Platform
Platform Overview

A new "network" architecture is required in order to enable multi-enterprise business processes.

A "Network" Platform

The only way to effectively manage multi-enterprise processes is via a federated network architecture that can connect partners seamlessly and manage information in virtual real time.

Today’s ERP and best of breed systems were designed to handle private, single-enterprise processes. They are not technologically architected to handle multi-enterprise or end-to-end business processes.  To enable cross-enterprise processes a new ‘Network’ architecture is required.

In a network architecture there is a Single Version of the Truth (SVOT) through an entire trading partner ecosystem. Furthermore each partner is onboarded only once but can connect to all permissioned parties on the network.
The key building blocks of a Network platform are:

• Many-to-Many Network Data Model as well as applications that are aware of the many-to-many data model.
• Multi-Enterprise Transactions that allow multiple trading partners to operate on the same transaction. (SVOT).
• Multi-Enterprise Permissions Framework that governs read and write access to data and execute access to processes.

Advantages of a Network Architecture

The key advantages of a network architecture which revolutionizes the execution of shared processes are:

• Enable Network-SVOT-Dependent Processes. There are a number of processes that cannot be executed at all without network-svot. Examples of these include Appointment Scheduling, Auctions, Ticket reservations etc.
• Reduced Cost of Integration. Integration is one of the biggest costs in implementing shared processes and typically because multiple connections are required – usually a minimum of one connection per trading partner. In a network architecture the cost is significantly reduced, since each partner is ‘onboarded’ only once and can instantly connect to all other partners on the network.
• Increased Compliance. Traditional extended enterprise systems have suffered from lack of compliance. Partners do not want to log onto multiple disparate systems. This means that compliance (as defined as the number of partners in the partner base that use your system) is very low in traditional extended-enterprise systems. Most of these projects have failed and companies have fallen back to traditional peer-to-peer messaging approaches. Many-to-many network systems have much higher compliance rates.
• Process Flexibility. The same process flexibility that is available to private processes is now available to shared processes. New shared processes can be deployed as quickly and easily as new private processes.
• Incremental Planning. An incremental planning architecture allows an enterprise to run in a sense-and-respond mode which can significantly increase its responsiveness and efficiency for certain types of processes. The Incremental Planning architecture revolutionizes how decision support can be executed as only relevant and necessary portions of the plan can be updated dynamically without impacting the entire organization.

Platform Technologies

The key technologies that make up the Platform include:

• Software Developer Kit (SDK) . The SDK (built on the Open Source Eclipse platform) that allows developers (including third-parties) to build new applications on the platform without compromising SVOT. The language used in the SDK is standard Java so existing skills can be leveraged.
• Modularity. This allows applications to be installed and uninstalled. Applications have a versioning independent of the underlying platform. This is similar to how Microsoft Office is versioned separately from Microsoft Windows.
• The problem of modularity in data models was solved some time ago in Object-Oriented Technology through a technology called mixins. The One Network platform adapts the object-oriented mixin architecture to transactional, persistent data models allowing them to be modular as well. The mixin architecture allows multiple applications to independently extend the data models of “lower level” models without compromising SVOT.
• E-MDM and E-CTM. The mixin architecture forms the basis for a new kind of Extensible Master Data Management (E-MDM) and Common Transaction Management (E-CTM).
•  A new process inheritance architecture. The One Network platform allows developers to inherit from processes that are built into the core platform and applications while maintaining SVOT. This allows implementers to extend processes while being confident that core processes will continue to run correctly. This represents a huge advance in enterprise system extensibility. The implementer inherits processes through a tool called the Studio (which is also built on Eclipse).

Finally the cloud architecture allows companies to reduce their hosting costs while using their I.T. resources to drive differentiated functionality via the Software Developer Kit.

The One Network platform has been implemented in over 4000 companies. It has been proven in several industries including Retail, CPG, HiTech, Logistics and the Public Sector. It has been scaled to the most demanding transactional and user volumes.

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