Entwicklung eines Modellierungsansatzes

Target Group

Modellers and individuals responsible for the modelling content

Prerequisites

• Basic knowledge of the modelling tool Enterprise Architect is advantageous, but not strictly required.

• Basic knowledge of the modelling language used is advantageous, but not strictly required.

Workshop Objective

By the end of this workshop:

• The key stakeholder questions will have been identified.

• The possibilities of model-based approaches to answer stakeholder questions will have been clarified.

• An example model for the most important stakeholder questions will have been developed.

• A concept for team collaboration will have been created.

• A concept for managing and versioning models will have been created.

• A roadmap with the necessary next steps will be available.

Day 1: Questions and Issues for Requirements Analysis

Session 1: Introduction to the Modelling Approach

• A brief introduction to what a modelling approach comprises and what to consider when developing it.

Activities: Presentation and discussion.

Session 2: Developing the Key Stakeholder Questions on Model Content

• Which questions should the model be able to answer? The model exists to answer stakeholder questions. To build the right model – neither too much nor too little, and at an appropriate level of abstraction – we collect all stakeholder questions. To kick things off, we provide a set of common, real-world questions.
• Which questions should the model not answer? Excessive data makes evaluation harder and adds effort in creation and maintenance.
• Standards and regulations: Which industry standards and regulations must be observed?

Activities: Interactive group discussion to collect stakeholders and their questions.

Session 3: Collaboration: Key Questions

• Who works on which models? How is the team composed, and which stakeholders may view and edit which information, and when?
• How is information exchanged between stakeholders? Which organisational processes must be followed?

Activities: Interactive group discussion, recording the outcomes in a domain model.

Session 4: Data Management: Stakeholder Processes and Workflows

• Reusable libraries: Which models serve as libraries and should be reused? Define requirements for reusable models and how they are exchanged.
• Versioning and variants: Which models need to be versioned; when is variant management required?
• Exchange of models between stakeholders: Define responsibilities for model content and how it is exchanged.

Activities: Requirements are developed using concrete customer examples and organisational processes.

Day 2: Examples and Solution Approaches

Session 5: Developing a Reference Model Based on Stakeholder Questions

• Sketching a model to answer the questions: We outline an example model that captures the required structure and stakeholder data using the chosen modelling language.
• Sketching a model structure for collaboration and data management: We outline a concrete package structure and diagrams to organise model data and present stakeholder-specific views (diagrams).

Activities: The workshop lead, together with participants, creates a model based on the collected requirements and questions, providing an example solution for each. Where helpful, alternative variants are produced.

Session 6: Governance and Validation

We define a rule set for the reference model developed in Session 5.

• Processes and workflows: Which processes must be followed, and what should the workflow for modelling and backing up the models look like?
• Model validation: Define mandatory and optional rules so that the model can be checked automatically for completeness and correctness.

Activities: Analyse the reference model and define additional constraints and required validations to ensure completeness and correctness.

Session 7: Reviews and Data Management

• Review processes and techniques: Define a review process suited to the stakeholders to ensure semantic validation of model content.
• Model versioning and exchange: Define the best-fit solution for organising and managing models in line with the collaboration requirements.

Activities: Present technical options for conducting reviews and carry out a practical review using the developed model structure.

Session 8: Summary

Summary of the workshop outcomes and planning of next steps:

• Stakeholder questions and model-based solution approaches
• Collaboration and access rights
• Model data management
• Governance and modelling guidelines
• Automation and simplification

Activities: Discuss the topics covered and the developed solution sketches. Agree a date to review the roadmap document prepared offline.

Workshop Outcome

Following the workshop, the collected requirements and outlined solution approaches are consolidated into a roadmap document and presented in a separate online session.

The roadmap includes:

• A proposal for the model structure
• A proposal to reduce the complexity of the modelling language used
• A proposal to reduce the complexity of Enterprise Architect, based on the workshop outcomes
• Proposals for possible extensions to make model creation and answering questions easier
• A proposal for a security concept governing Create, Read, Update and Delete access to model content
• A proposal for the architecture for versioning model data