This is a presentation I did for Mitre Corporation presenting the Six Basic Interrogatives ("6BI") concept. 6BI is a method for identifying and analyzing conceptual entities/objects with the goal of categorizing them into six basic areas which I believe are universal to all decision support solutions. It supports a repeatable and sustainable approach to the design of computer based solutions.

1. Six Basic Interrogatives “6BI” Design
Framework
An approach for aligning the design of desicion
support and business intelligence systems with the
Business Architecture.
Wayne Kurtz
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2. Agenda
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•
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Background
The Technique
Traceability
Q and A
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3. Background
• Based on Client Engagements, Best
Practices, Research & Literature
• Uses Industry Standards - OO and ER Synthesis
• Repeatable Process
• Scalable – upward or downward
• Open Methodology – can be applied outside BI
• Flexible – not carved in stone
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4. Business Object Categories
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5. The Value Statement
A Party (“Who”) produces and/or consumes Products (“What”)
by performing Activities (“How”) in response to Events
(“When”) at Locations (“Where”) guided by Motivators
(“Why”)
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6. 6BI, Zachman and DoDAF – Validation
Row 2
Row 3
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7. Party-Product Association Model
<Associated only indirectly >
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8. The Technique
• Step 1- ID & Sort the Business Entity Types - Place them
within the context of the Business Object Categories (BOC):
Ask yourself: Does the entity type address a basic interrogative?
(who? what? where? when? why? or how?)
• Step 2 - Categorize Source Tables & Data Elements - Create
a Logical Data Model (LDM) with data structures placed into
BOC Subject Areas (Sas), not Functional SAs:
You have the physical data structures (from the Technical Architecture)
organized into the logical BOCs (from the Business Architecture)
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9. Mapping
• Step 3 – Map the Physical thru the Logical to the Dimensional:
Each attribute of each Dimension is mapped thru the BOCs to business
entity types back to its originating source data element
Data Elements
Business Entity Types
Business Object Categories
Dimension
Dimensions
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10. Traceability
• Data Lineage
• Business Architecture and Technical Architecture Alignment
• “Middle-Out” Data Mapping
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11. Bridging the Barrier
Ladder of Abstraction
“6BI”
Business Architecture
Technical Architecture
- Mission, Vision, Stretegy, etc.
- Business Object Categories
- Data, Applications, etc.
- System Specs
Semantic Barrier
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12. References
• Data Model Patterns, Conventions of Thought by David C.
Hay
• Database Design for Smarties, Using UML for Data Modeling
by Robert L. Muller
• The Data Model Resource Book, A Library of Logical Data
Models and Data Warehouse Designs by Len Silverston, W.H.
Inmon, Kent Graziano
• An Activity-Based Methodology for Development and Analysis
of Integrated DoD Architectures by S. Ring, D. Nicholson, J.
Thilenius, S. Harris
• The Problem Space by Dan Tasker
• A framework for information systems architecture by John
Zachman
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13. Questions?
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14. Extra slides
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15. Zachman
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16. DODAF
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