Information Systems Application Sector Working Group

1. Information Systems Application SectorWorking Group INCOSE International Symposium 12 July 2006 Asst. Dir: Janet Hofmeister Janet.Hofmeister@incose.org

2. TLT CHARTER • The Technical Leadership Team has three top-level functions: • Advance the knowledge base of SE through technical projects, research and involvement in standards • Share our knowledge base by providing an infrastructure for sharing with members and non-members • Provide technical authorityto ensure the quality of all that we do • These activities are flowed down through the Technical Matrix to the Enablers and Application Sectors and their respective Working Groups

3. TECHNICAL MATRIX Application Sectors Aerospace & Defense Information Systems Emerging Technologies Public Interest Consumer Goods Infrastructure Transportation Enterprise SE Management Process Systems Science x SE Support Process SE Technical Process x Modelling & Tools x Enablers x x Specialty Engineering x

4. Tech Matrix - Enablers • WHAT WE PRACTICE: • Systems Science: Theoretical foundations of SE, including systems concepts, complexity theory, system dynamics, & operations research. Provides principles and guidelines for developing SE processes. • SE Technical Process – Processes constituting the core of SE, providing practical and efficient ways of handling complexity of engineering activities throughout lifecycle from user requirements elicitation to system retirement. • SE Management Process - Timely and appropriate application of the technical processes, such as configuration management, review processes, risk management, and planning. • SE Support Process - Not directly involved in developing a system, but important to development of systems engineering itself, such as process measurement, evaluation, and improvement. Includes documentation of this development in handbooks and guides. • Modelling and Tools: Models, software-based tools, and databases required to operate them that are indispensable to the cost-effective execution of the technical, management, and support processes. Includes development, documentation, and interoperability, as well as training required to use them effectively. • Speciality Engineering – Theories, processes, and procedures that focus on aspects of systems not directly associated with their functionality, but essential to achieving a cost-effective life cycle, such as reliability, maintainability, supportability, constructability, environmental, and human factors, and life cycle cost.

5. Tech Matrix - Sectors • WHERE WE PRACTICE: • Public Interest: A collection of issues of major concern to society in general, such as anti-terrorism, environmental issues, and health care, where Systems Engineering is used as a methodology for understanding the complexity of the issue and develop approaches to solutions. • Aerospace and Defense: This comprises civil and military aircraft, military space systems, weapons systems, military C4ISR systems, naval platforms and ground equipment and systems. • Consumer Goods: A wide industry sector comprising the food and beverage, domestic appliance, entertainment and other commercial product industries. It is focused on the product - its development, marketing and distribution - rather than on the manufacturing process. • Emerging Technologies: A collection of technologies in their early development stages where systems engineering will enable their transition and insertion into current and future systems to enhance capabilities and/or provide new functionality.

6. Tech Matrix – Sectors (Cont.) • WHERE WE PRACTICE: • Infrastructure: This includes economic, social and political infrastructure including fixed assets, networks of assets, and/or facilities used to support products or provide services. The focus of this sector is on opportunities to apply systems engineering in the development and management of infrastructure. • Transportation: The application of Systems Engineering to the development and design of transportation systems and equipment. • Information Systems: The application of Systems Engineering to the acquisition, management, storage and retrieval of information and knowledge. This includes data mining, knowledge management, intelligence assessment, and all types of business data management. • Enterprise: The application of Systems Engineering to the understanding, development or optimization of an enterprise; that is, people applying actions for a mutual purpose. This includes intelligent enterprises, business systems, and systems of systems. • Many sectors have seeming overlaps – need to work with these teams to ensure coordination

7. ISWG CHARTER & VISION • Charter: • The Information Sciences (IS) Working Group (WG) applies Systems Engineering to the acquisition and management of systems that store and retrieve information, create and manage knowledge, mine data, exhibit machine intelligence, and manage all types of business data. The ISWG defines and creates INCOSE products that align Systems Engineering Enablers with this application sector • Vision: • The Information Sciences (IS) Working Group (WG) strives to ensure that the Systems Engineering Enabling Processes encompass the needs of the Information Systems Application Sector

8. Starting Point • IS Sector team kicked off at Int’l Workshop in Scottsdale in January • 6 participants attended inaugural meeting • 4 continued to participate • Original Goals: • Define operating procedures (shared area, periodic meetings, etc.) • Identify and define the intersections between the Information Systems Application Sector and the SE Enablers • Define and plan the creation of products for Information Systems by intersection or across multiple intersections and define resources required • Document the products and add them to the IPAL (INCOSE Products Asset Library) • Define opportunities for outreach to other organizations (academic, commercial, government)

9. Progress to Date • Operating approach put into place: • Monthly telecons set up – 4 held to date • Next one will be 1st week in August • Connect site set up and team members granted access • Contains briefings and minutes from monthly meetings • Soon will be accessible by all INCOSE members, can grant access in meantime as requested • Scheduled 4 working group meetings at IS • Have held 3 • 1 more scheduled for Thursday at 9:30 in Colonial A • Have had 13 additional participants – hope that they will continue to participate

10. Progress to Date (Cont.) • Define and plan the creation of products for Information Systems and define resources required, documenting and adding to IPAL • Held Brainstorming session to discover IS issues/problems that the team could attack • Brian White from Systems Sciences facilitated • Brian suggested concept of essays, articles, descriptions to be published to INCOSE membership as a starting point • First product defined – Terms of Reference (TOR) • Define terms used in Charter and commonly used in discussion of Info Systems (PESTEL, Information, System of Information Systems, Services, etc.) • Other potential products/projects • Enhanced description of Information Systems processes to support SE Handbook, as identified by Handbook team • Participation in review/generation of standards concerned with IS, with concurrence of INCOSE Standards committee • Mark Walker briefed us on INCOSE efforts and suggested where we might like to get involved • Hope to attract members interested in assisting in these projects

11. Progress to Date (Cont.) • Identify and define the intersections between the Information Systems Application Sector and the SE Enablers and identify relevant products • Action: Continue to define the intersections between Information Systems and the Enablers • Have started to assign team members to take the role of liaison to and coordinate with these Enabler teams • Welcome members also interested in these areas

12. Progress to Date (Cont.) • Define opportunities for outreach within INCOSE and to other organizations (academic, commercial, government) • Have started dialog with other Application Sectors and Enablers and other INCOSE committees • Will continue this, especially as intersection products are defined, to insure coordination • Have had interest from INCOSE members representing Universities • Other suggested interactions: Determine other societies that have similar missions that we should interact with, be aware of, debate, etc. • Association of Computing Machinery – Interested in the theoretical nature of Computer Science • American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) – Division that might be of interest: Management of Informations • Information Systems Security Association (ISSA) – Ensuring security and accreditation of information • Especially interested in attracting new members with these associations

13. Next Steps… • Work the identified projects • Definition of Terms of Reference • Understanding of Enabler intersections • Continue to make plans • Participation in SE Handbook enhancements? • Participation in Standards review for IS related standards? • Identify additional products – small steps okay • Add to team membership • Signup to be added to ISWG mailing list and Connect site • Join our monthly telecons • Come to 9:30 meeting on Thursday • Contact Janet with questions/ideas at: • janet.hofmeister@incose.org

14. Suggestions, please • We would like to hear any suggestions on initiatives that fall within the Information Systems Sector…