Addressing alignment concerns into the design of domain-specific information systems

The purpose of this paper is to find alignment concerns (e.g. requirements, restrictions and issues) and addressing them into the design and development of domain-specific information systems (ISs) supporting product manufacturing.

The approach is based on two metamodels of the Strategic Alignment Model that formalise its underlying concepts. The metamodels are used to build specific alignment models that define the elements to be aligned and the corresponding alignment sequences. The models and alignment sequences are intended to guide the design and development of an “aligned” domain-specific IS. An industrial case study for the manufacturing industry shows the feasibility of this approach.

The instantiation of the alignment models components with information about the specific-domain IS project enabled us to deal with current and future concerns into the design of ISs aligned with the manufacturing strategy and infrastructures.

IS alignment is generally tackled at a strategic level, in this paper the operational and tactical levels are also addressed.