Business Architecture Tools

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Business architecture describes a business holistically from multiple perspectives to ensure common understanding and alignment with the overall business strategy. A major focus is articulating what the business does. Put simply, it defines the business capabilities.

Whether you're a business architect yourself, or simply someone with similar responsibilities for your organization's successful strategy execution, you need a strong toolset at your disposal. Jibility is a dedicated, lightweight strategy execution tool that leverages guided-capability-based planning. Try Jibility today (free forever, no credit card required).

Most business architecture software available in the market today can be organized into one of three groups, the primary differences being ease of use, learning curve, and cost.

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How do you define business architecture?

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"Business Architecture represents holistic, multidimensional business views of capabilities, end-to-end value delivery, information, and organizational structures; and the relationship among these business views and strategies, products, policies, initiatives, and stakeholders." — Business Architecture Guild^®

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Capability-based planning is a technique widely accepted by business architects and described by the Open Group TOGAF^® and the Business Architecture Guild BIZBOK^® Guide.

When you are defining your business’s architecture, it is vital that you consider not only the overall holistic structure but also the business capabilities and how these components align with your organization’s strategic vision. When all of these components are assessed in tandem, you are much better placed to understand where capabilities need to be built, where future opportunities exist, and your organization’s future direction.

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Why is business architecture important?

Business architecture allows different internal stakeholders to understand the organization’s current state and desired future state. When this understanding is enhanced with capability-based planning and an executable strategic roadmap, your organization is empowered to achieve its vision.

By leveraging a capability-based planning tool (such as Jibility), you can develop a comprehensive understanding of what your business does today and what it must do in the future, and define the gaps that must be addressed to be successful.

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Tools for business architecture

1. Generic desktop tools
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   Desktop word processing, spreadsheet, presentation and drawing tools are commonly available. These tools are generic, so you can use them for just about anything.
   
   However, as they aren’t dedicated to business architecture there’s no contextual awareness of the purpose. Often, you need to use several tools that don’t have linkages between them, so you end up manually syncing content across all of them. For example, you are likely to have drawings in one tool, data in a spreadsheet tool, and presentations in another for executive consumption.
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   On the other hand, a key advantage of generic desktop tools is that they are very simple to use. (Even more so when you use them with templates such as our Jibility canvas!)
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2. Specialist business (and enterprise) architecture tools
   
   At the other end of the spectrum are high-end enterprise architecture tools. These support industry diagramming notation (such as Archimate^®) and enforce notation rules to industry specifications.
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   The advantage of specialist enterprise architecture tools is that they are very powerful. They can easily meet the needs of large and sophisticated organizations.
   
   Consequently, these tools are complex. Users need a significant amount of training in order to use them — or even certifications. Additionally, the tools usually require dedicated resources to support and maintain their environments.
   
   Predictably, specialist tools are expensive.
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3. Dedicated, lightweight business architecture tools
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   There are a handful of simple, targeted, and cloud-based architecture tools that sit in between desktop programs and specialist software.
   
   These may not do everything that the heavyweight specialist tools can do, but they do support business architecture techniques such as capability mapping. They have a smaller learning curve, with no special training required, and are low maintenance and low cost.
   

Which business architecture tool is right for you?

If you have the funds and expertise to invest in enterprise architecture software, then you'll find that a powerful and comprehensive solution. If you need an easy and cheap solution, then you might be able to get by with desktop programs.

Both, however, are time-consuming; specialist software because of the learning curve, and desktop programs because they are too generic and require manual workarounds. Leveraging a dedicated, lightweight business architecture tool is usually your fastest way forward.

Not sure how to assess all the tool options out there? We've done the leg work in our comparison of some of the leading strategic roadmap tools here.

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Business architecture tools FAQ

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What is business architecture?

Business architecture is a practice that focuses upon the translation of business objectives into an executable plan. It achieves this through application of a specific set of methods, techniques and skills with (and to) the business operating model. Business architecture is a broad discipline that overlaps several other disciplines, such as enterprise architecture.

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How do you define business objectives?

A business objective, or business goal, is a result or outcome that your organization must deliver in order to address its challenges. When defining business objectives, you must be specific; objectives should articulate an outcome that can be measured. Achieving your objectives should support your organization in realizing its strategy.

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What is a business capability?

Business capabilities are the tangible and intangible building blocks of a business that give it the ability to do what it does. A capability describes what the business does – not just how, who or which. A capability encompasses people, process and physical (or technological) elements.