Enterprise Representation: An Analysis of Standards Issues

The purpose of this paper is to describe the domain of standards with respect to achieving the best enterprise integration. There are some definitions about frameworks and architectures, discussions re the use of enterprise models and modeling, the key components and characteristics of these models, a description of the users of the models and their needs, enterprise-model drivers and their relation to enterprise integration, and the nature and advantages of international standards covering enterprise-reference architectures, modeling, and models. This paper identifies issues that, if resolved, will help define a realistic role for standards in defining the different necessary components of enterprise integration. The representation of the enterprise is, by definition, a model. One could view the enterprise-reference architecture as information and knowledge with which one could adequately represent the enterprise. One could then consider the enterprise-reference architecture to be a meta model of the enterprise representation. The enterprise-architecture is a component of this meta model. The ensuing standards can help vendors create software products that enable the information transfers required by any organization of processes. Accomplishing these transfers will provide a path for enterprises to approach higher levels of integration by defining guidelines for designing new enterprises that can operate in a more integrated mode, and for creating enterprise models. The domain of these standards can range from standardizing the enterprise to standard names for key concepts. This paper will attempt to point out which of these are relevant material for standardization.