Table 3 Comparison of 4EM and ArchiMate.
From: Enterprise modelling for decision-making in the software ecosystem
4EM | ArchiMate | Explanation | |
|---|---|---|---|
Modelling process | Participatory | Participatory/ non-participatory | The modelling process of 4EM is explicitly participatory, involving the different stakeholders. On the other hand, although the modelling process of ArchiMate is similar in its logical progression of steps in which the scope and purpose are first identified, followed by creating, refining, and validating the model, the approach needs to be more explicitly participatory. In other words, ArchiMate may or may not involve all its stakeholders’ participation during the modelling process15,30,46 |
Elicitation approach | Interviews, workshops, surveys, etc | No approach defined explicitly | ArchiMate does not have any explicit set of elicitation approaches defined for it. This is primarily due to the nature of ArchiMate, which placs little emphasis on being participatory |
Abstraction | Mid-Level | High-Level | 4EM is more process-oriented and hence provides more details in comparison to ArchiMate. However, it has more abstraction than a low-level language like UML. Thus, 4EM is considered at the mid-level and ArchiMate at the high level (Bas46), |
Understandability | Easy | Difficult | ArchiMate is difficult for new adopters, with many notations and views to grasp at once46. |
Adaption | Easy | Difficult | Special training is needed in the case of ArchiMate; thus, adapting ArchiMate is considered difficult as compared to 4EM (Bas46), |
Able to reflect the need for change/ improvement | Easy | Easy | With tool support, looking for changes and updates in ArchiMate is easy. (Bas46), |
Community support | Limited | Extensive | Although 4EM finds use in modelling business processes in enterprises, it is not considered an accepted standard, unlike ArchiMate. The published literature on 4EM is also limited compared to ArchiMate’s, which leads to 4EM having limited community support and fewer practising members30,46. |
Tool support | No | Yes | The standard tool is not available for 4EM modelling. (Bas46), |
Goal/Vision | Yes | Yes | Refer to Table 3 for details regarding specific models/perspectives for the representation of these modelling aspects |
Process/Activity | Yes | Yes | |
Actor view | Yes | Yes | |
Constraint | Yes | Yes | |
Actor and resources | Yes | Yes | |
Business Collaboration | No | Yes | |
Business capabilities | No | Yes |
