Business Layer Skill

Layer Number: 02 Specification: Metadata Model Spec v0.8.3 Purpose: Represents business services, processes, actors, and objects that define the organization's operational structure and capabilities.

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Layer Overview

The Business Layer captures the operational structure of the organization:

• WHO - Business actors, roles, and collaborations
• WHAT - Business services and products
• HOW - Business processes, functions, and interactions
• INFORMATION - Business objects and their representations

This layer uses ArchiMate 3.2 Business Layer standard without custom extensions, with optional extensions for BPMN integration, SLA tracking, and security controls.

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Entity Types

CLI Introspection: Run dr schema types business for the authoritative, always-current list of node types. Run dr schema node <type-id> for full attribute details on any type.

Entity Type	Description	Key Attributes
BusinessActor	Organizational entity capable of performing behavior	Examples: Customer, Employee, Partner, Supplier
BusinessRole	Responsibility for performing specific behavior	Examples: Sales Representative, Account Manager, System Administrator
BusinessCollaboration	Aggregate of business roles working together	Examples: Sales Team, Customer Service Department, Project Team
BusinessInterface	Point of access where business service is available	Examples: Customer Portal, Phone Support, Email Support
BusinessProcess	Sequence of business behaviors achieving a result	Can include BPMN references, security controls, KPI targets
BusinessFunction	Collection of business behavior based on criteria	Examples: Marketing, Sales, Customer Service, Finance
BusinessInteraction	Unit of collective behavior by collaboration	Examples: Sales Meeting, Contract Negotiation, Customer Onboarding
BusinessEvent	Something that happens and influences behavior	Types: time-driven, state-change, external
BusinessService	Service that fulfills a business need	Includes SLA properties, motivation links, APM monitoring
BusinessObject	Concept used within business domain	Examples: Order, Invoice, Customer, Opportunity, Support Ticket
Contract	Formal specification of agreement	Examples: SLA, Terms of Service, Purchase Agreement
Representation	Perceptible form of business object	Required format: pdf, html, xml, json, plain-text, binary
Product	Coherent collection of services with a value	Aggregates services and contracts, delivers value to customers

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Type Decision Tree

Use this decision tree before assigning a type to any observed business concept.

IS this an individual person, organization, or system that acts in the business domain?
  → BusinessActor (e.g., Customer, Supplier, Partner)

IS this a named responsibility or hat worn by an actor?
  → BusinessRole (e.g., Sales Representative, Account Manager)

IS this a group of roles working together toward a shared goal?
  → BusinessCollaboration (e.g., Sales Team, Project Team)

IS this a channel or contact point where a business service is accessed?
  → BusinessInterface (e.g., Customer Portal, Phone Support Line)

IS this a structured sequence of steps that produces a business outcome?
  → BusinessProcess (e.g., Order Fulfillment, Loan Approval)

IS this a grouping of related business behaviors (department-level capability)?
  → BusinessFunction (e.g., Marketing, Finance, Customer Support)

IS this a joint behavior performed by two or more roles together?
  → BusinessInteraction (e.g., Contract Negotiation, Sales Meeting)

IS this something that happens and triggers a response in the business?
  → BusinessEvent (e.g., Order Received, Payment Confirmed)

IS this an externally visible capability the business offers to stakeholders?
  → BusinessService (e.g., Order Management Service, Payment Service)

IS this a key domain concept or data entity used in business language?
  → BusinessObject (e.g., Order, Invoice, Customer)

IS this a formal agreement with binding terms between parties?
  → Contract (e.g., SLA, Purchase Agreement, Terms of Service)

IS this a concrete form in which a business object is communicated?
  → Representation (e.g., Invoice PDF, Order Confirmation Email)

IS this a coherent bundle of services with a value proposition for customers?
  → Product (e.g., E-commerce Platform, Premium Support Package)

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Common Misclassifications

Misclassification	Correct Classification	Why
A department or team as BusinessService	BusinessFunction (department) or BusinessCollaboration (team)	Services are externally visible capabilities; departments are behavioral groupings
A REST endpoint or UI as BusinessInterface	BusinessInterface is correct — but link it to the ApplicationInterface in the application layer	Business interfaces are the business-facing access point, not the technical one
A business rule or policy as BusinessProcess	BusinessProcess only for sequences of steps; rules belong in Motivation layer as Principle or Constraint	Processes produce outcomes through behavior; rules govern behavior
A domain entity (Order, Invoice) as BusinessProcess	BusinessObject	Objects are concepts; processes are sequences of behavior
A job title (Sales Rep) as BusinessActor	BusinessRole	Roles are responsibilities; actors are the people/orgs that fill them
An SLA document as BusinessService	Contract	An SLA is a formal agreement, not the service itself
A product feature as BusinessFunction	Product if it bundles services with customer value; BusinessService if it's a single capability	Products aggregate services; functions are internal behavioral groupings

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Intra-Layer Relationships

Structural Relationships

Source Type	Predicate	Target Type	Example
Product	composes	BusinessService	"E-commerce Platform" composes "Payment Service"
BusinessCollaboration	composes	BusinessRole	"Sales Team" composes "Sales Representative" role
BusinessProcess	composes	BusinessProcess	"Order Fulfillment" composes "Pick", "Pack", "Ship" sub-processes
BusinessFunction	composes	BusinessProcess	"Sales Function" composes "Lead Generation Process"
Product	aggregates	BusinessService	Product bundles multiple services
Product	aggregates	Contract	Product includes SLA contracts
BusinessCollaboration	aggregates	BusinessRole	Collaboration includes multiple roles
BusinessActor	assigned-to	BusinessRole	"John Smith" assigned to "Sales Rep"
BusinessActor	assigned-to	BusinessProcess	Actor directly performs process
BusinessRole	assigned-to	BusinessProcess	Role responsible for process execution
BusinessRole	assigned-to	BusinessFunction	Role performs function
BusinessCollaboration	assigned-to	BusinessInteraction	Collaboration performs interaction
BusinessProcess	realizes	BusinessService	"Order Processing" realizes "Order Management Service"
BusinessFunction	realizes	BusinessService	"Customer Support Function" realizes "Support Service"
BusinessInteraction	realizes	BusinessService	"Contract Negotiation" realizes "Contracting Service"
Representation	realizes	BusinessObject	"Invoice PDF" realizes "Invoice" concept
BusinessObject	specializes	BusinessObject	"RetailCustomer" specializes "Customer"
BusinessRole	specializes	BusinessRole	"Senior Sales Rep" specializes "Sales Rep"
Contract	specializes	Contract	"Premium SLA" specializes "Standard SLA"

Behavioral Relationships

Source Type	Predicate	Target Type	Example
BusinessEvent	triggers	BusinessProcess	"Order Received" triggers "Order Fulfillment Process"
BusinessEvent	triggers	BusinessFunction	"Monthly Close" triggers "Financial Reporting Function"
BusinessEvent	triggers	BusinessInteraction	"Customer Complaint" triggers "Issue Resolution Interaction"
BusinessProcess	triggers	BusinessEvent	"Payment Complete" triggers "Order Confirmed Event"
BusinessInteraction	triggers	BusinessProcess	"Sales Meeting" triggers "Proposal Generation Process"
BusinessProcess	flows-to	BusinessProcess	"Credit Check" flows to "Order Approval"
BusinessInteraction	flows-to	BusinessProcess	"Negotiation" flows to "Contract Signing"
BusinessService	serves	BusinessActor	"Customer Portal" serves "Customer"
BusinessService	serves	BusinessRole	"Reporting Service" serves "Manager" role
BusinessService	serves	BusinessProcess	"Authentication Service" serves "Login Process"
BusinessInterface	serves	BusinessActor	"Mobile App" serves "Customer"
BusinessInterface	serves	BusinessRole	"Admin Console" serves "Administrator" role
BusinessProcess	accesses	BusinessObject	"Order Process" accesses "Order" object
BusinessFunction	accesses	BusinessObject	"Billing Function" accesses "Invoice" object
BusinessInteraction	accesses	BusinessObject	"Contract Review" accesses "Contract" object
Contract	associated-with	BusinessService	SLA contract associated with service delivery
BusinessObject	associated-with	BusinessProcess	"Customer" associated with "Onboarding Process"

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Cross-Layer References

Outgoing References (Business → Lower Layers)

Target Layer	Reference Type	Example
Layer 1 (Motivation)	BusinessService delivers Value	"Payment Service" delivers "Revenue Generation" value
Layer 1 (Motivation)	BusinessService supports Goal	Service achieves business goals
Layer 1 (Motivation)	BusinessService governed by Principle	Follows business principles
Layer 1 (Motivation)	BusinessActor is Stakeholder	Actor maps to stakeholder in motivation layer
Layer 1 (Motivation)	BusinessProcess achieves Goal	Process realizes business goals
Layer 1 (Motivation)	Contract drives Constraint	SLA contract defines constraints
Layer 4 (Application)	BusinessService realized by ApplicationService	"Order Service" realized by "OrderManagementAPI"
Layer 4 (Application)	BusinessProcess automated by ApplicationProcess	Process workflow automated by application
Layer 4 (Application)	BusinessObject represented in DataObject	"Customer" business concept maps to customer data object
Layer 4 (Application)	BusinessEvent triggers ApplicationEvent	Business event generates application event
Layer 3 (Security)	BusinessProcess protected by SecurityControl	Process has authentication/authorization
Layer 3 (Security)	BusinessCollaboration maps to SecurityActor	Team maps to security roles
Layer 6 (API)	BusinessInterface maps to API Operation	Portal interface maps to REST endpoints
Layer 7 (Data Model)	BusinessObject → JSON Schema	Business object defined as schema
Layer 11 (APM)	BusinessProcess tracked by BusinessMetric	Process performance measured
Layer 11 (APM)	BusinessService defines KPI Target	SLA targets for monitoring

Incoming References (Lower Layers → Business)

Lower layers (Application, Technology, API, etc.) reference Business layer elements to show:

• Realization: Application services realize business services
• Support: Technology supports business operations
• Traceability: APIs map to business interfaces

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Codebase Detection Patterns

Pattern 1: Service Layer Classes

# FastAPI Business Service
@app.post("/api/orders")
async def create_order(order_data: OrderRequest):
    """Creates a new customer order (Business Service: Order Management)"""
    pass

Maps to:

• BusinessService: "Order Management Service"
• BusinessProcess: "Create Order Process"
• BusinessObject: "Order"
• BusinessInterface: "API Interface"

Pattern 2: Domain Models

from dataclasses import dataclass

@dataclass
class Customer:
    """Customer business object"""
    customer_id: str
    name: str
    email: str
    status: str  # active, inactive, suspended

Maps to:

• BusinessObject: "Customer"
• Potential BusinessProcess: "Customer Management"

Pattern 3: Event Definitions

// Domain events
export enum BusinessEvents {
  ORDER_CREATED = "order.created",
  ORDER_FULFILLED = "order.fulfilled",
  PAYMENT_RECEIVED = "payment.received"
}

Maps to:

• BusinessEvent entities (order.created, order.fulfilled, payment.received)

Pattern 4: BPMN Process References

# Process definition with BPMN reference
class OrderFulfillmentProcess:
    """
    Order fulfillment business process
    BPMN: processes/order-fulfillment.bpmn
    KPI: 95% orders fulfilled within 24 hours
    """
    def execute(self, order_id: str):
        pass

Maps to:

• BusinessProcess: "Order Fulfillment"
• Properties: bpmn-file, kpi-target

Pattern 5: Role-Based Authorization

from enum import Enum

class BusinessRole(Enum):
    SALES_REP = "sales_representative"
    ACCOUNT_MANAGER = "account_manager"
    CUSTOMER_SERVICE = "customer_service"
    ADMIN = "administrator"

@require_role(BusinessRole.SALES_REP)
def create_opportunity(data):
    pass

Maps to:

• BusinessRole entities (SalesRepresentative, AccountManager, etc.)

Pattern 6: SLA Configuration

# Service SLA definitions
services:
  order_processing:
    sla:
      availability: 99.9%
      response_time: 500ms
      throughput: 1000 req/sec
    business_hours: "24/7"

Maps to:

• BusinessService with SLA properties
• Contract entity for formal SLA

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Coverage Completeness Checklist

Before declaring business layer extraction complete, verify ALL 13 entity types have been considered:

□ BusinessActor      — people, orgs, or systems that act (Customer, Supplier, Partner)
□ BusinessRole       — named responsibilities assigned to actors (Sales Rep, Admin)
□ BusinessCollaboration — groups of roles working together (Sales Team, Support Dept)
□ BusinessInterface  — access points where services are available (Portal, API, Phone)
□ BusinessProcess    — step sequences producing a business outcome (Order Fulfillment)
□ BusinessFunction   — department-level behavioral capability (Marketing, Finance)
□ BusinessInteraction — collective behavior by a collaboration (Contract Negotiation)
□ BusinessEvent      — triggers: time-driven, state-change, external (Order Received)
□ BusinessService    — externally visible capability (Order Management, Payment)
□ BusinessObject     — key domain concepts (Order, Invoice, Customer, Opportunity)
□ Contract           — formal agreements: SLA, Terms of Service, Purchase Agreement
□ Representation     — concrete forms of objects (format: pdf, html, xml, json, plain-text, binary)
□ Product            — bundles of services with customer value proposition

If any type has ZERO elements, explicitly decide:
  "This type doesn't apply to this codebase" with reasoning.

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Modeling Workflow

Step 1: Identify Business Actors and Roles

# Add business actors
dr add business actor "Customer" \
  --description "End user purchasing products"

dr add business collaboration "Sales Team" \
  --description "Internal sales organization"

# Add business roles
dr add business role "Sales Representative" \
  --description "Responsible for customer acquisition"

dr add business role "Account Manager" \
  --description "Manages existing customer relationships"

Step 2: Define Business Services

# Core business service
dr add business service "Order Management Service" \
  --description "Manages customer order lifecycle"

# Link to motivation layer
dr relationship add business.businessservice.order-management-service \
  motivation.goal.improve-order-efficiency --predicate supports

Step 3: Model Business Processes

# Main process
dr add business process "Order Fulfillment Process" \
  --description "End-to-end order fulfillment from creation to delivery"

# Sub-processes
dr add business process "Pick Items Process" \
  --description "Pick items from warehouse inventory"

dr add business process "Pack Order Process" \
  --description "Pack picked items for shipment"

# Composition relationships
dr relationship add business.businessprocess.order-fulfillment-process \
  business.businessprocess.pick-items-process --predicate composes

dr relationship add business.businessprocess.order-fulfillment-process \
  business.businessprocess.pack-order-process --predicate composes

# Process flows
dr relationship add business.businessprocess.pick-items-process \
  business.businessprocess.pack-order-process --predicate flows-to

Step 4: Define Business Objects

# Core business objects
dr add business object "Order" \
  --description "Customer purchase order"

dr add business object "Customer" \
  --description "Individual or organization purchasing products"

dr add business object "Product" \
  --description "Item available for purchase"

# Process access to objects
dr relationship add business.businessprocess.order-fulfillment-process \
  business.businessobject.order --predicate accesses

Step 5: Model Business Events

# Events that trigger processes
dr add business event "Order Received" \
  --description "New order submitted by customer"

dr add business event "Payment Confirmed" \
  --description "Payment successfully processed"

# Event triggering
dr relationship add business.businessevent.order-received \
  business.businessprocess.order-fulfillment-process --predicate triggers

Step 6: Establish Cross-Layer Relationships

# Link to application layer
dr relationship add business.businessservice.order-management-service \
  application.applicationservice.order-api --predicate realized-by

# Link to motivation layer
dr relationship add business.businessservice.order-management-service \
  motivation.value.customer-satisfaction --predicate delivers

# Link to data layer
dr relationship add business.businessobject.order \
  data-model.objectschema.order --predicate defined-by

Step 7: Validate

dr validate --layers business
dr validate --relationships

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Common Modeling Scenarios

Scenario 1: E-commerce Order Management

Product: "E-commerce Platform"
├── composes → BusinessService: "Order Service"
│   ├── realizes ← BusinessProcess: "Order Fulfillment"
│   │   ├── triggers ← BusinessEvent: "Order Received"
│   │   ├── accesses → BusinessObject: "Order"
│   │   └── assigned-to → BusinessRole: "Order Processor"
│   └── realized-by → ApplicationService: "OrderManagementAPI"
├── composes → BusinessService: "Payment Service"
│   └── realizes ← BusinessProcess: "Payment Processing"
└── aggregates → Contract: "E-commerce SLA"

Scenario 2: Customer Support System

BusinessFunction: "Customer Support"
├── composes → BusinessProcess: "Ticket Resolution"
│   ├── triggers ← BusinessEvent: "Support Request Received"
│   ├── assigned-to → BusinessRole: "Support Agent"
│   ├── accesses → BusinessObject: "Support Ticket"
│   └── flows-to → BusinessProcess: "Follow-up Communication"
├── realizes → BusinessService: "Support Service"
│   ├── serves → BusinessActor: "Customer"
│   └── properties: sla-response-time=2h, sla-resolution-time=24h
└── tracked-by → BusinessMetric: "First Response Time"

Scenario 3: Sales Pipeline

BusinessCollaboration: "Sales Team"
├── composes → BusinessRole: "Sales Representative"
├── composes → BusinessRole: "Sales Manager"
└── assigned-to → BusinessInteraction: "Sales Meeting"
    ├── accesses → BusinessObject: "Opportunity"
    ├── flows-to → BusinessProcess: "Proposal Generation"
    └── triggers → BusinessEvent: "Deal Closed"

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BPMN Integration

When business processes reference BPMN diagrams:

dr add business process "Loan Approval Process" \
  --description "End-to-end loan application review and approval"

BPMN Properties:

• bpmn-file: Path to BPMN XML file
• bpmn-version: BPMN specification version (2.0)
• bpmn-task-mapping: Map BPMN tasks to business roles

Validation: Ensure BPMN task IDs align with business process sub-processes.

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SLA and Performance Tracking

Business services can define SLA targets:

business-service:
  id: "payment-processing-service"
  properties:
    sla-availability: "99.99%"
    sla-response-time: "200ms"
    sla-throughput: "5000 tps"
    business-hours: "24/7"
    escalation-time: "15m"

These SLAs flow down to:

• Application Layer - Application services inherit targets
• APM Layer - Monitoring dashboards track against targets
• Motivation Layer - SLAs trace to business goals

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ArchiMate Export

dr export archimate --layers business --output business.archimate

Supported ArchiMate Elements:

• All 13 business entity types map directly to ArchiMate 3.2 Business Layer
• Relationships: composition, aggregation, assignment, realization, specialization, triggering, flow, serving, access, association

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Best Practices

1. Start with Services, Not Processes - Identify WHAT the business provides before HOW it's delivered
2. Use Process Composition - Break complex processes into manageable sub-processes
3. Model Events Explicitly - Event-driven architectures need explicit BusinessEvent entities
4. Link to Motivation Early - Connect services and processes to goals for traceability
5. Don't Over-Detail - Focus on architecturally significant processes, not every task
6. Use BPMN for Complex Workflows - Reference BPMN files rather than modeling every detail
7. Distinguish Role from Actor - Role is responsibility; Actor is individual/team
8. Model Contracts for SLAs - Formalize service agreements as Contract entities
9. Track Business Objects - Identify key domain concepts even if data model comes later

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Validation Tips

Issue	Cause	Fix
Orphaned Process	No event triggers it, no service realizes it	Add triggering event or link to service
Unrealized Service	No process/function realizes the service	Add process that implements the service
Missing Business Objects	Processes don't access any objects	Identify key domain concepts and add them
No Cross-Layer Relationships	Business not linked to application/data	Add realization relationships to lower layers
Unassigned Roles	Roles not assigned to processes	Assign roles to show responsibility
Missing SLA Properties	Services lack performance targets	Add SLA properties for monitoring

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Quick Reference

Add Commands:

dr add business actor <name>
dr add business role <name>
dr add business service <name> --description <description>
dr add business process <name> --description <description>
dr add business object <name>
dr add business event <name> --description <description>
dr add business function <name>
dr add business collaboration <name>

Relationship Commands:

dr relationship add <source> <target> --predicate realizes
dr relationship add <source> <target> --predicate composes
dr relationship add <source> <target> --predicate assigned-to
dr relationship add <source> <target> --predicate triggers
dr relationship add <source> <target> --predicate flows-to
dr relationship add <source> <target> --predicate accesses
dr relationship add <source> <target> --predicate serves

Cross-Layer Relationship Commands:

dr relationship add <business-service> <motivation-goal> --predicate supports
dr relationship add <business-service> <application-service> --predicate realized-by
dr relationship add <business-object> <data-schema> --predicate defined-by