Core Activities

This strategy focuses on planning and conducting the following core activities. Each of these activities contributes to achieving one or more strategic objectives. The activity/objective linkage is detailed in the Application Strategy Map (Annex A).

Refine Application Governance

The framework and processes that govern the management of the Defence application portfolio will be refined to ensure that the priorities and capability requirements of Defence (demand) drive resource allocation decisions and application delivery activities (supply) in a transparent and repeatable way.

This will be accomplished using a phased approach by:

• Refining the integration between existing IM Group application governance and the IM/IT Programme governance being implemented based on the renewed Defence CIO model and including the business intake and prioritization processes being applied to all IM/IT Programme demand; and
• Scaling the resulting application governance to include all Defence IM/IT Programme application service providers across all Defence organizations to enable coordination of activities.

This activity will be co-led by the IM/IT Programme application lead (DGEAS) and governance lead (DGIMTSP) and will require engagement with application service providers across all IM/IT Service Provider organizations.

Mature the use of Enterprise Architecture

This activity will employ both business and technical architecture in the management of the Defence application portfolio. This will be accomplished by:

• Using functional and capability reference models^{Footnote 5}  to establish links between Defence capabilities and the applications that enable them; and
• Using an architecture review process, integrated into governance, to coordinate and align application development activities across service providers and identify opportunities to reuse solutions, enable integration, share experience, and enhance security.

This activity will be co-led by Defence IM/IT Programme architecture coordination and governance lead (DGIMTSP) and the application lead (DGEAS). It will be done in coordination with Defence Enterprise Architecture (DEA), and VCDS staff working on the Defence Results Framework (DRF). This activity will require application service providers across all Defence organizations to participate in architectural review.^{Footnote 6} 

Increase Application Development Agility

There are several methodologies for developing applications which offer varying levels of agility. This activity will establish a deliberate decision process that better matches the development methodology with the nature of the capability requirements of the client organization(s).

As an example, for simple applications with low complexity and low dependence to existing solutions, an agile methodology will allow user the flexibility explore solutions that can be dynamically defined while for more complex application requirements such as those dependent on many integration points or reuse/enhanced components of existing solutions, a more formal methodology such as waterfall can be followed to ensure formal predictability of the results and that proper requirements are formally addressed by all stakeholders. The selection of methodology should enable fast delivery while reducing the risks of failure of projects.

The selection of development methodology will be done by assessing the application requirement and the business/operational context within which it will be used. The business rules will be developed by the IM/IT Programme application lead (DGEAS) and designed for use by all application service providers across all IM/IT Service Provider organizations.

Enable Application Integration

This activity will enable application integration by modernizing the way applications transact within the Defence enterprise. This will be accomplished by shifting from the legacy ‘point-to-point’ design that is commonly employed in our current application portfolio to a more modern ‘hub’ design^{Footnote 7}  that is better aligned with current industry and technology trends. This ‘hub’ design must be considered in the design of all new applications and in major upgrades to existing applications.

It is understood that the diverse set of DND/CAF business and operational needs may still demand point-to-point application interfaces. These integration principles are to be applied by all IM/IT application service providers to help ease the integration of their applications:

• Use Mature Technologies – Select mature technologies (vice bleeding edge) as they tend to be proven and based on more broadly used and static standards;
• Use Open Standards – Select open standards (vice proprietary) as they tend to enable integration between different vendors and technologies;
• Buy over Build – Buy applications (vice custom building) as they tend to be based on common standards and designed to integrate with common technologies
• Use Generalized Solutions – Select general solutions (vice niche/ specialized) as they tend to be more easily customized to interoperate within the DND/CAF enterprise.

This activity will be led by the IM/IT Programme application lead (DGEAS) who will establish an integration competency centre to support application service providers across all IM/IT Service Provider organizations.

Mature APM Data and Processes

This activity will operationalize our ability to manage the Defence application portfolio. It will do so by:

• Establishing an accurate and trustworthy database of Defence applications; and
• Establishing the processes required to use this information and related metrics to inform application management- related decision making.

This activity is being led by the Defence IM/IT Programme Application Portfolio Management lead (DGIMTSP) and requires the participation and support of all application business owners and application services providers across all Defence organizations. In support of this activity, application business owners (Functional and/or Operational Authorities) must ensure the business value of their enabling applications is accurately reflected in the APM database. Similarly, application service providers across all Defence organizations must ensure that the technical information is accurate for the applications they support.

Pursue Partnerships and External Service Providers

This activity will identify and pursue opportunities to leverage external sources of experience and services. Systems and services that are core to DND/CAF would not normally be considered for outsourcing.

This activity will be accomplished through:

• Continued participation in GC stakeholder communities where OGDs^{Footnote 8}  coordinate and discuss common activities and challenges;
• Participation in the GC Back Office Transformation Initiative which is delivering certain GC enterprise applications to all government departments; and
• Engagement with our Allies to establish and maintain interoperability.
• Assessing external service providers to identify offerings deemed not only permissible but advantageous for specific Defence capability needs.

This activity will be co-led by the Defence IM/IT Programme application lead (DGEAS) and the infrastructure leads (DGIMTSP) to ensure synchronization with the emerging cloud strategy.