Enterprise Systems

Anatomy of enterprise
applications
Enterprise Applications keep track of information related
to the operations of the enterprise
e.g. Inventory, sales ledger

And execute the core processes that create and

manipulate this information
Process from order to cash received
Enterprise data
Purchases Orders Customers

Shipments Marketing

Planning Service

Inventory Billing

Project
Assets management

Accounting HR

Data in the organisation is captured in a number of data

models
Data models describe the way data is defined in databases or 3

exchanged between applications

An example of a business process:
Purchase-to-Pay

1. Determine requirements,
complete purchase
requisition.
Automatically generate the
purchase requisition based
on quantity on-hand,
quantity-on-order, and
expected demand.

L. Gray, CNU

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Purchase-to-Pay

2. Prepare and record

purchase order.

Assists the buyer in

identifying sources of
supply for the
requested item,
preparing RFQs to
vendors, analyzing
vendor quotes,
comparing vendor
prices, terms, and past
performance
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Purchase-to-Pay
3. Receive and record
goods.
Compare quantity
ordered to quantity
received.

Routes goods to the

function that requested
them or directs them the
warehouse for
immediate sale. It also
records vendor
performance data.

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Purchase-to-Pay

4. Receive vendor
invoice, match with PO
and receiving report;
record payable.

If the three-way match

fails, the enterprise
system notifies the
proper personnel to
ensure timely
reconciliation of
differences.
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Purchase-to-Pay
5. Prepare and record
cash disbursement and
update accounts.

Uses vendor and AP

data to schedule
payments in accordance
with vendor terms and
to receive discounts.

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Enterprise process models
Each process model captures the series of steps and
interactions required to complete a specific business
process

The execution of the process will impact on the

enterprise data across one or more applications

A process may be executed within a single application or

more often through collaboration between several
applications

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Mapped to functional systems
Purchases Orders Customers

Shipments Sales Marketing Marketing

Logistics Call centre
Service

Inventory Planning
Warehouse

Assets Project
Billing
Finance management
HR
dept Accounting
HR

Originally, the process and data models were implemented in a wide variety
of functional system (related to organisational departments)
Each system consisting of a database, application logic and user interface 10
Recall: Problems with function
based application
Sharing of data between systems
Data duplication Sales
HR
Data inconsistency
Applications that dont talk to one another Manufacturing
Limited or lack of integrated information
Isolated decisions lead to overall
inefficiencies
Increased expenses

Therefore, there is a general requirement

for integration to support organisational
system capabilities
For instance Customer Relationship Management
Stovepipe systems
tracking all information about a customer across
the enterprise

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Enterprise integration requirement

Unrestricted sharing of data and business processes

across an organization
Extend to customers, suppliers and regulators

The linking of data, business processes and applications to

automate business processes
While ensuring that there are consistent qualities of service
(security, reliability etc)

Reduce the on-going cost of maintenance and reduce the cost of

rolling out new systems.

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Two architectural solutions
Integration
Leave existing applications in place
Minimises risk of disruption and change in data models/process models

Link existing applications with integration systems which map

between existing data and process models and add missing
process models where required

Effective when most of the functionality is already implemented in

systems and the integration is primarily creating linkages and
processes between these applications

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Two architectural solutions
Consolidation
Replace existing applications

Redesign data and process models to best solve the complete set
of requirements and then implement these models in a new system
Results in consistent data and process models across enterprise

Effective when significant additional functionality is required beyond

what is already in the applications, there is a requirement for
business process improvement or integration between the
applications is too complex/expensive

In most cases both consolidation and

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integration occurs within an organisation
Enterprise Application
Integration
An architecture for integration
Introduction
EAI was an approach to integration of applications first developed in
the late 1990s.
Pre-dated widespread use of JEE, XML and Web Services.

EAI currently has become subsumed into Service Oriented

Architecture software stacks
However, the need for the underlying capabilities have not changed.

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 Diverse systems and channels

External
Systems Information Delivery
Clearing Warehouse Systems
House Core
Systems Customers
Central Customer Mobile
Bank Relationship Salesforce
Accounts Management
Payment Systems Consumer
Information

Multi-Channel
Deposits Branch
Provider
InterBank
Loans
Networks Commercial
Mortgages
Bank Self
Other Payments
Network Service Corporate
Bank Customer
.... Call
Card Centre
Processor

Internet

Direct Banking
Internet

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Example of a banking environment
 IT reality Islands of Computing
Purchased Application
Package(s) ERP etc.
Program
Program
Legacy
Application Program
System(s)
New Web-
based
application(s)
Program Program
Program Program

Program Program

Enterprise IT reflects the structure and history of each

enterprise not the business processes required today
Departments have their own IT systems
Legacy systems are left in place and new systems built
separately.
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Tactical approach to integrating
the Business Application
System B Trans
action
File

Extract
Program
Program
Program Down
Down load
load Program Extract File
File Program Load
Program
Load Screen Message
Queue
Program Application Scrape Application
Database Replicator
System A System C
Extract Load
Program Down Program
load
Program File Program
Program Program
Trans
action
Program File Program
Message
Queue

Each requirement is addressed with a point to point solution

Typically consisting of a data transfer mechanism and a
format converter.
Increasing levels of supplier/client integration points further 19
complicates the situation.
Strengths and weaknesses of tactical
approach
Strengths
Focused on getting the job done
Each individual solution can be created quickly
Technical Weaknesses
Numerous Point-to-Point Interfaces
Inconsistent Business Processes
Inconsistent Qualities of Service
Business Weaknesses
Cost of maintenance
Requirement to retain knowledge of the solution in-house.
Potential security or loss of service/process failure due to
inconsistencies.

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Enterprise integration requirement

Unrestricted sharing of data and business processes

throughout the networked applications or data sources in
an organization
Extend to customers, suppliers and regulators

The Linking of Data, Business Processes, Applications to

automate business processes
While ensuring that there are consistent qualities of service
(security, reliability etc)

Reduce the on-going cost of maintenance and reduce the cost of

rolling out new systems.

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Solution: Enterprise Application
Integration (EAI)
Devised ways to efficiently reuse legacy and existing
apps and add new ones

EAI products are built on combination of technologies

JEE
XML (eXtensible Markup Language) for enterprise-wide content
and data distribution using common DBs and Data Standards
Message queuing
Business Process Orchestration engine
Sometimes Web Services

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Layers of an EAI Stack
Provides real-time and historical data on performance
EAI
of processes and assists in making decisions.
Business Activity
Monitoring
Manages and tracks business transactions that might
Business Process span multiple systems and last minutes to days.
Orchestration

Data Transformation
Ensures the data is the correct format for delivery to
The next system.
Message Storage &
Routing

Ensures the reliability of data delivery across the

Enterprise or between systems.

Adapter Adapter
Provides open connectivity into data sources while
allowing filtering and transformations of data.

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Adapters

EAI Also known as Connectors, Translators,

Business Activity Wrappers or Bridges
Monitoring
Provide seamless connectivity to the
Business Process
Orchestration underlying application or data
Data Transformation
Convert information and events into data
that can be utilized by the infrastructure
Message Storage &
Routing
Two way translation between the proprietary
format and the common format
Many adapters available off the shelf
Adapter Adapter From EAI Software vendors such as Tibco,
or application software vendors such as
SAP.
JEE architecture provides JCA

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Message storage and routing

EAI
Reliable messaging
Business Activity
Monitoring Products that connect applications running
Business Process on different systems by sending and
Orchestration receiving application data as messages
Data Transformation
JEE architecture provides JMS interface
Message storage
Message Storage &
Routing Central repository for temporary storage of
transactions until they can be delivered
Also called Message Warehousing
Adapter Adapter Message queuing and routing
Asynchronous communications style /
Publish Subscribe
Set of tools that route messages between
sources and consumers based on pre-
defined business rules 25
Data Transformation

EAI Data Transformation

Business Activity Transformation to and from formats used by
Monitoring
Different Systems
Business Process
Orchestration
Handling simple or complex data structures
Data Transformation
Typically representing data using XML
standards such as XQuery and XSLT
Message Storage &
Routing
GUI Configuration tools to help define the
transformations
Adapter Adapter

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Data Transformation

Intermediate or
Source canonical Target
F. name: Ronan format
Name: Ronan Bradley
L. name: Bradley
Company: DIT
Affiliation: DIT, Dublin,
City: Dublin
Ireland
Country: Ireland

EAI typically converts the source data into an intermediate

format and then convert it into the target format
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Intermediate format is called the canonical format.
Issues in data transformation
Challenge 1: Coping with software from different vendors
A mostly solved problem (Oracle vs. DB2 vs. SQL Server)
Challenge 2: Coping with different formats
A solved problem: Relational vs. XML vs. ISAM
Challenge 3: Coping with different data models
Solvable for the smaller scale cases
one person understands all the schemas
As the complexity and scale of the data models increases
becomes harder and harder
Theoretically possible but lots of practical problems
Challenge 4: Coping with data from new sources such as new
systems, suppliers, customers
Lots of unsolved problems
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EAI: Building a canonical data model
Create a common data model including a set of terms for the
concepts in the domain of the data sources being integrated
e.g., Employee, Customer, Patient, weight, height,
bodyTemperature,
EAI solutions do this within their own domain (canonical format)
XML Ontologies attempt to do it for any domain required in a self-
contained way but are very hard to build
Mappings relate data items in data sources to terms in data
model
Background knowledge about terms essential for
transformations
e.g., Employee subClassOf Person, 2 people with the same last
name, first name and street address are likely to be the same,

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Mapping the formats
Using the canonical
data model, each
message format can be
mapped into and out of
that format.
Requires many
potentially complex
mapping definitions.

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Business Process Orchestration
EAI Process Modeling
Business Activity Often GUI based
Monitoring
Describing the flow of information in the
Business Process
Orchestration context of business processes
Data Transformation
Using the input/output of processes as the
Integration points between diverse business
Message Storage & processes
Routing
Process Brokering
Execution of discrete steps within a
business process
Adapter Adapter
Ability to recover from failed steps
Workflow engine
Process Management
Monitor business processes
Correlate metrics to specific business 31

process steps
Business Activity Monitoring
EAI Business Activity Monitoring is using your
Business Activity data assets to make better decisions
Monitoring

Business Process
Orchestration BAM is used to gather information about
Data Transformation what is occurring in the EAI deployment
Status of current processes
Message Storage &
Routing
Identification of problem areas
E.g. Spotting applications that are not
responding
Monitoring of unusual activity
Adapter Adapter E.g. Unusually large orders

The collected information is displayed

for operators or managers to diagnose
and determine the solution 32
 Example of a BAM dashboard
Shows current activity,
future load, historical
trends and alerts
These can relate to the
business process level
events or infrastructure
events

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Potential EAI benefits

Lower development costs

Overtime, each additional integration requirement can more
easily be addressed

Lower opportunity costs

Integration is done more quickly
corresponding cost savings reachieved sooner

Lower maintenance effort

adapters extract the interaction with external systems
significant advantage from the software engineering point of view

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Potential EAI Challenges
Hub and spoke architecture concentrates all of the processing into a
single server/cluster.
Often became hard to maintain and evolve efficiently
Hard to extend to integrate 3rd parties on other technology platforms

The canonical data model introduces an intermediary step

Added complexity and additional processing effort

EAI products typified by

Heavy customisation required to implement the solution

Lock-In: Often built using proprietary technology and required specialist
skills
Lack of flexibility: Hard to extend or to integrate with other EAI products!

Requires organisation to be EAI ready

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What is EAI readiness?
Much of the challenge associated with adopting EAI is not
related to the technology.
EAI readiness is a state of business maturity in which its
systems, processes, employees, structure, and culture are
prepared for the successful introduction of both EAI
technology and the business disciplines that drive its
introduction.
All five of these factors must be properly situated and
aligned before an EAI implementation can succeed.
Culture

Technology
Technology Employees
Employees
Processes
Processes

Structure
2001, IT Catalysts,
Process readiness
Business strategic goals for project (i.e. process efficiency,
customer satisfaction, supply-chain optimization) clearly
defined and agreed upon by company executive
leadership.

Company makes use of mature methodologies that design

integrated business change.

Desired business processes designed, documented, and

valuated.

Gap between current and desired business processes well

understood.
Employee readiness
Staff accustomed to using information technology in
performance of day-to-day work.

Staff accustomed to adaptation of new roles,

responsibilities, processes, and knowledge to business
change.

Staff have broad understanding of the business and their

contribution to it.

Executives understand the role of business sponsorship,

and the nature of investing time, staff and budget into the
business infrastructure in order to reap future returns.
Technology readiness
No systems to be integrated using EAI tools have critical
business logic not in the application itself
This can happen if the logic required is in a batch programs or
reports which are not part of the actual application and hence cannot
be integrated with.
No systems to be integrated using EAI tools will be retired/
decommissioning soon.
There is no point integrating with a system which will soon be
removed
Most of the business functionality required in process designs
exists in one or more legacy systems.
Applications portfolio has been evaluated for semantic
compatibility.
Check it is possible to transform from 1 data model to the other
Implementation of EAI not defined as the purpose of the effort.
The project should be about the business objective, not about the
technology
Structural readiness
Keep it simple by ensuring that the EAI system involves as
few departments/organisations as possible.
Each organisation involved adds to the complexity of the
project as more people have to be engaged with and there are
potentially greater variety of technologies and architectures.

Stakeholder analysis performed to determine overall

potential for business resistance to the planned change.
EAI projects change the way that each
department/organisation works. Therefore, EAI projects need
the cooperation of each department/organisation.

Business sponsor established and ready to provide

leadership to the business change.
Cultural readiness
Corporate culture embraces the importance of well-defined
business processes.

Staff accustomed to adaptation of new roles,

responsibilities, processes, and knowledge to business
change.

Individuals and departments willing to change the way the

applications and data is defined.