Key Functionality & Technical Papers

Supplementing the Zachman Framework with CACI's RENovate and SIMPROCESS for Process and IT Systems Initiatives

Top management in every Enterprise is under heavy pressure to improve performance, and among the biggest challenges facing management are those of quality, timeliness and change. These are the conditions forcing businesses to confront their Enterprise Architecture, which is the cornerstone for leveraging technology innovations to fulfill the expectations of a viable and dynamic Enterprise.

By definition, Architecture is that set of descriptive representations (i.e. "models") that are relevant for describing an Enterprise such that it can be produced to management's requirements (quality) and maintained over the period of its useful life (change)." Many companies have a large inventory of "current systems," built out-of-context, not integrated, not supporting the Enterprise, that are consuming enormous amounts of resources for "maintenance" and are far and away too costly to replace.

To combat these problems, an influencing framework for classifying an Enterprise Architecture was devised by John Zachman in 1987. In this framework, the Architecture for an Enterprise is described in two, independent dimensions. On the vertical axis multiple perspectives of the overall architecture are provided and on the horizontal axis a classification of the various stakeholder views of the architecture is given. It is simply a logical structure for classifying and organizing the descriptive representations of an Enterprise that are significant to the management of the Enterprise as well as to the development of the Enterprise's systems. A Zachman table is a philosophical framework which describes what is to be done, but doesn't require a specific approach. The Zachman Framework (ZF) is shown in the diagram below:

The ZF includes process models and logical data models by inserting details into specific cells within the framework. In total, there are five different stakeholder perspectives: the Scope, Owner, Designer, Builder, and Sub-Contractor views. The table also identifies six characteristics called "abstractions" or dimensions including the What, How, Where, Who, When and Why product characteristics. The intersection of the five perspectives and six dimensions establish thirty cells in the ZF. Each of these cells can have one or more architectural artifacts that describe that part of the enterprise. From an IT perspective, these categories can form the foundation for the enhanced business process or computer system.

In Federal circles, there is also a Current + Target perspective. The Federal CIO Council in 1999 established a model that included a Current Architecture (a combined Technical and Business Architecture based on the ZF), a Target Architecture (with the same structure), and enterprise change agents, which correspond to projects and initiatives. Although not classified as such, this was the beginning of portfolio management. The selection and implementation of projects exert the necessary change against the current architecture to establish the desired target architecture.

CACI employs a formal and repeatable methodology called RENovateSM that satisfies all elements of the ZF. RENovateSM is a formalized process that CACI has applied for over 10 years to help our customers modernize and improve their processes and supporting information technology. The diagram below outlines the RENovateSM methodology:

Our approach includes analysis of an Enterprise's business objectives, business process flows, organizational structures, resource involvement, use of information, and performance metrics to develop business process models. This assessment and the subsequent models cover all dimensions of the ZF. These models will then be used to generate new ideas and proposed process and technology improvements. While RENovateSM doesn't use the same terminology as the Zachman framework, it covers the same ideals and principles:

Unlike the ZF, which is not linked to a specific technical approach, the RENovateSM methodology employs CACI's business process modeling and simulation tool, SIMPROCESS®, to support critical portions of the business model. RENovateSM leverages existing business objectives, policies, legacy systems, and other relevant aspects of the enterprise to provide results in the short term. The SIMPROCESS® tool enables decision support, business process management, business activity monitoring, COTS gap analysis, and change management support activities for the enterprise.

In order to properly evaluate the alignment of the Zachman Framework with the RENovateSM and SIMPROCESS® environment consider the following:
Strengths of the ZF and CACI's support:

• Artifacts are explicitly defined, yet flexible. The ZF elaborates a complete set of perspectives and dimensions to thoroughly and clearly document the architecture of a business. The RENovate methodology and SIMPROCESS tool provide specific deliverables mapping to the ZF (see previous table and chart).
• Highlights critical issues and identifies gaps. The ZF balances stakeholder perspectives and business dimensions often ignored by other approaches (e.g., METAGroup EA). The RENovate and SIMPROCESS environment is adaptable to fit the targets identified by the ZF and highlight any gaps.
• Highlights the multiple stakeholder perspective. Usually, an enterprise architecture approach focuses on the specific implementation of a technology or system. Although the RENovate methodology certainly supports that, it also supports the other stakeholders with critical artifacts for decision-making.
• Accommodates expansion in a structured fashion. A little known advantage of the ZF is that it can be implemented top-down, bottom-up, or middle-out. Few methodologies can accommodate this flexibility. RENovate and SIMPROCESS can.
• Is not tied to a specific methodology or toolset. The ZF does not dictate methodology or tools. As a result, many methodologies and tools have been "shoe-horned" into the ZF arena. RENovate and SIMPROCESS are not only adaptable to the ZF, they go beyond. Where other tools are passive (i.e., must be manually maintained), the SIMPROCESS tool can be implemented as a web service and monitor aspects of the architecture not properly documented or operating according to expectations. This makes the RENovate and SIMPROCESS environment active, separating it from the shelfware products normally used for the ZF.

Weaknesses of the ZF, and CACI's provided enhancements:

• The ZF was designed as a classification scheme, not an implementation methodology. It was intended "for organizing knowledge and forming a basis for constructing more complex theses."[Zachman] The Federal Reference models developed by the Federal Enterprise Architecture PMO are additional examples of a classification approach. The RENovateSM methodology takes the next best step. It aligns with the ZF, but targets high-value opportunities as defined by the customer, and carries the architecture through to the implementation phases.
• Can lead to a documentation-heavy approach. The ZF consists of thirty cells. To document all thirty cells before any implementation occurs has historically proven to have a low success rate with most organizations. The RENovate methodology and SIMPROCESS tool environment produces ZF-aligned artifacts that focus on critical deliverables. Documentation is produced, but just the right documentation for the job at hand.
• Can lead to a methodology-biased approach. Historically, the ZF has been used to promote a specific way of working to satisfy a methodology bias, which does not always match what the customer needs. RENovate focuses on customer business objectives, which ensure the proper artifacts for the customer, not the methodology.
• Can lead to a process-heavy approach to development. Documenting thirty cells and performing configuration and change management on the resulting artifacts can be a daunting task. The subsequent management of architecture artifacts is usually a new process for an IT shop. Configuration and change management is built into the repeatable RENovate methodology, minimizing the risks to customers.
• ZF is not well accepted in the development community. The ZF is popular in the IT architecture community. However, Agile Modeling practices and the Rational Unified Process (RUP) are more popular in the development community. The RENovate methodology and SIMPROCESS tool has proven to work well in all three environments, providing the architectural artifacts considered critical for each and adding value where other methodologies and tools cannot. Addionally there is an add-on available from CACI to link SIMPROCESS models to Rational models.

The CACI RENovate and SIMPROCESS tool environment focuses on value to the customer, not on a canned solution or tool. They can capture exactly what the customer needs and deliver products on a short timetable. This environment creates artifacts easily understood by executive managers, while delivering specifications that enable quick designs and solutions by implementers.

The business models built in SIMPROCESS® can be used for the entire business life cycle, from business process analysis to implementation to operational performance feedback. The following highlight additional capabilities this environment provides:

• Test IT initiatives or BPR candidates as alternate scenarios to validate the effectiveness of project goals.
• Plug front-end process models directly into the run-time operational systems to provide added value to Business Activity Monitoring (BAM) type executive dashboards for operational performance monitoring.
• Support Balanced Scorecard (BSC) metrics through prediction of future scenarios provided to the decision maker and not just the current data.
• Support gap analyses on candidate COTS solutions to existing business processes within the enterprise.
• Finally, the RENovateSM methodology as supported by SIMPROCESS® establishes an environment where the enterprise architecture is active, instead of passive, which is the traditional tool environment for enterprise architectures.

SIMPROCESS® is built on pure Java and XML. This architecture allows the software to port to multiple hardware platforms, which improves the scalability of models. We also have external model connection and external application connection capabilities built into SIMPROCESS, which allows the user to have multiple models communicate with each other or to use SIMPROCESS to make calls to external applications (such as a centralized dashboard). SIMPROCESS interfaces directly with IBM's Rational Rose or ArgoUML for UML modeling, and OptQuest for process optimization. Its XML file format allows transforms and data exchanges with any tool that supports XML standards.

CACI's has been a leader in business process analysis and system redesign and our process-modeling approach has been used to develop staffing models (see our Navy Manpower & Personnel models), supply chain models, manufacturing, models, transportation models, and a variety of administrative process models.

The ZF garners as much mindshare as any approach to enterprise architecture. It is not a silver bullet approach; however, it is a complete and systematic approach to enterprise architecture. It deserves a support environment that allows it to mature.