Phase 2 - Technology Assessment and Selection Blueprint

From MIKE2 Methodology

The Technology Assessment and Selection Blueprint concentrates on the technical aspects of the Blueprint process; it strategically ties the business strategy and conceptual architecture developed in Phase 1 to into a logical and physical architecture in Phase 2.

Overview

Phase 2 activities completes the Blueprint by providing the following:

• Refines the overall requirements for information management, integration and business intelligence
• Defines the technology architecture and product direction
• Puts standards and technical infrastructure in place to support the software development process
• Defines the overall programme delivery plan that provides the starting point for the continuous implementation phase

The infrastructure may include a number of technologies, covering:

• Data Investigation
• Data Re-Engineering
• Data Integration (ETL and EAI)
• Metadata Management
• Business Intelligence
• Security
• Enterprise Content Management
• Collaboration
• Hardware and Operating system environment

Phase 2 also provides standards and policies for how this technology will be implemented. These standards are policies are driven from the Guiding Principles established in Phase 1.

In summary, the Technology and Assessment phase is a strategic phase, using input from and findings of the Business Assessment & Strategy Definition phase. The outcomes of Phase 2 then provide the environment that ensures the overall solution is deployable and sustainable.

There is a level of parallelism between activities in Phases 1 and 2. However, Phase 1 deliverables must be completed in their entirety before Phase 2 can be completed. Specifically, Phase 2 requires the following from Phase 1 before a full infrastructure can be prescribed:

• Business Vision for Information and Infrastructure
• High Level Business Case
• Key Information Categories
• High Level Information Processes
• Scope of key systems

The depth, as well as the scope, of Phase 2 is also determined by the outcomes of Phase 1. Because this is not a waterfall approach and as increments are deployed as determined in Phase 1, the outcomes of Phase 2 will most likely evolve over time - for example, new business goals or improved technology may affect the architecture previously established or a new tool may be necessary for some new analytical function. The activities associated with this phase include: Working with the client to:

• Determine to determine the strategic functional and non-functional requirements of the overall solution. This is captured at a level to make strategic decisions such as product selection, not at the level to begin implementation
• Ascertain the current infrastructure through client interviews
• Determine the ability of the current infrastructure to support the proposed information management environment

Modelling the architecture to develop:

• A logical framework to evaluate, select, and recommend products
• A physical mapping of vendors to logical capabilities
• an infrastructure for both hardware and software

Developing:

• Management processes and procedures necessary to attain the new technology environment
• Standards for implementation

Major Deliverables

The major deliverables of this phase include:

• Strategic Functional Requirements
• Strategic Non Functional Requirements
• Gap analysis of Current State vs. Requirements
• Future State Logical Architecture
• Physical Vendor Options against Logical Architecture (multiple physical architectures)
• Data Governance Policies
• Data Standards
• RFP issued and technology vendors selected
• SDLC Preparation: Development Environment, Hardware and Software Procurement, SDLC Procedures, Testing Strategy in place
• Technology Risks, Constraints, Dependencies, Revised Business Case, Deployment Timeline

There are a number of supporting work papers and an overall presentation pack that updates the Business Blueprint from Phase 1. The final recommendations are presented to the sponsor of the project as the Business and Technology Blueprint.

Use of Blueprint Activities for Solution Offerings

For many solution offerings, the activities from the Blueprinting phases are shown as being required. This is because most solutions offerings have been defined so that they can be applied for a large, complex organisation. In many cases these activities would also apply in smaller organisation or if the project is more tactically focused. Ideally, however, the strategy phases will not need to be conducted for every solution offering. An organisation will have done a comprehensive Blueprinting exercise that ties these different types of offerings together into an overall programme Blueprint.

This Blueprint will typically need to be refined to lower levels of detail for a very large organisation for each specific solution offering (this is why it remains for each offering). There will, however, be a comprehensive blueprint (often at the enterprise/group level) that ties all the initiatives together. This is the focus of the Enterprise Data Management Strategy Solution Offering/Enterprise Content Management Strategy Solution Offering.