The purpose of enterprise informatization is to improve the efficiency of product development and production operations through the deployment and implementation of information systems, so as to enhance the core competitiveness of enterprises. Information system planning usually includes: goal setting, demand analysis, program planning, stage division and so on. Based on my own practical experience, the author expounds how to carry out the planning method and implementation process of enterprise informatization based on the idea of "enterprise architecture".
What is "Enterprise Architecture"?
The so-called "enterprise architecture", the conventional explanation is: based on business-oriented and driven architecture to understand, analyze, define, build, integrate, extend, operate and manage information systems.
Based on the "enterprise architecture", the first is to analyze the business architecture model of the enterprise, then to define the data architecture, then to plan the system application architecture, and finally to select the technical framework for implementation, and its relationship and composition are shown in the following figure:
1. Enterprise business structure
Enterprise business architecture defines the business strategy, management organization and business process of the enterprise and department from the strategic level of the enterprise or department. It is an abstract description of the actual business process and information system of an enterprise, including a complete description of enterprise strategy, organization, function, process, system, data, network deployment, etc. In the past and at present, most domestic enterprises skip the link of enterprise architecture and directly enter the construction of the project when conducting IT planning and information system investment, which may lead to:
a) Information construction is out of touch with business needs;
b) IT repeated investment, lack of forward-looking and holistic;
c) Information systems operate independently of each other, and information islands appear and fall into the trap of system integration;
……
So, how to analyze and organize the business structure of the enterprise? Use the business architecture diagram to illustrate the business architecture of the enterprise in a structured way:
Based on the business structure of the enterprise in the above figure, it is decomposed layer by layer until the process and steps of each business field, restore the business process to the greatest extent, help the information management department to grasp the overall business model of the enterprise, and then optimize the informatization planning from the strategic level , Integrate informatization processes and rationally allocate enterprise resources.
2. Data architecture based on business domain
In the "big data era", with the construction of "data center" as the carrier, carrying out data architecture planning has become a key link in enterprise informatization, and it is also the only way to build an enterprise information system.
The analysis and definition of the data architecture must be carried out on the basis of having clarified the business architecture model. Data architecture will realize the transformation from business model to data model, the mapping of business requirements to information functions, and the abstraction of enterprise data to enterprise information.
Data architecture abstracts enterprise business and entities into information objects (logical data, physical data and their relationships, etc.), abstracts the business operation mode of an enterprise into attributes and methods of information objects, and establishes an object-oriented enterprise data model.
The content of data architecture planning includes data model definition, relationship between data and business functions, relationship between data and system functions, data standards, data life cycle, data interface, etc.
Through the analysis and definition of the system data architecture, it is ensured that the information system provides comprehensive, consistent and complete business data for business processes and business departments.
3. System application architecture
The application architecture is based on the data architecture, and establishes various information systems that support the business operation of the enterprise. Through the integrated operation of the information system, the business data interface of the enterprise is opened up, and the automatic flow of various business information of the enterprise is realized. It centrally describes the functions of the information system and what the technology needs to achieve.
The application architecture is generally divided into two levels, the enterprise-level application architecture and the application architecture of a single information system. The most common information system application framework, often referred to as "business blueprint" or "functional blueprint". The example in the following figure depicts the enterprise portal, and the functional blueprint and relationships of the three information systems based on it:
The data architecture definition and the application architecture definition are closely integrated and interdependent, and can be collectively called "information system architecture", which clearly defines the boundaries of each information system and clarifies the integration interface between each information system, so as to ensure the overall situation of the enterprise. Consistency, completeness and accuracy of data.
According to the information system architecture, the implementation plan, steps and priorities of each information system of the enterprise can be formulated.
4. System technical architecture
The technical architecture mainly defines the management standards and technical standards of enterprise information systems, as well as the software and hardware capabilities that need to support the deployment of business, data and application systems, including IT infrastructure, middleware, networks, communication protocols, etc. Since these contents are easy to understand, they will not be elaborated here.
Summarize
Through the layer-by-layer analysis and implementation of business architecture, data architecture, application architecture and technical architecture, we can help us plan the strategy and direction of enterprise informatization, especially when implementing various information systems of the enterprise, so that each information system can be truly effective. Manage enterprise processes to ensure the implementation of enterprise strategic intentions; avoid departmental barriers and information islands, ensure consistency and accuracy of cross-departmental information, and reduce the implementation risk of information systems.