Business Capability Map

A business capability map classifies the abilities an organization needs, independently of which departments perform them or which systems support them. Entries such as adjudicate a claim, price a policy, and onboard a customer can be decomposed into more specific abilities. An executive view can summarize the map; deeper views support analysis and design. The U.S. Federal Enterprise Architecture Framework (FEAF) Business Reference Model offers a related classification of business functions across organizational boundaries.

Mapping requirements to capabilities helps identify potential reuse. In a fictional insurer, two units request document-intake systems. Their proposals map to the same capability, but that alone does not make one project redundant. Compare users, document types, rules, jurisdiction, and service expectations to determine whether a shared implementation can meet both needs. Several systems may instead contribute different parts of one capability.

Rules that keep it useful

Name an ability rather than its current owner. A shared vocabulary lets local views relate their detail to the enterprise map, even when different units need different levels of detail. Names should survive an ordinary reorganization, but the map can change when the business gains or loses abilities. Choose depth for the decision: twenty parent abilities with twenty subcapabilities each still form a capability map. A process model describes activities and their flow; a large entry count does not turn an ability classification into a process inventory.

From map to instrument

Overlay strategic importance and performance to prioritize investigation. Assess the people, authority, procedures, information, and technology supporting each capability, using observed outcomes as well as inventory records.

System counts can expose variety, but actual overlap and unmet needs require analysis. Define data authority by context and attributes, with mappings and conflict rules where information is shared.

An important, weak capability is a candidate for improvement. Compare training, process redesign, existing-system improvements, replacement, and external provision against benefits, total cost, mandatory conditions, transition risk, dependencies, and capacity. An authorized investment decision follows that comparison; the heat map does not allocate the budget.

The related entry on capability explains how an ability is demonstrated under stated conditions. The map names the abilities; assessment establishes how well they are performed and where improvement is needed. How capability mappings join application, data, and technology views and inform a target architecture is covered in Eighty Diagrams and No Answer.

References

• U.S. Office of Management and Budget, Federal Enterprise Architecture Framework Version 2 (2013), introduction and planning guidance