Business Capability Maps
Create business capability maps and domain models showing hierarchical views of business capabilities and their boundaries.
Business capability maps provide a hierarchical view of what an organisation does. They are independent of how or where capabilities are implemented, making them stable over time.
What is a Business Capability
A business capability is a particular ability or capacity that a business possesses:
Creating a Capability Map
Capability Map Layout
Common layout patterns:
| Layout | Description |
|---|---|
| Horizontal bands | Top-level domains as horizontal rows |
| Grid layout | Domains arranged in a grid |
| Value chain | Left-to-right flow following value creation |
Colour Coding Capabilities
Use colour to communicate status or attributes:
| Colour Scheme | Meaning |
|---|---|
| By domain | Different colour per top-level domain |
| By health | Green (healthy), yellow (at risk), red (critical) |
| By investment | Blue (invest), grey (maintain), orange (retire) |
| By maturity | Gradient from light (immature) to dark (mature) |
Domain Models
Domain models show business domains and their boundaries:
Capability-to-System Mapping
Show which systems support which capabilities:
Best Practices
Keep It Stable
Capabilities change slowly, update infrequently.
Limit Levels
2-3 levels of nesting maximum.
Use Business Language
Avoid technical jargon.
Focus on What, Not How
Capabilities are implementation-agnostic.
Involve Stakeholders
Business capability maps are shared artefacts.
Link to Other Views
Connect to application portfolio, value streams.