Information modeling?

[dangerleaf]

Hi,

let me first introduce myself. My name is Erik and I'm new to this forum. I'm from Holland and a few months ago I started with a new study called Business Information Technology. They try to teach us how to analyze/describe businesses using UML, how to develop new information systems etc.

Im sure there is lots of information on this forum and I hope to spend more time here in the coming months

I already have a question...
One of our projects is the administrative organization of a business. Which means analyze specific parts of a business. Lets say the Purchase Department.  So we modeled the business process 'Procurement'. Then made a resource model, which shows all the connections between the resources in this model.
So far so good...
The next thing is to make an information model, but I really have no idea what this is. Does such a model show the connections between all the information in the business process 'procurement'. I.e. purchase contract ,market information etc. and how they are related  

[jeshaw2]

There are lots of definitions for what an Information Model actually is.  It depends on the analysis paradigm being used;  Try doing a Goggle search on that term to see what I mean.  I'm not really sure which methodology you are being taught.

I'm not sure I agree with the ordering of the Models you are developing because it seems to be modeling more for giving you practice in the various models your instructor is teaching than for the implementation of any effective systems analysis methodology.

I feel compelled to ask:  Have you developed any Use Cases for your problem domain?  This step is critical to giving focus to your analysis process.

Can you give us any more information?  Has your instructor provided a definition, etc. ?

-Jim

[dangerleaf]

I'm not sure I agree with the ordering of the Models you are developing because it seems to be modeling more for giving you practice in the various models your instructor is teaching than for the implementation of any effective systems analysis methodology.

That is not the idea we have. I mean, this way we practise with different models but we also have to use these models to come up with a structured plan.
At the beginning we were giving a description of a really unhealthy company, with no departments, no workinstructions, no procedures, everything is adhoc. By using various methods of analysis we have to come up with a plan for the future. The order in which we have to do things is:
•make a financial analysis of the company, SWOT etc.

•analyse the structure of the company, ie. culture, strategy, targets etc. Also make a Goal-Problem model and specificy how you want to reach your goals

•Make business process models (BPM) of several departments of this company which can help to reach your goals (which wasnt hard, since the company didn’t have much structure in the 1st place)
•make a management analysis and a Balance Score Card

•describe the Administrative Organization. So come up with work instructions and procedures for the departments. Look again at the Business Process models and compare them to standard business Process models. Ie we made a BPM for ‘receiving materials’. Compare this to standard BPM’s companies use to receive materials and see if there’s any difference. Make a Resource Model of the BPM and an Information model

•come up with 3 possible information systems, ie. ERP, SAP or other systems

•Make USE cases of one particular BPM

I feel compelled to ask:  Have you developed any Use Cases for your problem domain?  This step is critical to giving focus to your analysis process.

This is the final step we have to do.

Can you give us any more information?  Has your instructor provided a definition, etc. ?

No definition at all. The only thing I could find in the book (Business Modeling with UML; Eriksson en Penker; Wiley Computer Publishing/John Wiley & Sons Inc.; ISBN 0471295515) is that an information model is closely related to the resource model. And it shows what information is used between the resources. It is used in the information system and in that way supports the business.
But this is so general… :-/
I have no idea what to model of for instance the sales department or the production department. Because theses departments are modeled in the resource model, so I figure the information should be closely related to these departments  

[dangerleaf]

DUH,  

Did some googling
i think what they want is a data model. I have to figure out for each department what information is needed and put this in a class-model.

[jeshaw2]

I have to figure out for each department what information is needed and put this in a class-model.

Ah!  But needed to do what?  First, one must determine the goals to be achieved by the system users and then structure a system around that?  

Too many system designers just shot-gun features into a system because it sounds good to have them, but ultimately, they are never used...and somehow the important features never make it into the design.

[dangerleaf]

Ah!  But needed to do what?  First, one must determine the goals to be achieved by the system users and then structure a system around that?  

Yes. In the end we have to come up with a software system

[jeshaw2]

   I give up

[thomaskilian]

Quite interesting how information was modeled in this thread.

[jeshaw2]

Yes..I think I'm begining to understand his context.

on Jun 7th, 2007, 12:38am, jeshaw2 wrote:I feel compelled to ask:  Have you developed any Use Cases for your problem domain?  This step is critical to giving focus to your analysis process.  

This is the final step we have to do.  

I think he is in an Masters Business Administration [MBA] program rather than an Information Technology program.  If that is true, I understand what he is doing.  He is developing what we in IT call a Domain Model at the CIM level of abstraction...I think  :-/  That would put Use Cases at the end of his process.

[thomaskilian]

...which again shows us how important is to b) speak the same language and a) find out that we actually don't...

[dangerleaf]

I think he is in an Masters Business Administration [MBA] program rather than an Information Technology program.  

True, please understand were im coming from. I have like not even 2 months experience in this stuff. So plz forgive if I was not clear at the beginning, I didnt know the right translation for my study  

The focus of this semester is Business Administration. Next semester the focus will be more on developing