High-Level Business Architecture - Research Paper Example

High Level business architecture By and Introduction Whenever a business designs a new product or service, the business case and the objectives of such an idea are defined forthright and detailed further with the use of business as well as other functional requirements. Business requirements specification therefore takes two levels of complexity to include the high level requirements and the functional requirements (Architectureandgovernance.com, 2014). Business requirements can be defined as the high level needs or necessities which after fulfillment by an organization lead to the satisfaction of its business goals and objectives. Precisely, high level business needs describe what should be done by a system or any other business solution. For the case of Adopt-A-Farm, it is clear that the company needs to have an online system for collecting their customer and partner views about their experiences in volunteer harvesting and as well list the stories and other help facilities for users of the system. The high level business requirements could therefore be seen as an indication of the reasons as to why a business undertakes an activity (Ross & Robertson, 2006). The requirements are documented as below; Vision statement The vision of having a system for user involvement is to expand the reach of the company in creation of awareness over the advantages of growing and purchasing local farm produce. Objective statements The objectives of the high level business requirements for Adopt-A-Farm are to come up with an online system which will increase user participation in the campaign on local farming and purchasing of food products as well as user participation in creation of awareness. It also focuses on having a system for direct user participation in forums and also in commenting about the advantages of local farming. The system should also reach as many people as possible around the globe for the sole reason of creating awareness across nations. Context of the project The project focuses on listing the stories shared by users about their experiences with consumption of local products in the blog section. From this, users will have a wide variety of content to refer from to gain the taste and to understand the importance of consuming local products and thereafter participating in the campaign with an aim to carb the global warming menace. It also focuses on advising local farmers on the best practices and operations to carry on in their farms which reduce the chances of environmental degradation. Finally, the system will also focus on promoting volunteer harvesting through the creation of a forum for users to comment on their experiences in the exercise. This will be in a bid to encourage people to participate in such exercises whenever they could be having a chance to. Scope of the project The project should only cover and contain issues regarding the importance of local farming and purchasing locally grown food substances with an aim of saving the globe from global warming impacts. Lastly, it is clear that high level business requirements are a tool for achieving effectiveness in the process of business analysis (Themanager.org, 2014). They explain the reasons as to why and what a project should contain in order to function as expected to achieve the goals set. It can therefore be referred to as the starting point for any analytical work performed to understand the requirements of a business enterprise. Business Architecture Blueprints The value chain blue print Figure 1: Illustration of the Value Chain blueprint for Adopt-A-Farm online business strategies The value chain approach presented by Michael Porter can be viewed as an implementation methodology for bridging the gap between the opportunities and capabilities which offer the business a competitive advantage (Themanager.org, 2014). The framework focuses on the attractiveness of the industry and the effects they subject companies to that industry. The value chain analysis helps organizations discover their core competencies and identify the activities that aid in achieving a competitive advantage. The analysis can be viewed as a cost based method that condenses business activities into nine activity groups with an aim to achieve cost efficiency and increase profitability of an organization. The Capability model blue print Figure 2: Illustration of the capability model for Adopt-A-Farm Business capabilities define the abilities and capacity that an organization has for delivering value to either their customers or the shareholders (Provenmodels.com, 2014). They are form a very crucial abstraction by representation of the higher level details beyond the business strategies. A typical business capability is comprised of three components which include processes, people and the assets involved in a value chain. Business capabilities can either take the form of operational or the customer facing capabilities. The network of outlets in the different nationalities for Adopt-A-Farm as well as the creation of an online platform for customer interaction all fall under the category of customer facing capabilities. On the other hand, operational capabilities aim at delivering value to the shareholders. These, therefore, comprises of such factors as strategic planning, financial planning and formation of mergers and acquisitions. These capabilities are exceptionally valuable as they serve to render strategies into action. Other business architecture blueprints A number of more architecture blue prints exist. A foundation for execution is one of these strategies that aim at improving the profitability of venture, lower the costs incurred in implementing the IT infrastructure and achieve faster time to the markets for a business enterprise (Small Business - Chron.com, 2014). Choosing an appropriate foundation for execution for your business improves the business agility and can therefore be viewed as a strategic resource. There also exists the value stream architecture, which depicts a collection of the activities that aid in achieving customer value in the stream. Whereas the capability model provides a view of the entire business enterprise, the value stream focuses on adding value to the customer requirement expectations. It can be illustrated as shown in the diagram below; Figure 3: Value stream business architecture The value stream architecture allows clients to get their delivery of products and services on a timely manner, and in a cost effective way. It is thus the best approach that could be selected for an organization to achieve the value chain. The current architecture model for adopt a farm is effective. There is however need for a migration as that could result to a downfall of their operations in the future as a result of technological growth. The current model includes a user centered approach aimed at achieving the best level of user satisfaction. Opting for a foundation for execution strategy keeps the business at an escalated position in which any fluctuations in the technological advancements do not have an impact on the operations of the business References Architectureandgovernance.com,. (2014). Business Capability Modeling: Theory & Practice | Archistecture and Governance – Strategic IT Planning and Enterprise Architecture. Retrieved 14 July 2014, from http://www.architectureandgovernance.com/content/business-capability-modeling-theory-practice Provenmodels.com,. (2014). ProvenModels - value chain analysis - Michael E. Porter. Retrieved 14 July 2014, from http://www.provenmodels.com/26/value-chain-analysis/porter,-michael-e Ross, J., Weill, P., & Robertson, D. (2006). Enterprise architecture as strategy (1st ed.). Boston, Mass.: Harvard Business School Press. Small Business - Chron.com,. (2014). Functional Requirements Vs. Business Requirements. Retrieved 14 July 2014, from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/functional-requirements-vs-business-requirements-65938.html Themanager.org,. (2014). Value Chain Publications Management Portal. Retrieved 14 July 2014, from http://www.themanager.org/models/valuechain.htm Read More