© The ATHENA Consortium. EM1 - Enterprise Modelling as a way to achieve Interoperability Module 3 - What interoperability problems does Enterprise Modelling address?

2 © The ATHENA Consortium. Module 3 - What interoperability problems does EM address? Module Structure: 1.Interoperability layers: Business, Knowledge and ICT 2.PPM Scenario

3 © The ATHENA Consortium. Interoperability difficulties are not purely technical problems. Lack of interoperability emerges from proprietary development, unavailability or oversupply of standards, and heterogeneous platforms. The situation became more critical through new business paradigms like extended enterprises and networked organisations that require businesses to work together to achieve further benefits. A holistic perspective on interoperability will be adopted to achieve real, meaningful interoperation between enterprises. Adoption of a holistic perspective on interoperability Interoperability Processing

4 © The ATHENA Consortium. The Interoperability framework is represented via three main layers: Business, Knowledge and ICT solutions. Finally, a “fourth dimension” has been introduced: the semantics that cut across the three layers. Interoperability on all layers of an enterprise Application Data Business Knowledge Application Semantics Business Knowledge Semantics Enterprise AEnterprise B Data Communication

5 © The ATHENA Consortium. The Business layer all issues related to the organisation and the operations of an enterprise are addressed. Interoperability at business level should be seen as the organisational and operational ability of an enterprise to cooperate with other, external organisations. In order to understand the business compatibility of two organisations, it is necessary first to understand each other. To this end, each organisation must achieve a deep understanding of itself. Business layer

6 © The ATHENA Consortium. The Knowledge layer deals with acquiring a deep and wide knowledge of the enterprise. Interoperability at knowledge level is the compatibility of the skills, competencies, and knowledge assets of an enterprise with those of other, external organisations. In collaborations, two organisations need to verify their compatibility at the knowledge level, by at the same time preserving their competitive advantage and confidentiality issues. Knowledge layer

7 © The ATHENA Consortium. The ICT Systems layer focuses on the ICT solutions that allow an enterprise to operate, make decisions, exchange information within and outside its boundaries, and so on. Interoperability at ICT Systems level is the ability of an enterprise’s ICT systems to cooperate with those of external organisations. ICT Systems layer

8 © The ATHENA Consortium. The semantic dimension cuts across the business, knowledge and ICT layers. To overcome the semantic barrier, which emerges from different interpretations of syntactic descriptions, precise, computer processable meaning must be associated with each concept. It has to be ensured that semantics are exchangeable and based on a common understanding. This can be achieved using an Ontology and an annotation formalism for meaning. Semantic Dimension ENTERPRISE A Business Knowledge ICT Systems S e m a n t i c s ENTERPRISE B Business Knowledge ICT Systems S e m a n t i c s

9 © The ATHENA Consortium. Product Portfolio Management (PPM) is a process whereby the list of active product development projects is constantly updated and revised. The objective of PPM is to allocate resources in a way to maximize sales and profits and minimize risks, as well as to achieve balance of development projects. The three main phases of the PPM process are: Selection and Analysis Phase Screening Phase Operational Feedback Phase PPM Scenario description

10 © The ATHENA Consortium. The analysis of the as-is situation of the PPM Scenario has revealed several problems: The communication among the different product portfolios is insufficient. Collaborative work needs to be supported by providing actors with the tools and communication support through a single point of entry (workplaces). Knowledge islands exist somewhere in the corporate environment. Knowledge sharing needs to be supported. Decision-making activities are poorly supported due to lack of information integration from various ICT systems. Cohesion of such decision-making activities with strategic plans and operational results needs to be supported. Objectives decomposition and their mapping to specific process roles and tangible benefits needs to be supported. As-is situation: Summary of problems

11 © The ATHENA Consortium. Framework Levels Interoperability Issues Business Level Translate strategic goals into tactical and operational objectives Infer from objectives to tangible benefits and expectations Link decision-making activities with strategic plans, development and operational results Knowledge level knowledge management in various aspects and dimensions of the enterprise Product related knowledge sharing within and between product life cycle phases ICT Level Provision of real-time aggregated views of key business information Integrated applications execution via custom, adaptive and model generated environment Support for the stakeholders’ collaboration To-be situation: Interoperability issues

12 © The ATHENA Consortium. Business Level interoperability Issues Translate strategic goals into tactical and operational objectives Infer from objectives to tangible benefits and expectations Link decision-making activities with strategic plans, development and operational results

13 © The ATHENA Consortium. Knowledge Level interoperability Issues Knowledge management in various aspects and dimensions of the enterprise Product related knowledge sharing within and between product life cycle phases

14 © The ATHENA Consortium. ICT Level interoperability Issues Provision of real-time aggregated views of key business information Integrated applications execution via custom, adaptive and model generated environment Support for the stakeholders’ collaboration

15 © The ATHENA Consortium. This course has been developed under the funding of the EC with the support of the EC ATHENA-IP Project. Disclaimer and Copyright Notice: Permission is granted without fee for personal or educational (non-profit) use, previous notification is needed. For notification purposes, please, address to the ATHENA Training Programme Chair at In other cases please, contact at the same e_mail address for use conditions. Some of the figures presented in this course are freely inspired by others reported in referenced works/sources. For such figures copyright and all rights therein are maintained by the original authors or by other copyright holders. It is understood that all persons copying these figures will adhere to the terms and constraints invoked by each copyright