Intentional Alignment and Interoperability in Inter-Organization Information Systems - Intentional Perspectives on Information Systems Engineering - page 110

immediately upon enactment of its predecessor. This explains the choice of the DM
property for the edges in the figure.
The supplier organization receives requests for system configurations, determines
that the configuration asked for is indeed realizable and responds with a quotation.
If any additional information/clarification is required then it obtains it and verifies
it once again. Since it may happen that it has to order system parts that are miss-
ing, such missing parts are ordered and the system is assembled together, software
installed, if required, and the system is delivered. This process is shown in Fig. 11.
Notice that after <quotation, generate> there are two possibilities, either addi-
tional information is to be handled or missing parts are to be ordered. Both these
actions can be done after a time delay. Thus, we get Deferred-Can, DC, as the
edge property. A similar situation exists after the system has been assembled, i.e. at
<system, assemble>. If no software is to be loaded and a bare system is to be
supplied then the property is DC as shown in Fig. 9( ii).
Finally, consider a simple supplier process that sends out a quotation and upon
receipt of an order delivers parts. The type of dependency is again DM. This is
shown in Fig. 12.
Now, the goal hierarchies of supply chain call for interoperability between these
process models. The Assure Supplier-Assure market interoperability is between the
process models of Figs. 10 and 11. The first point of variation is at <specs, enquiry>
of the user organization. Whereas earlier this was self contained in the User process,
now it is possible to invoke the supplier for the purchase of systems. In this case,
the DM edge in Fig. 10 to <quotation, evaluate>, which was originally DM, shall be
changed to DC. The edge from <spec, enquiry> to the Supplier process shall now
be introduced and shall also be DC. As a result, this allows a choice between the
two courses of action. This is shown in Fig. 13.

User <Quotation, Evaluate> <Item, Received>

DC DM DM

DM

<Payment, Authorize>

<Purchase-order,Issue>

<Specs, Enquiry>

DM

DC
DC

IC DM

<System, Deliver>

System
Supplier

<Quotation, Generate> <Info, Verify>

DM

<Software, Test>

DC DM

DM

<Additional -Info, Explore> DM

DC

<System-Detail,Check> DC

DC

DM

<Software, Install>

IC

DC

DM

<System, Assemble >

DM

<Missing-Parts, Order>

Component
Supplier

IM

<Parts, Deliver>

DM

IM

<Parts-Quotation, Quote>

Fig. 13 The supply chain process: interoperability requirements