| ER/Studio Business Architect - Frequently Asked Questions |
General Questions
Q: How does ER/Studio Business Architect work with ER/Studio Data Architect?A: ER/Studio Business Architect offers an import/export bridge to ER/Studio, allowing you to import data models into ER/Studio Business Architect. You can then create relationships between the entities and attributes from your data model and ER/Studio Business Architect business processes, business units, and stewards. You can also export conceptual data models created in ER/Studio Business Architect to ER/Studio as the foundation for logical and physical models. Q: What is the BPMN standard?A: The Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) is an open standard developed by the Object Management Group (OMG) as a graphical notation to depict the steps in a business process. It is designed to be intuitive to the business community (using many common flowcharting shapes, for example), yet robust enough to allow for code generation (via BPEL, for example). ER/Studio Business Architect provides full support for process modeling that adheres to the BPMN. Q: How does ER/Studio Business Architect compare with a BPM Vendor or Suite like IDS Scheer, Pegasystems, Lombardi, etc.?A: ER/Studio Business Architect is a lightweight business modeling tool that addresses process modeling (BPA) and conceptual modeling and its relationship to data. The core of ER/Studio Business Architect is in helping data modelers and business users communicate better. Focused BPM tools focus more on the execution, simulation, and metrics associated with business process management. Q: How does ER/Studio Business Architect compare with EA vendors like Telelogic (Popkin) System Architect?A: ER/Studio Business Architect provides a focused subset of a full enterprise architecture, offering deep functionality in the data modeling, process modeling, and the interrelationships between process and data. EA vendors tend to have light coverage in a broader range of areas, including assets, network, etc. For customers focused on data and process, we offer an easier-to-use solution, with a lower price tag, and robust functionality in the area in which we choose to focus. Q: How does ER/Studio Business Architect compare with a drawing tool like Visio?A: In addition to diagramming capabilities, ER/Studio Business Architect captures meta-data associated with business processes. This allows users the capability to model the relationships between business processes and data models, and to export information into a variety of formats, including HTML, .PDF, Excel, ER/Studio, etc. |
