LEARN. PRACTICE. GROW.Concept and mechanism
A useful model can show why an organization intends to change. A driver identifies a condition motivating attention; an assessment records an analysis of that situation. A goal expresses an intended state, while a requirement specifies a need the architecture must satisfy. Distinguishing these ideas avoids treating chosen technology as though it were the business objective. In strategy, a capability describes an organizational or system ability, a resource identifies an available asset, and a course of action describes an approach to achieving a goal. Capability is neither the project developing it nor the product supporting it.
Guided application
In a fictional scenario, increasing instruction volume motivates review. Analysis identifies excessive manual reconciliation. The goal is to reduce closing delays; a concrete need requires results traceable to each instruction. Reconciliation capability may use specialist knowledge, data, and technical components. Choosing phased automation is a strategic approach rather than the capability itself. Connect these elements consistently and verify permitted relationships before using graphical shortcuts. Retain analysis origin and evidence: an assessment does not become fact simply because it appears in a model. When context changes, review whether the approach remains suitable without erasing the rationale behind the earlier decision.
Phased automation is an approach; being able to reconcile is a capability.
Common pitfalls
Product treated as goal; opinion treated as evidence; project treated as lasting capability.
Related topics: Language, model, and aspects · Relationships, direction, and meaning · Business: actors, roles, and services
Show the reasoning chain without confusing abstraction levels.
Reference: Archi hint: capability · OGA-031; ArchiMate 3.2