TEAM Zarate Tarrani Notes From the Field

Setting the Stage. I've been focusing on the Zachman Framework and business rules in my latest Postcards from the Revolution entries. Since that theme is going to continue for a few more days I want to use this weblog as a vehicle for discussing process models.

Catalyst. The reasons why I want to discuss process models are:

• Linda and I frequently write about, or make reference to, processes in both of our weblogs. To many readers the term process may be too abstract. It's time we clarified this by providing definitions and approaches that we use for process analysis, design and implementation.
• There are direct relationships among policy, process and procedures. Many practitioners focus on process and procedures without taking into account the fact that policy governs process. In the same manner that a direct relationship exists between policy and process, there is also a direct relationship between business imperatives and policy. I want to portray those relationships in future entries.
• Standards, both de facto and de jure govern the continuum of policy-process-procedure.

Since Linda and I use these weblogs to share information the reasons cited above provide ample justification for a series on process.

Prelude. I've gathered material that will accomplish two things: (1) give background information about domain specific processes, such as supply chain management, software process improvement, etc., and (2) provide common standards and techniques. The material is diverse and is more valuable when studied to see how the embedded processes were derived. To be sure, it will take careful study to accomplish that; however, if you're feeling ambitious you may want to see how the processes, models and standards in the material fit within the Zachman Framework described in the last three Postcards from the Revolution entries.

The background material is as follows:

• Supply Chain Management, which is a Zip archive that contains seven PowerPoint presentations. The presentations cover a full range of topics, including: Supply Chain Operations Reference Model (SCORM), supply chain process mapping methodology, metrics and the integration of supply chain and customer relationship management.
• Software Engineering Standards and Processes, including documents on software process improvement, software configuration management, CMM and SQA.
• ISO/IEC 12207 Software Life Cycle Processes, consisting of a PowerPoint presentation and MS Word document describing this important international standard.
• Software Development and Implementation, an esoteric and eclectic collection of documents covering development processes, technology management, Oracle Financials tips, and E-business scalability. There is something here for everyone.
• System and Software Selection Techniques. An interesting collection of documents about the processes for selecting an IS architecture, business applications and integrating commercial off-the-shelf software.

End Note. In earlier entries Linda and I discussed the state of software engineering at the international level. If you're interested in Asian initiatives the whitepaper titled, Software Entrepreneurism in Korea is worth reading, as is the collection of reports and presentations from the 14th Asian Forum for the Standardization of Information Technology.