Dimensions and Relationships

Systems Architects and Engineers specialising in the effective use of Systems Architecture, Methods and Tools since 1982

Some Examples

Common Spheres

Some commonly used spheres of an architecture are:

	Logical (or Business) Function which may be common with or separate from Business Process
	Objective
	Information
	Organisation.

... and Relationships

Relationships between them can be summarised as:

	Components of the Organisation perform or intervene in the Logical Functions;
	The Functions transform either Information or material things in some way;
	The Objectives of the enterprise determine the importance of the Business Functions and the need to reengineer or support them.

More Possible Spheres

Apart from these, many candidates offer themselves for inclusion such as:

	Project
	Business Component
	System (or Application)
	Software Component
	Critical Success Factor
	Risk
	Issue (or Problem)
	Technology (which may include IT concepts such as Platform)

... and More Relationships

Many possible relationships can be defined so no selection is made here. Some of these elements may overlap while others are relevant to some enterprises but not to others. The model is extended by the inclusion of attribute data which defines, on the one hand, a limited set of characteristics of the sphere items and, on the other, characteristics of each related sphere pair. Theoretically, the attributes of a relationship may be regarded as conforming to the Chen data modelling technique or as attributes of an intersection entity in the Bachman view.

A Word on Attributes

Although you may choose from a multitude of potential attributes for your spheres and relationships, popular choices frequently include references to other documentation, times or costs associated with the items or dates for target and actual completion of their definition.