Enterprise architecture and process modeling

An organization can be seen as a building: it must have a solid foundation on which to support the rest of the structure. For a business, those foundations will depend on the type of activity it performs, as the structure is different for a manufacturing industry than for a software development company. However, any business can use, to understand this structure, the concept of enterprise architecture and process modeling as a complement to it.

Enterprise architecture can be understood as a set of organizational elements (strategic objectives, departments, processes, technology, personnel, etc.) that shape and constitute a company. From the perspective of enterprise architecture, these elements have specific relationships with each other that seek to ensure the alignment of the entire organization, i.e., to include the highest levels, the strategic ones, and also the lowest, the operational ones, in order to optimize the generation of products and services that make up the value proposition delivered to customers.

Having an architectural perspective is important because it allows the entity to be seen as an integrated whole that functions in a coordinated manner with a common goal for all parts of the operation. In addition to being the set of organizational elements, enterprise architecture is also understood as a holistic analysis practice done in organizations: “enterprise architecture is a managerial and technological practice that seeks to improve the performance of companies by enabling them to see themselves from a comprehensive and holistic view of their strategic direction, business practices, information flows and technological resources” (Bernard, 2012).

To achieve these results, corporate architecture can use the same method that an architect uses: to make general plans of the site to understand where to take special care, how the parts of the building are joined and how water, energy and gas will circulate through the different ducts in the walls of the building. Thus, in addition to knowing how to execute the work, you can fix problems that occur when the building is already inhabited.

Therefore, enterprise architecture is a key management tool for organizations to make intelligent decisions, decisions that take into consideration every aspect of the business operation and the connections between them. Lack of enterprise architecture implies a disorganized activity without synergy, which means a decisive disadvantage in today’s business world, based on the speed of technology.

Modeling processes for enterprise architecture

Perhaps the most appropriate tool in technological terms to support the enterprise architecture are the computer systems to design and model the company’s processes. This is so because the processes are the ones that determine the structure, and thus define the necessary foundations for an organization. Therefore, with a process modeling solution it is possible to have clarity about the structure in order to build on this model the actual process.

Business process modeling has been essential to businesses for many decades, and organizations have found success in applying modeling techniques and tools. While modeling systems are intended to be visual, they’re often accompanied by varying degrees of documentation to provide greater detail when necessary. The concept of process modeling might seem somewhat simple to grasp, but performing modeling activities can be a challenge. Often, many departments, roles and relationships are involved, making relatively simple tasks seem more complex once they’re mapped. (techtarget.com)

To overcome all these complexities of process design, the most important thing is to have a tool that can truly integrate all actions into a single workflow. Thus, no matter which task is developed, all of them will be part of the company’s global goals and will benefit everyone who works in it.

Therefore, the recommendation is to have a process modeler, but also that it is part of a tool for automation and integration of the different parts of the company, and that it can align all this activity with the business goals and customer satisfaction. This is, ultimately, the most important achievement of an organization and what guarantees that its structure and the architecture it uses will provide constant benefits, while improving the conditions of its workers in all areas.

For enterprise architecture and process modeling to go hand in hand, the Dexon Business Process Management solution uses full automation of all activities that can be automated. To achieve this, our team works with the organization that will implement the solution to find the perfect architectural structure.

This ensures that the business structure has a solid foundation and that any changes that need to be made to adapt to new conditions are made with the confidence that they will not alter the organization’s bottom line and maintain customer confidence.

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