Reuse of Enterprise Models

Abstract

Enterprise Modeling projects create a great deal of models. They have various purposes, which have been previously discussed. Some are created only to capture a particular idea or document the discussion of the stakeholders. But the majority of models are created in a design situation and once completed they reflect good solutions and best practices for dealing with a specific business problem or corporate intention. As a result they have a value that extends beyond the boundaries of the project that created them. This value needs to be captured, packaged in a form that facilitates sharing, and then used when appropriate. Individual projects considering only their own goals may not have the need to reuse models or to design reusable models, but the company as a whole has to work efficiently and capitalize on past success by reusing models. This chapter introduces different reuse approaches in the context of enterprise modeling.