Showing papers by "José Tribolet published in 2010"

Information System Architecture Metrics: an Enterprise Engineering Evaluation Approach

Abstract: Although some important technological developments have been achieved during last decade, information systems still do not answer efficiently enough to the continuous demands that organisations are facing – causing a nonalignment between business and information technologies (IT) and therefore reducing organisation competitive abilities. This paper proposes sixteen metrics for the Information System Architecture (ISA) evaluation, supported in an ISA modelling framework. The major goal of the metrics proposed is to assist the architect previewing the impact of his/her ISA design choices on the non-functional qualities of the Enterprise Information System (EIS), ensuring EIS better align with business needs. The metrics proposed are based on the research accomplished by other authors, from the knowledge in other more mature areas and on the authors experience on real world ISA evaluation projects. The metrics proposed are applied to an e-government project in order to support the definition of a suitable ISA for a set of business and technological requirements.

Organizational and Design Engineering of the Operational and Support Components of an Organization: The Portuguese Air Force Case Study

Abstract: The general organization of today results from a combination of elements that makes it a very complex entity, in which the operational and support dimensions should co-exist in a dynamic and constant balance, whose configuration must have flexible and adaptable mechanisms to the outside world. The operational dimension of the organization, in this context, performs a key role because it is linked to the executables that generate output to the exterior, representing the added value and allowing it to achieve measurable objectives. Business Processes perform a key role and are essential for ensuring the availability of resources for proper organization functioning. As processes increase in complexity, it is essential to identify, given the complexity of procedures, what is the relationship between the operational component (generator of value) and the support component and, also, how to draw, organize and manage an organization, in the human and material resources domain, considering i) multiple restrictions; ii) critical needs of real time; iii) various configurations. The Portuguese Air Force, based on a coherent set of principles, initiated a process of change. The core business, flying, is a proven success and the evolving principles can be used in the Organization itself to improve self-awareness.

Business Process Decomposition - An Approach Based on the Principle of Separation of Concerns

Abstract: The functional decomposition of a business process breaks it down into progressively less granular activities. Decomposition contributes to the modular design of a system, the reuse of its parts and to its overall comprehensibility. But achieving these qualities requires a business process to be decomposed consistently, which implies it is always split into an identical set of activities according to a specific purpose, regardless of the modeller’s and modelling context. This paper describes an application of the principle of role-based separation of concerns to consistently decompose a business process into its constituent atomic activities, thus separating its distinct features and minimising behaviour overlap. An activity is abstracted as a collaboration between role types that are played by entities. The decomposition method successively separates the overlapping roles until an activity is specified as a collaboration of an orthogonal set of role types. The method facilitates the consistent decomposition of a business process and the identification of its atomic activities. The relevance of the method is assessed through a number of scenarios according to the guidelines of design science research.

Extending the design and engineering methodology for organizations with the generation operationalization and discontinuation organization

Abstract: We propose an extension for the Design and Engineering Methodology for Organizations – DEMO – to support organization and model change dynamics: the ontological model of the generic G.O.D organization, considered to exist in every organization and being responsible for the Generation, Operationalization and Discontinuation of organization artifacts – e.g., actor role pizza deliverer – as a consequence of the process of handling unexpected exceptions causing dysfunctions in the organization's activity The G.O.D organization keeps a thorough trace of all acts regarding the diagnosis of problems (dysfunctions) and the design and operationalization of their respective solutions Such an historical trace provides useful information to each organizational engineering process (OEP) handling unexpected exceptions Another benefit is to provide a base for a constantly updated model of organizational reality, useful to guide the general activity of organization agents and to provide up to date information of current organizational reality to each OEP.

Towards a G.O.D. Organization for Organizational Self-Awareness

Abstract: In this paper we draw on concepts from the Design and Engineering Methodology for Organizations, and also from its theoretical foundations, to discuss our notions of Organizational Self-Awareness and ontological meta model. These are deemed as central notions to understand and present, in a clear and precise manner, solutions for our main research purpose: finding concepts and methods to better handle organizational change caused by unexpected exceptions causing dysfunction in an organization’s activity. Based on ontological notions like state base of a world and the ontological parallelogram, we arrive at precise definitions of what we call organizational self and its awareness. These then serve to put in perspective our proposal for the G.O.D Organization, considered to exist in every organization and being responsible for the Generation, Operationalization and Discontinuation of organization artifacts – e.g., actor role pizza deliverer – reflecting change of the organizational self. The main contribution of this paper is a discussion and clarification of how one can perceive an organization in a precise and thorough way, as to be able to keep a fact record of its relevant changes and, as a consequence, have a dynamic and “living model” of the organization.

Towards a GOD-theory for organizational engineering: continuously modeling the continuous (re)generation, operation and deletion of the enterprise

Abstract: Much time is lost, in organizations, in the handling of unknown exceptions because organizational models are not current or coherent with reality and there is a lack of concepts and methods in organizational engineering (OE), for a continuous and timely update of models of organizational reality. To address these problems, a renowned methodology for OE -- DEMO (Design and Engineering Methodology for Organizations) and its underlying theory are improved and extended enabling a precise and integrated modeling of three aspects that we consider to be part of the function perspective of an organization: (1) viability -- specification of vital norms of operation that ensure the viability of the organization, dysfunctions and their causing exceptions, (2) change -- specification of the organizational engineering processes responsible for Generation, Operation and Discontinuation of organizational artifacts (OAs) -- for example, business rules or organizational actors -- in order to solve dysfunctions and (3) architecture -- specification of design rules that guide the referred engineering processes, restricting the "shape" of their end result -- OAs.

A Business Model for the Portuguese Air Force

Abstract: Organizations not only play an increasingly active role in today’s society but also begin to address the everyday necessities and concerns of individuals. To achieve competitive advantage, it is becoming more and more necessary that organizations perform efficiently in order to survive.

A Bottom-Up Competency Modeling Approach

Abstract: Competency-based management i.e. linking and assigning work according to the competencies required, has been acknowledged as a key enabler of organizational effectiveness and highlights the importance of modeling organizational competencies. Whereas Enterprise Architectures (EA) model organizations from different perspectives that describe and inter-relate their processes and resources, most EA frameworks provide limited means to model competencies. Available competency modeling approaches rely on static classification models that prove difficult to adjust to the constant changes in competency requirements. We propose a bottom-up modeling approach for representing organizational competencies using semantic units such as actions, goals and resources that (1) provides a more flexible competency classification framework, (2) allows answering questions about different competency-related concerns, and (3) allows assessing the alignment between the competencies required by activities and the competencies held by the actors performing them. This paper describes the competency model proposed and a set of tools used in supporting the model building process. Some benefits of the model are illustrated with a case study in an organizational setting.

Identification of Services through Functional Decomposition of Business Processes

Abstract: In a layered service-oriented enterprise architecture, business processes are supported by application services which are, in turn, supported by technological services. Service-orientation promotes the reuse and modular design of information systems. But achieving these design qualities requires the business processes of an organization to be consistently decomposed so that their supporting services can be effectively identified. This paper proposes using the separation of concerns principle to facilitate the consistent decomposition of a business process and the unambiguous identification of its atomic activities thus contributing to the task of identifying the supporting services.

Adaptive Access Control Modes Enforcement in Organizations

Abstract: Granting the correct access between the agents and the artifacts is nowadays in the organizations agendas. The risk of allowing unauthorized accesses to critical information requires new solutions that are capable of dealing with a holistic perspective. Adaptive OACM refers to the capability of enforcing fine-grained access policies to business processes, services and information systems whenever facing changes, for instance, governance policies. This paper proposes an OACM ontology based in the RBAC, UUID, Rules and architectural model concepts. For exemplification purposes we instantiate the concepts of the ontology to an approval expense problem.

Value Model for Enterprise and Process Architectures Alignment Verification

Abstract: The Portuguese Air Force is making an effort to looking at problems related to the inadequacy of information systems to help managers in attaining business objectives in rigid hierarchical structures.

Enterprise Governance and DEMO Guiding enterprise design and operation by addressing DEMO's competence, authority and responsibility notions

Abstract: The lack of an organizational competence that embodies the ca- pacity to restrict the enterprise undesirable design freedom and guide the subsequent operation, from a holistic point of view, leads to incoherence and inconsistency among the enterprise elements. The research brings forward the importance of this organizational competence labeled enterprise governance (EG) in defining DEMO's ontological models and using their subsequent au- thority, responsibility and competence notions to guide the enterprise dy- namics. Based on these results, the article provides a reference method for the EG to define a set of normative outputs, derived from these three notions addressed in the enterprise ontologic models, comprising a set of principles to address enterprise integration and a set of rules to deal with on-going organizational changes while addressing security issues.

Business Process Model Dynamic Updating

Abstract: Enterprise representations can be used to improve the organizational self-awareness, allowing the communication of knowledge about these concerns among different organizational actors. In order to achieve this goal, the model must provide an updated, trustworthy and reliable representation. However, the typical usage of the enterprise model is restricted to support some organizational activities for limited time intervals. The recognized difficulty in maintaining it updated and aligned with the reality has prevented the usage of enterprise models as a repository of the organizational knowledge relevant for the daily activities execution. The present work proposes a process for continuously update the enterprise model trough the annotation mechanism. Annotations enable interaction contexts that allow actors to make explicit their knowledge about their activities through graphic representations. In this process, actors act as active updaters of the as-is model, through the comparison between the modeled activities and the ongoing real executed activities. This process is modeled by DEMO methodology in order to depict the essential transactions between actors of operational and model updating processes.

Definition of the Model of Automatic Calculation of Flight Time Cost of the Portuguese Air Force Weapon Systems

Abstract: This document focuses on information and all the dynamics associated with it, particularly in combination with one or more information systems.

MAPA: Monitoring and Annotation of Processes and Activities

Abstract: The as-is business process model represents the operational view of the organizations. Its creation effort is associated with several business activities such as (1) requirements gathering to build information systems, (2) implementing quality management systems, (3) re-engineering activities and the improvement of business processes. However, even recognizing its importance in supporting these business activities, the business process model is normally discarded after being used because it is not updated and does not follow the dynamics of organizational change. This paper describes the development of a tool that aims to implement the as-is business process model dynamic update process. The tool recognizes all organizational actors as key agents to reduce the gap between the executed processes and its representation. The tool was tested in a governmental organization where the organizational actors have detected several misalignments between the modeled activities and the real ongoing activities, which after been discussed were turned into corrections to the distributed model.

A method for business process decomposition based on the separation of concerns principle

Abstract: Functional decomposition breaks down a business process into a set of progressively more detailed activities. It facilitates the modular design of a system, the reuse of its parts and also contributes to increasing its comprehensibility. But achieving these qualities requires a business process to be decomposed consistently. Separation of concerns is the principle of separating a system into distinct features with a minimum of overlapping. This paper proposes using this principle to consistently decompose a business process into its constituent activities. An activity is modelled as a collaboration between role types that are played by entities. The decomposition method successively separates the overlapping roles until an activity is specified by the collaboration of an orthogonal set of role types. This method facilitates the consistent decomposition of a business process and the unambiguous identification of its atomic activities.

EX-ANTE and EX-POST Model Development and Monitoring of the Portuguese Air Force Effort Regime

Abstract: There are several theories about how to frame the models of corporate governance according to different perspectives; there are advantages and disadvantages in the adoption of each of them. The more or less complete dimension when related to the scope of each model is also an important aspect in its use and disclosure.

Defining an architectural view for human resources

Abstract: The development of modelling frameworks enabling the analysis and (re)design of HR behaviours is essential for the proper integration of Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS) within organisations. Enterprise Modelling (EM), is widely used to model organisational strategy, activities and resources. However, current EM frameworks disregard the complexity, adaptiveness, and emergence that characterise organisations and their human resources. This paper describes an architectural view to model the activity of human resources in organisations that takes into account all those characteristics. It does so by acknowledging: (1) multiple behavioural concerns, (2) the situational nature of the activity of people in organisations, and (3) human adaptive and emergent behaviours. The paper also suggests an approach for interrelating the proposed architecture with current EM frameworks, and illustrates this with examples from a case study.

Extending DEMO - Control Organization Model - Modeling an Organization's Viability Norms, Dysfunctions and Resilience Strategies.

Abstract: In this paper we present part of an extension to the Design and Engineering Methodology for Organizations (DEMO) – a proposal for an ontological model for the generic Control Organization that we argue that exists in every organization. With our proposal, DEMO can now be used to explicitly specify critical properties of an organization – that we call measures – whose value must respect certain restrictions imposed by other properties of the organization – that we call viability norms. We can now also precisely specify, with DEMO, defined resilience strategies that control and eliminate dysfunctions – violations of viability norms.

Towards a GOD Organization for Organizational Self-Awareness

Abstract: In this paper we draw on concepts from the Design and Engineering Methodology for Organizations, and also from its theoretical foundations, to discuss our notions of Organizational Self-Awareness and ontological meta model. These are deemed as central notions to understand and present, in a clear and precise manner, solutions for our main research purpose: finding concepts and methods to better handle organizational change caused by unexpected exceptions causing dysfunction in an organization’s activity. Based on ontological notions like state base of a world and the ontological parallelogram, we arrive at precise definitions of what we call organizational self and its awareness. These then serve to put in perspective our proposal for the G.O.D Organization, considered to exist in every organization and being responsible for the Generation, Operationalization and Discontinuation of organization artifacts – e.g., actor role pizza deliverer – reflecting change of the organizational self. The main contribution of this paper is a discussion and clarification of how one can perceive an organization in a precise and thorough way, as to be able to keep a fact record of its relevant changes and, as a consequence, have a dynamic and “living model” of the organization.