Information Flows
How to use information flows in EDGY.
Author: Eero Hosiaisluoma @EeroHosi
Stage: This is a stub – if you would like to contribute and expand it please get in touch.
Phase: Focus | Explore | Co-Create | Invest | Realise | Sustain | All
Scope: Architecture | Identity | Experience | Enterprise
Flight level: Operations | Coordination | Strategy
Description
Flows can exist, for example, between concrete elements such as processes, organisations, or applications. Information objects are transferred in these flows, as they are operational and represent the actual business-relevant information flows between the entities.
Information objects / -elements are introduced as texts (labels) on flow relations, as shown in the figures below.
Process Cooperation View
Information flows between processes define how an enterprise operates. As such, this view represents the operating model of an enterprise. This view illustrates what is happening in and around an enterprise.
Application Cooperation View
The application cooperation view, also known as the application interaction view, can be used to depict how business data is transferred between applications.
Integrations. This high-level application cooperation view can be used as the first (if not the only) diagram for exploring the integrations between the applications. This diagram introduces what business-relevant data is switched, and what is the direction of those transfers. However, this view doesn’t specify how the transfers are executed, or via which interfaces. These can be further analysed based on this high-level overview diagram. So this high-level overview represents the business architecture (and enterprise architecture) level of detail. Respectively, more detailed solution architecture-level diagrams can be created for development purposes (e.g., for agile development teams).
It is possible to use colouring in the flow relations by adding certain semantics in data flows. Colouring scheme can indicate, e.g. mechanisms (such as sync/async, batch, RPC), protocols, e.g. ftp(s) or REST, or just differentiating the flows.
Both internal and external integrations can be shown when appropriate (e.g. external parties
are shown in the figure above, a Logistic company and a Bank).
The overall information flow of the operational business of an enterprise can be illustrated with
combining processes and assets that are interacting with flow relationships.
Organisation Cooperation View
High-level information flows between organisations are shown below.