Approach to EA at Fujitsu and Relationships between EA, SDAS, and SOA V Hiromi Matsuyama (Manuscript received March 13, 2006) Enterprise Architecture (EA) is an increasingly popular system that totally optimizes business and information systems by IT governance and adjustment of business and information strategies. The EA used at Fujitsu has features such as 1) an approach for realizing IT governance, 2) early development support of EA, and 3) smooth coopera- tion for operation and further development of EA. Our EA receives good reviews by providing a practical EA methodology in the form of a development and consulting service. From the viewpoint of System Development Architecture & Support facilities (SDAS), Fujitsu’s EA is not only positioned as an entry point that connects a business strategy with system requirements analysis, but also deeply incorporates the concept of SDAS into its methodology. This paper outlines EA, Fujitsu’s approach to EA, and the relationships between EA, SDAS, and Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA). 1. Introduction “enterprise-wide optimization” to quickly respond Enterprise Architecture (EA) is gaining to changes in the social environment and chang- attention as a mechanism that can totally es in information technologies. It organizes and optimize business and system operations by stra- systematizes business processes, information tegically aligning management strategies with system structures, and technologies to be used by information strategies and realizing IT gover- putting an entire organization into perspective. nance. EA is not only an upstream phase that In Japan, EA was first adopted by the links management strategies to System Develop- government in the autumn of 2002 for the ment Architecture & Support facilities (SDAS), improvement of e-government procurement pro- which is an integrated system development cesses. Then, in 2004, the government assigned methodology developed by Fujitsu, but also has a assistant Chief Information Officers (CIOs) to close relationship with SDAS from the viewpoint individual government agencies as EA promoters of smooth linkage with the development phase. to develop EAs for all projects relating to infor- This paper outlines EA and then describes mation systems by the end of fiscal year 2005. Fujitsu’s approach to EA and the relationships In addition, EA started to be applied in the with SDAS in the EA building process. It then private sector, centering largely on private enter- describes the interrelations between EA and prises facing a rapidly changing business Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA). environment, for example, automobile, electron- ic, and finance enterprises, and enterprises facing 2. Overview of EA a reorganization of their industry. Nowadays, the EA is a structure for improving business accelerated pace of change in business makes it operations and systems from the viewpoint of difficult to build systems to suit management 286 FUJITSU Sci. Tech. J., 42,3,p.286-294(July 2006) H. Matsuyama: Approach to EA at Fujitsu and Relationships between EA, SDAS, and SOA strategies. This trend has diverted the attention document form. Although they are the most im- of industries to EA as a mechanism for portant part of an EA, enterprises as well as appropriate investment and enterprise-wide IT government agencies are often unaware of their governance. It is believed that the application of importance. It should be noted that it is difficult EA will become an important issue that every or- to develop principles as one expects them to be, ganization and enterprise must consider. but that if consensus cannot be formed during the process of developing principles, the EA will be 3. Fujitsu’s approach to EA reduced to a dead architecture over the long term. 3.1 Definition of EA structure by Fujitsu 3) Architecture models There are a variety of EA frameworks. Architecture models are prerequisites for an Fujitsu defined a practical EA structure by EA. For the construction of specific IT systems, further improving the EA frameworks of the design and development will be implemented Japanese government, which were modeled after according to these architecture models. Fujitsu the Federal Enterprise Architecture Frameworks has divided them into the following four tiers (FEAF) of the U.S. (Figure 1). This structure based on the architecture models of the Japanese was also made public and was generally accepted. government. The following explains the six pillars of EA. • Business Architecture (BA) 1) EA governance • Data Architecture (DA) EA governance realizes basic control for • Application Architecture (AA) or Service implementing enterprise-wide optimization. All Architecture (SA) EA activities will be implemented under this EA •Technology Architecture (TA) governance. Organization-wide EA governance is These four tiers are described (modeled) with normally promoted by the information depart- respect to the As-Is model (or baseline architec- ments and the planning and development ture), which models current operations and departments of organizations, but dedicated teams systems; the Target model (or best practice), which are often formed for its promotion. presents improved operations and next systems; 2) Principles and the To-Be model, which represents the future The principles are the mission of EA put into (or ideal) state with the time base taken into account. 4) Reference model This model is referenced when generating 1) EA governance architecture models. Its content can be a set of 2) Principles best practices, the results of investigation of the 3) Architecture models current state, or the projection of a future state. PRM As-Is Target To-Be The Japanese government has published the BRM following five reference models. DRM SRM BA BA BA •Performance Architecture (PRM) TRM DA DA DA • Business Reference Model (BRM) 4) Reference AA AA AA • Data Reference Model (DRM) models TA TA TA • Service Reference Model (SRM) 6) Transitional processes •Technology Reference Model (TRM) 5) Standards With the exception of PRM, which is a set of models for assessment indicators, these models Figure 1 Structure of Enterprise Architecture. correspond to individual architecture models. FUJITSU Sci. Tech. J., 42,3,(July 2006) 287 H. Matsuyama: Approach to EA at Fujitsu and Relationships between EA, SDAS, and SOA 5) Standards EA structure cannot be uniformly determined, The standards are technical and institution- attention is particularly focused on establishing al rules and standards that should be referenced the EA building process. in EA activities. Some examples of these stan- dards are the development standards, data 3.2 Fujitsu’s concept for EA building definition standards, security policy, and opera- process tion management standards. The EA building process varies, and it is 6) Transitional processes not clearly defined even in the EA of the Transitional processes are the processes Japanese government. After study, Fujitsu divid- required to make a system operational and are ed the EA building process into five phases based on the current operations and IT system. (Figure 2). The wider the introduction area of a target The EA building process starts after a vision organization becomes, the more difficult the plan- and mission based on the management environ- ning of possible transitional processes becomes. ment have been developed and confirmed. In the In general, the processes targeted for putting the EA building cycle, individual phases are next system into operation are collectively called implemented in sequence to form the cycle of an implementation plan. plan-do-check-act (PDCA). For an EA structure, its specific content and 1) Phase 1: Developing principles points of importance vary depending on the In this phase, principles that constitute rules current state, strategy, mission, and goals of the for promoting an EA are developed and, if neces- target organization. Because the content of an sary, the area to be optimized by the EA is Vision and 1. Development of principles mission • Set principles • Determine areas to be optimized/principles EA framework 1) EA governance 2) Principles 5. EA maintenance and 3) Architecture models 2. Architecture development PRM improvement As-Is Target To-Be BRM • Develop architecture models • Assess EA DRM • Develop reference models SRM BA BA BA • Review EA TRM DA DA DA • Develop standards 4) Reference AA AA AA • Establish EA models TA TA TA 6) Transitional processes 5) Standards 4. Next system construction 3. Transitional processes 4. Next system construction • System4. Next design system construction development • • stemSystem development design • Develop transitional processes • System design • •Test/commissioning System development • Create target artifact • System development • Test/commissioning • Create RFP • Test/commissioning EA governance RFP: Request for proposal Figure 2 EA building process. 288 FUJITSU Sci. Tech. J., 42,3,(July 2006) H. Matsuyama: Approach to EA at Fujitsu and Relationships between EA, SDAS, and SOA determined. Because it is difficult to introduce to the EA from model changes that have been an EA from scratch to an entire organization or made during development can lead to EA mainte- system, the often-adopted approach is to introduce nance and improvement. EA to a smaller area and then extend it according Each phase is composed of several steps, to the results of the introduction. while EA governance controls the processes as a 2) Phase 2: Developing a main architecture whole. EA governance