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 defined.
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. |
These roles allow for precise modelling of interdependencies, enabling traceability, governance, and impact analysis across organisational functions.
Capabilities may be shared, reused, or leveraged across the organisation. Clear designation of relationship roles supports investment planning, service level expectations, and architectural traceability.
Example:
The Workforce Planning capability is:
Owned by: People & Culture Division (owning unit)
Consumed by: Asset Management Division (consuming unit)
Supported by: Finance Division (supported unit)
This distinction provides a clear view of accountability (People & Culture), operational reliance (Asset Management), and enabling support (Finance).
Organisation-wide services are often designed and managed centrally but delivered to or used by many business units. Role clarity enables better service design, funding alignment, and continuous improvement.
Example:
The Learning and Development Service is:
Provided by: Learning Services Team (providing unit)
Consumed by: All departments (consuming units)
Governed by: People Strategy Group (custodian unit)
Defining these relationships clarifies responsibility for experience quality, data, and outcomes.
Information assets typically flow between producing and consuming units. Assigning custodial and consumer roles ensures traceability and compliance.
Example:
The Employee Records Dataset is:
Maintained by: HR Operations Unit (custodian unit)
Consumed by: Payroll Unit (consuming unit)
Relied on by: Compliance Division (dependent unit)
This approach ensures that data stewardship is clearly defined and that consuming units know the appropriate contact points for change requests or data issues.