EA & Five-Dimensional Business Capability Map

EA needs to create a conceptual, contextual, and logic layer of high-level capabilities identified and resulting in building up the well-tailored strategy for business to win with the long term perspective.

Essentially, business is about the group of people to achieve something bigger or create value larger than each individual simply can not make by herself or himself. Therefore, a business capability is a pearl of collective wisdom and capability & capacity to allow business interconnecting people, knowledge, IT, tools and process to outperform rivals on some important measurement.

 Modern EA needs to shift from technology-focus to business focus, to help business blueprint capability map, then base on such sets of business capabilities & unique competency, EA need help further craft capability-driven strategy planning and create a vision for the enterprise, and provide the guide to execute it seamlessly.  

There are five-dimensional sets of business capabilities EA can blueprint:

1.      Seven Business Functional Capabilities

a) Client relationship management
b) Sales & marketing management
c)Product/service planning & development management
d) Finance & Administration management
e) HR management
f) Information/Knowledgebase management
g). Engagement management

2.     Seven Strategic Business Capabilities

EA helps the business focus on understanding the strategic aspects of capabilities which are sets of strategic business processes:

1) Contract Management (the basic contract with a customer)
2) Project Management (for gigs that are bigger than a few weeks)
3) People Management (to acquire and manage people (perms or contract).
4) Various Life cycles (used when appropriate)
4. Solution development (a general solution delivery process)
4. Process Management (to improve processes)
4. Product Management (for new or improved products or services)
4. Software Development (if software delivered)
5) Customer Service and Support (in case there are problems
6) Standard product or service delivery (like training modules)
7) Team Performance Vertical function-driven capabilities

 

  3.   Five-Step Value Chain 

   1)  Identify or create a knowledge product
   2) Assemble the product (hire and train consultants, knowledge management)
   3) Market and Sell the product (awareness, sales, engagement)
   4) Deliver and oversee the engagement (engagement, collections, service)
   5) Follow-up and value recognition (service and account mgmt)

4.     21st Century Business Transformational Capabilities

1)      Leaning Capability: Amplify to enterprise-level: it's about Knowledge Management Capability, Human Mindset Capability and Organizational Intelligence.

2)      Change Capability: At the business level, it's Change Management Capability, Culture Reshaping. Envision future of business;

3)      Innovation Capability --Unique Skill Set, Character--Core Competency, Business Value Proposition., Information Flow Capability., etc.

4)      Process Optimization Capabilities: EA can help keep today's business lean --the process, cost structure., etc

5)      Governance Capabilities: GRC-Governance, Risk Management, Compliance

5.      Potential Competitive Differentiator Options

      (a) Having absolutely the best, most knowledgeable, well-trained people, and core competencies.
(b) Having the broadest, deepest knowledge base of any in the industry.
(c) Developing the most innovative products and services.
(d) Having an engagement management capability which strengthens and binds the ties between the Firm and the Client.

Option (a) requires an extraordinary HR (recruitment, training, retaining) management capability.
Option (b) requires an extraordinary KM research, recording, retrieval capability
Option (c) is, in part, the leveraging of (a) and (b) by creating an innovative P/S development capability.
Option (d) requires re-thinking the way ‘engagements are managed’ and would need to be much, much more than the usual ‘project management’ approach.
•Input = Business Model
•#1. Map current and Future Business State
•#2. Develop Use Cases
•#3. Identify Required Services
•#4. Identify Service Interactions
•#5. Identify Message Contacts
•#6. Define Solution DNA
•#7. Define Service DNA
•#8. Identify Existing Service Reuse Opportunities
•#9. Evaluate the impact on Business
•#10. Develop /Enhance Service Model

EA needs to create a conceptual, contextual and logic layer of high-level capabilities identified and resulting in building up the well-tailored strategy for business to win with the long term perspective.

Posted in: CIO Debate,EA