Enterprise Modeling Concepts

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Enterprise Architecture Concepts

Enterprise Modeling Applications

The iGrafx® platform addresses many aspects of business and enterprise architecture modeling, and can be used for creating enterprise-wide modeling data. With iGrafx, you can model your enterprise landscape, IT architecture and resources, align strategies and goals, and enable risk and compliance management. The iGrafx platform allows you to create enterprise objects in a central repository that represent your enterprise Processes and Activities, Strategies, Goals, Measurements, Risks, Resources, and more (see Enterprise Objects Overview for more information on enterprise objects and their function). This data can be related together, showing how various enterprise objects support the work of the enterprise. Enterprise modeling can be done through the web or from desktop applications FlowCharter, Process and Process for Six Sigma. To use the architecture modeling capabilities, users of desktop applications must have additional Architect access licenses.

iGrafx® Enterprise Modeler® lets you perform further analysis and reporting of enterprise models created in iGrafx. It enables multi-dimensional enterprise reporting, automatically-generated diagrams to visualize and understand the connections between business factors, and impact and gap analysis. Enterprise objects and relationships added or modified in the central repository appear in Enterprise Modeler, and vice-versa, keeping your enterprise model data synchronized. A variety of reporting options are available, including impact analysis, process alignment, gap analysis, performance reporting (including Balanced Scorecard and tracking current Key Performance Indicators), RACI reporting, and more.

Enterprise Landscape Modeling

With iGrafx, you can create hierarchical process ‘landscapes’ or ‘architectures’ that describe your enterprise processes at varying levels of abstraction. For example, you can define processes at a reference, operational, and support level to indicate how your enterprise meets process framework best practices, performs the actions of your organization, or even implements the processes in automated Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software. iGrafx has Accelerators available that provide ‘best practice’ frameworks to guide development of process landscapes.

The iGrafx graphical client tools, such as FlowCharter (from the desktop), and BPMN web modeler (from the browser), provide a method to create diagrams that visualize the process landscape; ‘describing’ the landscape and related enterprise objects. You can extend the description of the enterprise by referring any enterprise objects to additional supporting documentation, ensuring everyone throughout the enterprise has an appropriate understanding of the enterprise.

Enterprise Objects and Reporting

Enterprise objects that you can create can include Strategies, Goals, and Measurements useful in Performance Management, such as with using the ‘Balanced Scorecard.’ Risk Management can be performed by identifying Risks, and by placing Controls (Business Rules) on processes. RACI relationships can be created and visualized. Standardized templates may be created to apply Risks and Measurements to the process landscape stored in an iGrafx repository. You can apply Risks and Measurements, and RACI information, to shapes prior to integration with a repository, and with a repository you may use standardized templates to ensure consistent definitions or perform enterprise reporting on an enterprise-wide basis.