Due to increasing hardware standardization and a dramatic drop in hardware prices the focus of information system development tasks has changed considerably.

In the past, system design and system integration had the greatest potential for optimization. In recent years, however, the focus has shifted more and more towards creating solutions for the special demands of individual sectors. The fact that decentralized information systems became available and that it was possible to incorporate them into integrated information system infrastructures created new cost saving potential regarding the organizational design of companies.

Organizational structures were formerly broken down functionally and established centrally because they were mostly based on centralized host environments with only limited capabilities. As a consequence, companies suffered a loss of flexibility. In the beginning, few people realized or paid attention to the new prospects resulting from the increase in decentralization of computer services and parallel development of new information system architecture concepts (for example, client/server, workflow management).

Today, steadily intensifying competition has turned this potential into the number one topic for every single company. Flexible structures that persistently focus on internal business processes are becoming the decisive competition factor for companies. However, only a holistic view of all business processes enables a company to recognize, streamline, and support interconnected processes through optimized information system infrastructures. Compared with the management of centralized business environments, the management of these new structures is significantly more complex. Facing this challenge requires unequivocal assignment of responsibilities, maximum transparency of structures, homogeneous communication throughout all company levels, and streamlined project management based on defined business objectives.

Enterprise modeling methods assist business managers in accomplishing these complex tasks. Enterprise models are a crucial prerequisite for analyzing business processes, bringing projects in line with the overall business objectives, and using information system infrastructures in the form of composite distributed and integrated systems to optimally support these lean organizational structures.

Thus, modeling the company's actual situation - and, in doing so, examining holistic business processes - is becoming more and more the focus of the discussion. The diversity and increasing multitude of modeling methods used to result in complexity and confusion. Consequently, efforts were made to define standardized framework concepts (architectures) for development and modeling methods.

One of these architectures is the Architecture of Integrated Information Systems (ARIS©) developed by Scheer (see Scheer, Architecture of Integrated Information Systems, 1992). This architecture concept enables methods to be evaluated and organized by focusing on their main points, and it serves as an orientation framework for complex development projects because due to its structural elements, it contains an implicit procedure model for developing integrated information systems.

An architecture of this kind naturally leads towards standardization in the use of methods. Based on this architecture, existing and new modeling methods were combined to create a holistic method for modeling business processes.

In addition, the ARIS architecture integrates products such as ARIS Architect within the product range of Software AG. These products support consultants and companies in creating, analyzing, and evaluating business processes in terms of business process reengineering. Convenient recording and modeling of the relevant business processes in the operating departments is enabled by ARIS Designer.

This manual gives a first introduction to the relevant modeling methods. In addition, approaches and methods are presented that make use of the full range of ARIS products including the system add-ons they offer. This manual also provides excellent support for users who deal with modeling methods without the intention of considering questions or problems regarding the use of tools.