Integration Modelingfor Enterprise Resource Planning

EAI Conference Feb 01, 2001Laura BrownSystem Innovations

Field Office

Field Office

Field Office

SALES1

ORDERS1

GeneralLedger

FinancialReporting

Marketing

MarketingReporting

SALESN

ORDERSN

CIO VIEW

Finance

CustomerService

CustomerInformation

# 2

FinancialInformation

CustomerInformation

# N

OrderInformation

Sales &ServiceDelivery

OrderInformation

Field Office

Reports

ReportsSales &ServiceDelivery

CustomerInformation

# 1

SalesRepresentative

CUSTOMER

SALES VIEW

FieldOffice

Request/RespondServices

SpecialOffers

Collateral

ComputerSystems

Data

SALES

ORDERS

Collateral Pricing Info

Performance& Problems

MARKETING VIEW

ReportsData

InternalSystems

ExtractData

Compile & calculate

results

External Sources

Analyze &Present

TapeLists

Integration Issues

Common: Gap between business and technology

ERP-specific - revealed by viewpoint modeling:

1. Redundant data and multiple non-matching data sources

2. Significant data-sharing shortfall

3. Poor integration of external data sources

4. Lack of connectivity

5. Lack of internal cost allocation mechanisms

6. Limited management reporting

7. Limited client reporting

Business View

Business Projects

INTEGRATION MODELS: Context-Oriented Models across Application Portfolios

Technical ViewCASE Models

Zachman ArchitectureFramework

Spreadsheets, MentalModels, Scenarios, etc.

Technical Projects What How Where When Who Why

Integration Models

• clarify the context

• capture multiple perspectives

• may function on more than one level at a time

• cross the lines between application portfolios

• provide the hooks (or context) for tying together seemingly unrelated project layers:

• technology• business process• infrastructure• organization, etc.

What Integration Models are not:

• a new notation

• a type of CASE, UML or OO model

• a type of Business model

• formal, rigorously defined for automation

• one more level of detail or abstraction

except, of course,

- an individual model may be almost any of the above -

on the whole, it’s not what they’re about

SEED

The seed is a generator/transformer structure depicting a situation where acore component produces, collects or contains an array of results.

CIO VIEW- Solution(redundant data is consolidated into a shared data repository)

CustomerService

OrderInformation

CustomerInformation

Sales &ServiceDelivery

SalesInformation

Packaged System

Field Office

Field Office

Field Office

Field Office

FLOW

The flow template is utilized by process and flow analysis to trace the courseof information, goods, services, communications, etc.

Financial View: From Pricing to Payment – Process(data sharing requirements)

Identify Client’s

Needs

Deliver Service

Price the Product

Negotiate theAgreement

Bill theClient

Collect thePayment

Identified Product Priced Product

ProductDefinitions

PricingCategories

Negotiated Agreement

Termsof

Agreement

Time&Expense

Invoice Categories

Invoice

PaymentCategories

Changes

Apply ARFinancial Controls &Guidelines

Billing Data

Controls&

Guidelines

CELL

Cell models support modeling of encapsulation, inheritance & messaging. Analysis of distribution systems, geographic division –behaviors at the local versus global levels.

Business StrategiesPositioning

BusinessStrategies

Understanding Competition

Understanding Economics

Awareness of Social/Demographic

Changes

Understanding Evolving

Technology

Awareness ofLegislation/RegulatoryChanges

KnowingClient

Understanding Market Conditions

Business StrategiesPositioning

(integrating external data sources)

Understanding Competition

NORRELLBusinessStrategies

Understanding Economics

Awareness of Social/Demographic

Changes

Understanding Evolving

Technology

Awareness ofLegislation/RegulatoryChanges

KnowingClient

Understanding Market Conditions

Who are our competitors?What are their products/services?What are competitors advantages/disadvantages?How do we compete now?How have we been competing historically?What are industry trends/developments?

SourcesBrokerage Firm AnalystsIndustry Research NetworkBaird Industry ReportsBusiness Wire Clipping SvcEdgarAccess DisclosureStaffing Industry ReportMorningstarBureau of Labor Statistics

ResearchCurrent Position

Research HistoricalPosition

UnderstandCompetition

Study Industry Trends

Research competitorproducts/servicesResearch competitors

Know competitors advantages/disadvantages

USE CASE TREEUnderstanding Competition

RING

The ring template is useful in depicting chaining of events, people, devicesor network addresses. Models peer-to-peer relationships.

Network View - Office Connectivity Map(remedies lack of connectivity)

BRANCH

BRANCH

BRANCH

BRANCH

BRANCH

BRANCH

BRANCH

BRANCH

BRANCH

BRANCHSUPPORTOFFICE

BRANCHSUPPORTOFFICE

BRANCHSUPPORTOFFICE

CORPORATEOFFICE

SATELLITES

SELFSUPPORTING

BRANCH

BRANCH

1

2

3

4

5

6

TREE

The Tree is a structure utilized to model systems whose characteristicsinclude complex branching, diversification and the implementation of distribution alternatives.

Cost Allocation View - Absorption of Overhead Cost(defines internal cost allocation mechanism)

HeadQuarters

Cost of Support Services

AccountingDepartment

GL

Solutions

RetailDivision

Management fee

Asset fee

Management fee

Asset fee

Management fee

Asset fee

Field OfficeAllocation

Field OfficeAllocation

Field OfficeAllocation

Solutions Field Office

Field Office

RetailField Office

Middle Market&FranchisedDivision

Management fee

Asset fee Field OfficeAllocation Report Franchised

Managers

Region/Division

Projected Usage

Projected Usage

Projected Usage

Projected Usage

YearEnd Overage

YearEnd Overage

YearEnd Overage

YearEnd Overage

Field OfficeAllocation Middle Market

Company-ownedField Offices

RegionManagersField Office

Allocation Report

Management Reporting View - Solution

CustomerService

Marketing

DataWarehouse:Financial &Customer

Information

Finance

Line Managers

Branches

Payrolling

TemporaryStaffing

DataWarehouse:

ServiceStatistics

On SiteManaged Staff

Outsourcing

Full TimeStaffing

Client Reporting View - Solution

Field Office

Field Office

Field Office

FinancialReporting

Marketing

MarketingReporting

LocalAreaNetwork

CIO VIEW- Improved Model(combines issue solutions)

Finance

CustomerService

OrderInformation

DataWarehouse:Financial &Customer

InformationCustomerInformation

Field Office

Reports

Reports

Sales &ServiceDelivery

TroubleReports

SalesInformation

TroubleReports

Packaged System

IM templates:

• clarify the dynamics of any model: UML, CASE, OO, etc.

• would make a good set of “snap to grid” formats for tools to adopt

• make models tend to match each other

• cover a broad spectrum of structures

• tell us how the current problem set might work, where it will likely go next, what it’s characteristics are

• suggest technological options (some templates translate directlyinto OO design patterns (see book by Gamma et al))

Acknowledgements:

Clients:who have participated with open minds in the successful application of integration models for specificprojects

Colleagues:Elena Oliker, of MATIS, Inc. for her many contributions to the development and practice of integration modelingand Eric Ericson, of Logical Solutions, who introduced me to the use case tree structure in UML modeling

This case study is excerpted from Laura’s bookIntegration Models: Templates for Business Transformation,- Sept. 2000, SAMS Publishing

Laura BrownSystem Innovationslbrown@systeminnovations.net770-953-0534