Transformation programmes are still, as they always have been, prone to take short cuts that ultimately increase cost and time or impact quality. Many organisations are now familiar with Target Operating Models that fail to provide sufficient details, or process maps that accurately reflect what is being build but fail to join, not only with other processes, but also with the data, technology and resources.

Documenting a Business Architecture is a discipline that requires an understanding of the corporate strategy and current capabilities. The Business Architecture must identify the value streams needed by the organisation to deliver its end-to-end service and then understand the component capabilities needed to deliver these services. The capabilities are an interaction of processes, data and technology. These capabilities need designing and documenting in a controlled format so that multiple stakeholders can get a consistent view of the true direction.

Finally the Business Architecture has to be used as an integral part of transformation programmes to develop a consistent view of what is being proposed, viewed through multiple lenses so that all the key stakeholders can challenge, contribute and agree the outcome.

Programmes often fall down because different stakeholders have a different understanding of what the organisation needs to deliver. In the same organisation I have found sales people that did not know that they did their own service fulfilment and operations that did not know they did their own sales and marketing…

Establishing the Value Streams is often a good start: Writing down the dozen things that the organisation does to add value. Then for each Value Stream we can add a little detail. 

Another early step that we might take, particularly if there is duplication of activity across the organisation, different approaches to delivering similar tasks etc. is to agree a set of Capabilities. Every client I work with debates how to present this and exactly what a Capability is. Usually there are about 30 things that you have to be able to do. Each of these Capabilities will be delivered through the interaction of process, people, technology, data and rules. These Capabilities will be used in different combinations to deliver the value streams.

The final part of the early steps is to put the Capabilities together in a single Model, that makes it obvious to all how each of the Value Streams are delivered.

The difficult bit is not the templates, it is:

• Knowing how to divide up the business
• Finding a way to present the information that is relevant to the different stakeholders
• How to accurately collect current and how to define future
• Validating architecture against the strategy
• Determining the attributes to gather and level of detail
• Linking with the technology, processes and organisation
• Linking the process of defining the Business Architecture with change
• Knowing when to stop

Once the basics are started and have reached a state of agreement the programme can start on the next levels. Processes, Data, Technology and People have to be defined in ever increasing detail. 

The Business Architecture is the foundation upon which the programme should be built. Building the Architecture provides unity of direction and understanding around which to structure the programme, make decisions and debate with a common language between the Business, Technology, the Programme and third Parties.

Once a significant Transformation has come to a conclusion the Business Architecture should become a framework for Change and a basis for Audit and Compliance.