The Integrated Architecture Framework (IAF) is Capgemini's own Enterprise Architecture framework.
The IAF can be seen to be a simplified version of the Zachman Framework.
This EA framework shows four Architecture Domains instead of Zachman's six interrogative columns:
- Business Architecture (people and process) (including Organisational Architecture) - (combining Zachman's How and Who columns)
- Information Architecture (including knowledge) - (Zachman's What column)
- Information Systems (or Application Architecture) - (Zachman's when and how columns)
- Technology Infrastructure (infrastructure Architecture) (Zachman's Where column)
In this EA Framework Zachman's Why column is not represented an Architecture Domain but visualised more pragmatically as a Layer of Abstraction.
For each of these Architecture Domains, this EA framework shows four Levels of Abstraction:
- Why - Contextual - The strategies, motivation, scope, constraints, principles that apply to the business, information, application and infrastructure domains.
- What - Conceptual - The vision of services (Business Services, Information Services, Application Services and Infrastructure Services)
- How - Logical - The components and connections that provide the services (Organisation structure, Information Components, Application Components and Infrastructure Components)
- With What - Physical - The physical implementation, deployment and hosting of all these Components.
The Why - Contextual layer is associated with strategic planners and 'c'-level executives.
The What - Conceptual layer is associated with a service oriented architecture reference model
The How - Logical layer is associated with a service development model/solution development model
The With What - Physical layer is associated with a service delivery model/Operational Model
In addition there are two extra parallel domains of Governance and Security, that presumably are also distinguished by the four levels of Abstraction.
The models in each layer would typically be developed in a top down fashion, with traceability and dependencies between the layers.
The Why/Contextual layer will include the strategy and principles for each of the Business, Information Application and infrastructure domains.
The What/Conceptual layer will include concepts for each of the Business, Information Application and infrastructure domains, that result from the strategies and principles in the contextual layer.
The How/Logical layer will include the logical analysis view of services and components for each concept in the Business, Information Application and infrastructure domains
The With What/Physical layer will include the physical implementation and deployment view for each concept in the Business, Information Application and infrastructure domains.
These layers of abstraction reflect the typical phases in a solution development process such as RUP (Inception, Elaboration, Construction, Transition)