Reference architecture or model provides a common vocabulary, reusable designs, and industry best practices that are used as a constraint for more concrete architectures. Typically, reference architecture includes common architecture principles, patterns, building blocks, and standards. They are not solution architectures (i.e., they are not implemented directly).
A reference architecture in the field of software architecture provides a template solution for an architecture for a domain. The structures and respective elements and relations provide templates for concrete architectures in a domain. A common vocabulary is used to discuss implementations, often with the aim to stress commonality.
Enterprise Reference Architectures are standardized architectures that provide a frame of reference for a vertical domain or sector. Many domains have their reference architecture definitions. The key reference architecture examples include:BIAN service landscape for the banking industry;
ACORD Framework for the insurance industry;
eTOM business process framework for the telecommunications industry from the TMForum;
Government reference architectures, for example, the US FEAF or the Australian AGA;
Defense architecture frameworks such as NAF, DODAF, and MoDAF;
Reference architectures for manufacturing and supply chains such as ISA-95 and SCOR.
Most of these reference architectures include common business building blocks, business capabilities, and business processes for a specific vertical domain. They may include, for example, common data models, communication standards and exchange formats, and sometimes even common software building blocks and mostly reusable assets and models.
A reference architecture provides a template, often based on the generalization of a set of solutions. These solutions may have been generalized and structured for the depiction of one or more architecture structures based on the harvesting of a set of patterns that have been observed in a number of successful implementations.
Further, it shows how to compose these parts together into a solution. Enterprise Reference Architectures will be instantiated for a particular domain or for specific projects.
Following are some of the Enterprise Architecture(EA) reference architecture models that I have built over the years.
Business Reference Model (BRM)
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| Business Reference Model |
Understanding the capabilities required by your business provides a high-level overview of the business and can be a very useful exercise as it allows one to take a step back and focus on what the key elements of the business are. You can avoid getting bogged down in the details of ‘how’ things happen and concentrate on ‘what’ does (or needs to) happen. Once you have done this, it is possible to identify your key capabilities, for example, the ones that will differentiate your business, and you can use this information to ensure that you focus on the areas of importance in your business, whether this is in defining new projects or ensuring business as usual delivers appropriately.
TOGAF Definition of Business capability Mapping:
A business capability map represents the complete, stable set of business capabilities (along with all of their defining characteristics) that covers the business, enterprise, or organisational unit in question. The end product of the modeling process is typically a business capability map, which provides the visual depiction (or blueprint) of all the business capabilities at an appropriate level of decomposition, logically grouped into different categories or perspectives to support more effective analysis and planning.
Once defined, the business capability model provides a self-contained view of the business that is independent of the current organisational structure, business processes, IT systems and applications, and the product or service portfolio. However, mapping the business capabilities back to organisational units, value streams, IT architecture, and the strategic and operational plans will provide greater insight into the alignment and optimisation of each of those domains.
Applications Reference Model (ARM)
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Application Reference Model
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The Application Reference Model allows you to understand your Application Landscape and see where duplication of Applications exists.
The Application Reference Model provides an overview of the applications that exist in the organisation associated with Application Services, Standards, Usage and Lifecycle.
The Application Capabilities are mapped to Application Services and also to the Applications that provide those Services. You can use this as part of your portfolio strategy to show applications that can provide support in the future, and also for rationalisation analysis to identify where you have multiple applications providing the same services across the organisation.
Technology Reference Model (TRM)
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| Technology Reference Model |
The Technology Reference Model defines a standard, layered view of the logical Technology Components in scope for the enterprise.
Business Capability Mapping
Business capability mapping is the process of creating a model of the capabilities your business needs to possess in order to operate. It's not about how you go about your operations, but simply what operations you need to carry out.
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| Business Capability Mapping |
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