Concepts

== //**Application life cycle**// The approach taken to the management and control of all application-related activities and information over the application and asset life cycle. This includes both the development or acquisition of the application, its customisation and integration, its delivery and subsequent support and management as a service to the business. ==

== //**Business analysis**// An internal consultancy specialism that has the responsibility for investigating business situations, identifying optionsfor improving business systems and bridging the needs of the business with the use of IT. ==

== //**Business change life cycle**// The different stages of organisational change covering alignment, improvement, design, implementation and benefits. ==

== //**Business change management**// The process of managing the organisation through the business change life cycle. ==

== //**Business process**// Any set of tasks performed by a business that is initiated by an event, that transforms information, real-world items or business commitments, and produces an output. This output should be valued by customers or by other processes. ==

== //**Business rule**// A business rule specifies how an organisation will operate in specific circumstances. For example, it will perform a credit check on all new customers to verify that they do not have a bad credit history. ==

== //**Business strategy**// A strategy describes the approach and decisions taken to achieve the goals of an organisation. ==

== //**Information**// Data organised and arranged in a manner that conveys meaning both to its use in context and in relation to other data. ==

== //**IT-enabled business change**// The improvements in the way an organisation carries out its business brought about through the effective use of information technology. ==

== //**IT architecture**// IT architecture has two meanings depending upon its contextual usage: (i) a formal description of an IT system, or a detailed plan of the system at component level to guide its implementation; (ii) the structure of IT components, their interrelationships and the principles and guidelines governing their design and evolution over time. ==

== //**SMART**// A mnemonic used to ensure that objectives are clearly defined in that they are S pecific, M easurable, A chievable, R elevant and time-framed. ==

**Business rule** **A business rule specifies how an organisation will operate in specific circumstances. For example, it will perform a credit check on all new customers to verify that they do not have a bad credit history.**

** Cultural factors These define the values and behaviours of an organisation or a geographical region.** **K ey P erformance I ndicators (KPI) These are financial and non-financial metrics used to quantify objectives to reflect the strategic performance of an organisation.**