Huawei's Business Object Framework: Principles, Architecture Placement, and TOGAF Comparison

Basic Concept of Business Objects

Huawei defines business objects as important people, things, and events in the business domain. They unify critical business concepts and serve as a communication bridge between business personnel and system personnel. Business objects identify the information scope and key information involved in transformation projects, forming the basis for clear information definitions and association relationships.

According to Huawei's Data Way , business objects are important people, things, and event objects in the business domain. They carry critical information for business operations and management and are the most important management element in information architecture.

Two Key Characteristics

1. Business Objects Are Real Entities in the Enterprise

In practice, business objects can be defined from physical and logical perspectives. Physically, they are perceivable entities such as personnel and equipment, occupying time and space. Logically, they represent business concepts such as customers and orders, with intension and extension reflecting the essence and scope of the business object.

2. Business Objects Are Information Carriers

"Information carrier" refers to the medium carrying information related to enterprise people, things, and events. These carriers typically exist as documents, tables, and records, capturing key data and state information in business processes. Huawei uses the colloquial term "表证单书" (forms, certificates, documents, books) — a Chinese term from tax and finance describing various forms and files used to record, prove, and transmit information. Examples include tax assessment work papers, inquiry verification notices, tax assessment reports, and tax assessment recommendation letters. In Huawei's business context, "表证单书" is an indispensable part of enterprise information management and process control, standardizing information transfer and ensuring process transparency and traceability.

Four Principles for Abstracting Business Objects

Principle 1: Business objects are indispensable important people, things, and events in enterprise operations and management.

Principle 2: Business objects have unique identity identification information.

Principle 3: Business objects are relatively independent and have attribute descriptions.

Principle 4: Business objects can be instantiated.

Business Architecture vs. Data Architecture: Where Do Business Objects Belong?

In TOGAF 10, there is no "business object" concept; only "business information" exists, which belongs to business architecture.

Huawei positions business objects as the key connection point between business and IT, and as a critical element for integrating Business Architecture (BA), Application Architecture (AA), and Technology Architecture (TA). In Huawei's methodology, completing business object design leads into the data model design process — conceptual model, logical model, and physical model design. In Huawei's V-model, business objects belong to the data architecture layer.

Reference: TOGAF Series Guide, G184 — Establishing EA Leaders and Developing EA Capability .