Aligning Business and IT with Metadata

Financial services institutions like international banks and insurance companies frequently need to adapt to changes in their environments, yet manage risk and ensure regulatory compliance. The author Hans Wegener reveals how metadata can be used to achieve a successful and technological evolution. This unique approach is divided into three parts to: Explain how metadata can be used to increase an organization's ability to adopt changes Outline the peculiarities of financial corporations and how they affect value creation and solution design Present the practical side of effectively managing metadata and sustaining long term success Wegener firstly illustrates the peculiarities of both metadata management and the financial services industry. He combines both, puts them into context of use, and explains where and how this makes life difficult, as well as where and how value is created. This enables the reader to understand the impact of metadata management on his/her organization, its typical side effects, necessities, and benefits. The book then goes onto reveal how different crosscutting concerns managed in large financial corporations (change, risk, and compliance management) can revolutionize business by supporting them with metadata management. This provides a blueprint to be used in strategic planning. Finally, the mechanics of three important practical areas are discussed in-depth, namely managing evolution, quality, and sustainability. This provides helpful scripts for practitioners to be used in real-life.

Financial services institutions like international banks andinsurance companies frequently need to adapt to changes in theirenvironments, yet manage risk and ensure regulatory compliance.The author Hans Wegener reveals how metadata can be used toachieve a successful and technological evolution.This unique approach is divided into three parts to:* Explain how metadata can be used to increase anorganization's ability to adopt changes* Outline the peculiarities of financial corporations andhow they affect value creation and solution design* Present the practical side of effectively managingmetadata and sustaining long term successWegener firstly illustrates the peculiarities of both metadatamanagement and the financial services industry. He combines bothputs them into context of use, and explains where and how thismakes life difficult, as well as where and how value is created.This enables the reader to understand the impact of metadatamanagement on his/her organization, its typical side effectsnecessities, and benefits.The book then goes onto reveal how different crosscuttingconcerns managed in large financial corporations (change, risk, andcompliance management) can revolutionize business by supportingthem with metadata management. This provides a blueprint to be usedin strategic planning. Finally, the mechanics of three importantpractical areas are discussed in-depth, namely managing evolutionquality, and sustainability. This provides helpful scripts forpractitioners to be used in real-life.

Foreword xiPreface xvAcknowledgements xvii1. Introduction 11.1. Why this book? 11.2. Change, risk, and compliance 41.3. Objectives 81.4. Scope 111.5. Who should read this book? 131.6. Contents and organization 15Part I: Changing the Way You Change 212. The Role of Metadata in Supporting Change 232.1. Overview 232.2. Managing change adoption: when change impact begins to bite 242.3. The essence of metadata: reification of data 292.4. The essence of metadata management: coupling processes for systematic change 372.5. What is 'meta'?What isn't? 473. Aligning Business and IT: the Role of Metadata, Strategy, and Architecture 493.1. Overview 493.2. Change, alignment, models, and metadata 503.3. Architecture: structure, compliance, and the management of portfolios 603.4. Supporting evolution towards and adoption of standards 623.5. Aligning business and IT: using a global data language 65Part II: The Value Proposition 714. Improving Performance 734.1. Overview 734.2. Reducing the cost and improving the speed of change 744.3. From technology-neutral to company-specific viewpoints 784.4. Sources of substantial change and impact 794.5. Financial services: not a 'one-size-fits-all' industry 854.6. The big picture: a mixed bag 874.7. Case studies 885. Managing Risk 1015.1. Overview 1015.2. Why risk has become a concern to IT 1025.3. Risk management in a nutshell 1025.4. The value proposition: risk and the role of IT 1085.5. The Role of metadata management in managing risk 1105.6. Case studies 1176. Ensuring Compliance 1356.1. Overview 1356.2. The goals and means of compliance 1366.3. The regulatory landscape 1416.4. IT and regulatory compliance 1456.5. The role of metadata management in ensuring compliance 1476.6. Case studies 149Part III: Practical Problems and their Resolution 1797. Evolution: A Practical Guide 1817.1. Overview 1817.2. The 'management' in metadata management 1827.3. Metamodeling 1857.4. The activities of structured transformation 1917.5. Dealing with division of labor: intermediation versus direct modeling of change requests 1937.6. Dealing with impedance: embracing versus overcoming precedent 1967.7. Grouping changes: optimizing risk versus return 2047.8. Organizing impact analysis 2067.9. Change propagation 2118. Quality: Achieving and Maintaining Valuable Metadata 2138.1. Overview 2138.2. Quality deficits: origins and impact 2148.3. Intelligibility: getting a grip on language 2198.4. Completeness: maintaining an overview of things 2228.5. Correctness and actuality: making sure metadata reflects reality 2248.6. Consistency: moving towards metadata reuse 2268.7. Granularity: model and metadata working together 2289. Sustainability: Ownership, Awareness, Understanding, and Politics 2319.1. Overview 2319.2. The soft side of success 2329.3. Establishing ownership 2369.4. Raising awareness and understanding 2459.5. Playing politics 24610. Parting Words: Institutionalizing Change Management 25710.1. Converging change, risk, and compliance management 25710.2. Elements of a corporate change function 25910.3. Dos and don'ts 26110.4. Wrap-up 263Bibliography 267Index 271