Reference Architecture for Cross-Company Electronic Collaboration

Cross-organizational electronic collaboration is about to gain significant momentum and facilitates the emergence of a globally networked information service economy. However, existing solutions for the realization of such business relationships still exhibit weaknesses with respect to both managerial and technological aspects. In this work, we propose a service-oriented reference architecture for electronic business media that overcomes the drawbacks of today’s business-to-business (B2B) software products and services. Based on the St. Gallen media reference model, this reference architecture incorporates the design principle of modularity that proved critical for the success of numerous artifacts in other more mature industries. In particular, we investigate and revisit the principle of modularity with respect to its role in the computer industry and transfer it to the context of organizing and implementing electronic cross-company collaboration. On the basis of a case study in the field of public administration in Switzerland, we show its real-world applicability and its improvement potential.