metadata process, 3. to release harmonized metadata to production and dissemination systems. In SUM it is therefore possible to find the reference unit of the (micro or macro) data, statistical variable names or other concepts, classifications, statistics and other types of lists, statistical indicators produced, in addition to the complete description of the various datasets micro and macro data.

14 The Quality Information System (SIDI-SIQUAL) SIDI (Survey Documentation Information System) is the environment dedicated to the entry of metadata and quality indicators, the management of documents and the preparation of documentation on quality. Main outputs from this system: o o o the product card (standard documentation of the statistical production process); the quality card (standard documentation of product quality which includes the minimum set of quality indicators to be disseminated to external users) the Quality Report compliant with ESS standards.

15 The Quality Information System (Sidi-SIQUAL)

16 The Quality Information System (Sidi-SIQUAL) SIQUAL (Information System on Quality of Statistical Production Processes) is the dissemination part of SIDI. In particular, it allows navigation on issues related to information content, to the methods for error prevention, monitoring during execution and error assessment for all the surveys and for the main Istat processings. It allows the interrogation of standard quality indicators. It also allows access to documents of various kinds, from the survey questionnaires, to European regulations, operational manuals governing the production, up to the relevant documents on the quality (Quality reports).

17 The Quality Information System (Sidi-SIQUAL)

18 The Repositories of Methods and Guidelines (RMG) and the Repository of Tools and Applications (RTA) In Istat, there is not yet an implementation of the RMG and of the RTA (Tools and Applications) as distinct repositories. For the time being, the available repository is the Repository of the methods and IT tools for statistical production. This repository contains: o o statistical methods generalized IT tools both validated and used at Istat for the production of statistical outputs.

19 The Repository of the methods and IT tools for statistical production The Repository is organized by phases of the statistical production process, in accordance with the Generic Statistical Business Process Model (GSBPM Version 5.0).

20 The Repository of the methods and IT tools for statistical production

21 Phase of the Process: Design

22 Design: methods

23 Design: tools

24 2. Capability modeling A business capability is what an entity needs to do to execute its business activities. Capabilities can be of different types: people with their skills, methods, processes, IT systems, standards. Here we illustrate how capabilities (and capability modeling) are handled in: o the ESS Enterprise Architecture Reference Framework; o the GAMSO and in the Istat BA Activity Model. 24

25 Capability model in the ESS EARF The Capability Modeling presented here is the one defined in the ESS EA Reference Framework. A Business Capability can be defined as "an ability that an organization, person, or system possesses. Capabilities are typically expressed in general and high-level terms and typically require a combination of organization, people, processes, and technology to achieve." Business Capabilities Modeling is a technique for representing an organization's business, independent of organization structure, processes, people or business functions 25

26 Capability model in the ESS EARF Business Capabilities form an anchor model for further developing a Business Architecture. They represent what the business does (or needs to do). They are the starting point for the subsequent detailing of how the business should do what it does to achieve business outcomes. The how is frequently expressed in term of business process and activities. 26

27 The EARF Capabilities model: levels 0 and 1 27

28 The EARF Capabilities model: level 2 28

29 The EARF Capability model: dimensions Capabilities can be further broken alongside 5 dimensions: 1. People (skills) 2. Methods 3. Processes 4. IT systems 5. Standards 29

30 The Capability business line in the GAMSO In the Business Architecture Activities Model of GAMSO (and also in the ISTAT BAAM), a specific line is dedicated to capability management. 30

31 Individuation of specific capabilities In order to individuate the capabilities that will go under Capability management, it is possible to start from the activities in the Production Line (GSBPM) and, for each of them, define the required capabilities at different detail level. 31

32 Individuation of specific capabilities 32

33 3. Guiding Principles Principles are general rules and guidelines, intended to be enduring and seldom amended, that inform and support the way in which an organisation sets about fulfilling its mission. Here we illustrate: the Business Architecture principles as they have been defined for the Statistical Network BA model; the ESS EARF principles.

34 Business Architecture Principles The whole BA model is led by fundamental principles that become practical guidelines for the implementation of each business line activity and for ensuring the success of the model itself. In the Statistical Network BA model, different Decision (7) and Design Principles (9) have been suitably defined, also taking into account the international and European context. Principles regard the overall governance, the process rules and the specific infrastructures

35 BA Principles

36 BA Principles

37 Key Messages from BA Principles (i) The whole statistical process is output and metadata-driven: the statistical process chain starts from the output desired (from required products) and goes backwards, defining the various aspects of the process firstly metadata are designed and then data production can start metadata have to be generally accessible and, as far as possible, standardised with regard to the types of units, the definition of concepts, classifications, quality characteristics, process

38 Key Messages from BA Principles (ii) Quality Assessment: quality has to be evaluated and documented at the different stages of the process it is defined and planned during Develop or Re-develop it is monitored and assessed in each phase of GSBPM and in correspondence of intermediate and final data releases

39 Key Messages from BA Principles (iii) Re-use and Adoption of Standards: focus on both what is produced within the Institute and what is issued outside, with particular attention to the standards defined at international and European level reuse of existing and available data is generally to be preferred over the decision to conduct a new survey the to be statistical production consists of a series of standardised single processes and of modular services that can be shared and reused in different contexts and statistical areas developments from scratch should be limited

40 Key Messages from BA Principles (iv) Industrialisation of the Statistical Process: statistical production has a repetitive nature with a rather rigid organisation style that can be largely automated an industrialised process can be realised by agents other than those who have designed it ensuring the independence between Develop and Implement develop is performed only when needed, while a current statistical process is carried out on a regular basis implementation of a new project involving several innovations requires a new Develop phase

41 The ESS EARF principles ESS EA Principles are Principles that provide the basis for decision making, driven by EA considerations at the level of the ESS. They are definitely project-oriented : in fact, Principles are meant to drive behavior ensuring that the projects launched under the Vision 2020 implementation program will realize the objectives of the Vision. Three key situations in which the ESS EARF Principles will be of great use: (i) to take a project go/ no go decision; (ii) in the designing stage of projects in view of maximizing benefits and business value; (iii) to ensure that the project- specific architecture will integrate in the global ESS architecture.

42 EARF principles: project go-no go 1. Projects build on solid cost-benefit analysis 2. Projects deliver re-usable capabilities 3. Projects deliver capabilities that are sustainable 4. Innovation is a focus area 5. Projects deliver products that are useful to users

43 EARF principles: project design 1. Projects use an adaptive project management approach 2. Projects are designed to continuously deliver outputs & outcomes 3. Projects keep in mind and embed security requirements as of the design phase

44 EARF principles: Information system architecture 1. Information throughput is needs-based 2. Information is available for reuse 3. Communication with externals is adaptive and flexible 4. Processes and systems are configurable 5. Processes are automated 6. Existing standards are used where applicable 7. New standards are developed where necessary 8. Reuse before adapt before buy before build 9. Scalability is an important consideration 10. Security is built in 11. Quality control is built in