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Introduction
In Inter-unit domain relationships in the Orthogramic Metamodel , a single domain entity—such as a capability, service, or information asset—may be associated with multiple organisation units. To ensure clarity of ownership, accountability, and usage across the organisation, each organisation unit's role in relation to a domain entity should be explicitly definedarticulate how organisational units interact with and depend upon various domain entities—such as capabilities, information assets, services, value streams, initiatives, and products. These relationships provide a structured means to model and analyse the distribution of responsibilities, dependencies, and collaborations across different parts of the organisation.
By explicitly defining these relationships, organisations can:
Clarify roles and responsibilities across units for specific domain entities.
Identify and manage dependencies, facilitating better coordination and risk mitigation.
Assess the strength of interactions, enabling prioritisation of governance and resource allocation.
Support strategic planning by understanding how organisational units contribute to and rely on key domain entities.
Each inter-unit domain relationship specifies:
The type of domain entity involved (e.g., Capability, Service).
The organisational unit participating in the relationship.
The nature of the relationship (e.g., Owning, Consuming).
The strength of the relationship, rated on a scale from 1 (very weak) to 5 (very strong), indicating the intensity or criticality of the interaction.
This structured approach facilitates a comprehensive understanding of organisational dynamics, supporting informed decision-making and effective enterprise architecture practices.
Relationship roles
Each link between an organisation unit and a domain entity can be classified using the following roles:
Role | Description |
|---|---|
Owning unit | Accountable for maintaining, governing, and developing the domain entity. |
Utilising unit | Makes active use of the domain entity to perform its own functions. |
Providing unit | Delivers the outputs or services of the domain entity to other units. |
Consuming unit | Receives or depends on the outputs or services of the domain entity. |
Custodian unit | Maintains the authoritative or source record for the domain entity. |
Dependent unit | Relies on the domain entity for operational or strategic execution. |
Supported unit | Gains business value through a domain entity but is not directly consuming it. |
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The following domain types may be used as the focal point for inter-unit relationships:
Domain | Typical inter-unit relationship usage | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Capability | Owning, utilising, supporting, consuming, dependent, custodian | Most commonly used; a central anchor for inter-unit coordination |
Information | Providing, consuming, custodian, dependent | Typically shared across units with a clear lineage of stewardship |
Service | Owning, providing, consuming | Represents operational service dependencies between units |
Value stream | Shared, contributing, dependent | Highlights collaborative delivery of customer or internal value |
Initiative | Supported by, accountable to | May be indirectly implied rather than structurally modelled as a relationship |
Product | Supported, owned, developed by | Used sparingly in inter-unit context; product-level relationships tend to be value stream mediated |
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To enhance the usefulness of inter-unit domain relationships in organisational analysis, a numeric relationship strength value may be added. This value provides a relative indication of the intensity, criticality, or frequency of interaction between an organisational unit and the domain entity. It is intended to assist in prioritising governance, resource allocation, or change management efforts.
Scale
Value | Description |
|---|---|
1 | Very weak – minor or occasional interaction |
2 | Weak – intermittent or low-impact interaction |
3 | Moderate – regular involvement or mutual dependence |
4 | Strong – frequent and important interaction |
5 | Very strong – mission-critical, embedded, or highly interdependent |
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