enterprise-modeling

One of the most useful patterns (models) in enterprise modeling can be summarised as SICOCUO.

For those who are familiar with IDEF0, you will be familiar with IPO – input, process, output

For those who are familiar with Six Sigma, you will be familiar with SIPOC – supplier, input, process, output, customer

SICOCUO is a further extension of this thinking, firstly be extending beyond customer to include use, outcome

An important element in the design and delivery of an output is an understanding of its prospective use by the customer and the outcomes realised through this use.  The simplest way to describe this is in terms of an car manufacturer and a purchaser of a car. The intended use by the customer – whether to transport a family, to participate in a car rally, or to distribute bales of hay to livestock, dictates a range of the features and characteristics which need to be designed into the car and which influence the processes (and capabilities) required to deliver cars which will be valued (and hence purchased) by prospective customers.

Hence, the extension of SIPOC to SIPOCUO.

SICOCUO is a variant to SIPOCUO in as much as it treats the focus as a capability rather than a process.  By focusing on a capability, appropriate attention to be given to all elements required for the effective performance of the capability and hence the organisation deploying this capability.

Hence, the final formulation:

• Supplier
• Input
• Capability
• Output
• Customer
• Use
• Outcome

This pattern can be used at any level of an organisation.   It is quite valuable in distinguishing the responsibility of CXO and LOB Execs to realise the benefits from using a system versus the responsibility of the CIO to deliver a quality system.  It is equally valuable in positioning the current operation of an enterprise, its overall outputs (products or services) and the outcomes sought by its chosen customer segments.