B -end product manager: How to design product architecture for complex digital projects

Edit Introduction: In the environment of digital transformation, more and more companies are conducting digital transformation. The author of this article shared the specific methods of designing the product architecture when performing complex digitalization projects, telling the attention points in the process of product architecture, etc. Let's learn together, I hope it will be helpful to you.

In the context of digital transformation, more and more enterprises start digital transformation. B-end products will come into contact with more and more projects that build digital systems from 0-1. Such projects need to build product architecture from 0-1, and they need to need Design module processes and seriously depend on business processes and customer support resources.

The complex digital system requires very high logic processing methods for product architecture and modularization; if the relationship processing between modules is not clear, the subsequent application environment of the product will block, and the repurchase cost will be high. If the product architecture design is unreasonable, it may directly lead to the unable to achieve smoothly.

What do we need to pay attention to when we do such a project? What are the reference standards?

1. Project initial: product architecture framework design: three elements+three streams+energy distribution value

1. Three elements of business: overall organizational structure, key role and scope of key permissions, and key business elements

Note that the three elements here do not refer to the function we realize in the system, but the content of the customer's existing business process.

We need to understand the part that we must understand from the global perspective overlooking the entire project structure; the distribution of the organizational structure can be clearly understood before designing the permissions role architecture. The key role permissions and scope help us understand the granularity of the role permissions. Interactive relationship with business; this information allows us to build the first -level structure of the product architecture.

2. Three streams: business flow data flow operation stream

Business flow is based on the circulation process of all business within the coverage of the digital system. Everyone should be very clear, but in the process of actual research and design, it is necessary to pay attention to the system that we design does not restore the original business process, but the origin of the business process, but instead, but instead, but the system we design is originally restored, but instead By sorting out the business process, the hidden product architecture is found; the product manager must design a complete product architecture through digital design capabilities.

For example, when we design the ordering business system for different customers, the actual business process of its money is similar: dealers recharge and play money, financial review confirmation, and business order ordering.

When we design the architecture, do we design this business process directly? Obviously not, the product manager should be able to capture that there is a structure of the "account system" hidden behind the business.

Therefore, when designing the product architecture, we must not only see the open line of the business, but also to capture the "dark line" of the product structure to ensure the integrity of the plan.

In addition, it should be noted that when the business process is sorted out to be converted into a design plan, it must be designed in conjunction with the entire chain process, otherwise it is easy to design errors.

Take the design scheme of the account system for example: The business process is the same. Is that all such business processes are designed in the same account system? totally not.

We have designed different architecture systems for different customers. Although the business processes are the same, the structure of the account system is completely different. The reason is that the subsequent settlement business processes are different; In the dealer logic, the account system of CNICC is attributed to the dealer's order.

Through the above process, the second layer of the product can be refined; we can continue to refine the structure combined with the operation process of data transfer logic and key characters; we can continue to refine the structure;

3. About "Energy Distribution Value"

Project research is a step that every project must be experienced. There are many methods and methods for research. We will spend a lot of time and energy in the process of research, but we need to pay more attention to the purpose of the research.

We need to obtain key roles and main permissions through high -level interviews, business interviews and user interviews, to obtain project key goals, understand key roles and their main permissions, and obtain existing corporate resources support projects; to facilitate our "energy distribution value" of the system design.

It should be noted here that the design of the project is not designed without the needs of the customer's demand. The description of the customer's needs is based on his cognitive expression of the business. How to design it in the end is that the product architect needs to be designed. The reasonable design can effectively save costs for customers, that is, the "energy distribution value" that requires good system design in advance needs to be estimated in advance.

What is "energy distribution value"?

For example, we make a financial digital system for a pharmaceutical and device. When the core demand for digital systems is that when the IPO is 3 years later, the system needs to provide all business data, and it needs to meet the audit compliance to ensure the integrity of the evidence chain.

We get the core goals through the interview and understand the key roles and key businesses. In the subsequent design, it is clear which modules must be designed in detail and which modules can be simplified design. In this way, when we do project plan, we combine our customers' customers’s parts of the customer. Budgets and goals can provide design solutions with a lot of ways.

Second, architecture detailed stage: telescope and microscope

After early research, we have a general understanding of the business process of the project, so we need to refine the product design plan and logical rationality review.

In this process, we need to continuously switch the rationality of the review scheme from overall to a local perspective. In the process of design, many modules have very strong correlations. If you only pay attention to the logic of individual modules, it is easy to cause incomplete function; so we need to have the thinking of "telescope" and constantly sort out the relationship between each module between each module. The "line" that ensures any connection will not be missing, ensuring functional integrity.

After establishing a link between the module and the module, we need to adjust it back to the "microscope" state, and sort out how the key points of each business in the module are designed and how to create a channel between different modules to ensure the integrity and reasonable system.

We used this method when we designed a customer's ordering business system.

Because the order is the core module of the entire system, the channel price system, product authorization, account number, inventory, review authority, string restrictions, and credit system rebate systems are associated in the middle. The restrictions on business flow+multiple modules are processed in parallel, repeatedly sorting out the logic between modules and modules, and the system can finally be perfectly delivered.

3. Module detail design

The early architecture design is reasonable, and the detailed tasks of the subsequent modules are much simpler. At this time, note that the design of the plan depends on the actual business needs of customers. Misty will cause the deviation of the design direction of the scheme.

It should also be noted that after some design solutions are designed, the business process may be changed because of the previous business processes. For example, because there are data islands between the systems before, the new system is connected to ; In the case of this situation, boldly design and carefully verify.

It is our ultimate goal to try to break through business restrictions and maximize the use of digital advantages.

#Columnist#

Biannan, WeChat public account: Biannan, everyone is a product manager columnist. Partner of Hua Bing Technology Products, Deputy Secretary -General of the IT Oriental Association, graduate student of Beijing Polytechnic, the second author of "Digital Breakout". Focus on the design of the digital upgrade plan of physical enterprises and the construction of a private domain flow operation system, good at providing enterprises with full -link digital upgrade solutions, and private domain traffic operation solutions.

The original published in this article is that everyone is a product manager.

The title map is from Unsplash, based on the CC0 protocol

- END -