Strategic Response Model

The Strategic Response Model (SRM) provides a structured framework for capturing, documenting, and tracing how organizations respond to internal and external changes. It links triggers (what happened) to rationales (why we're responding) to responses (what we're doing) across business architecture domains.

Schema Version: 2.1
Schema Location: /schemas/extensions/strategic-response-model.schema.json
Specification: JSON Schema Draft-07

Overview

What is the Strategic Response Model?

The SRM is a governance extension that ensures organizational responses are:

• Traceable — Every action links back to a documented trigger or strategic intent
• Justified — Rationales explicitly capture the reasoning behind decisions
• Measurable — Performance indicators track success and enable adaptation
• Auditable — Complete chains from trigger to outcome support governance reviews

Why Use the Strategic Response Model?

Challenge	How SRM Helps
"Why did we start this initiative?"	Traces to documented trigger and rationale
"Is this aligned with strategy?"	Links responses to strategic objectives
"Who approved this change?"	Records accountability and decision points
"How do we know it's working?"	Connects to performance indicators
"What else was affected?"	Maps impact across domains

SRM Components

The Strategic Response Model comprises five interconnected components:

1. Strategic Intent

Proactive, forward-looking initiatives that drive organizational change. Unlike triggers (which are reactive), strategic intents represent deliberate choices to pursue opportunities.

Examples:

• "Become the market leader in sustainable products by 2027"
• "Achieve 50% digital channel adoption"
• "Build AI-first customer service capabilities"

2. Triggers

Events, insights, or conditions that prompt a response. Triggers are categorized into families for consistent analysis.

Trigger Categories:

• Regulatory or compliance
• Technological change
• Environmental & safety
• Operational transformation
• Strategic re-alignment
• Customer & stakeholder
• Workforce & skills
• Performance response
• Political or social
• Innovation-led opportunity

→ See Trigger Schema for full documentation.

3. Rationales

The reasoned justification for responding to a trigger or pursuing a strategic intent. Rationales bridge the "what happened" (trigger) to the "what we're doing" (response).

Rationale Elements:

• Description of reasoning
• Linked domains affected
• Confidence level
• Alternatives considered
• Evidence base

→ See Rationale Schema for full documentation.

4. Responses

The aligned changes or activities captured in other business architecture domains. Responses specify what is changing across:

• Strategy — Adjustments to goals or strategic direction
• Capabilities — Development, enhancement, or decommissioning
• Initiatives — Programs or projects started or stopped
• Policy — Introduction or amendment of rules
• Performance — Redefinition or reweighting of KPIs
• Information — Changes to data usage or governance
• Value Stream — Refinements in end-to-end value delivery

5. Performance Indicators

Quantifiable metrics that evaluate success, efficiency, or impact of the response. Performance indicators close the loop by measuring whether the response achieved its intended outcome.

→ See Performance Indicators for full documentation.

How the SRM Works

Example: Regulatory Compliance Response

Example: Proactive Strategic Initiative

Domain-Specific Responses

The SRM captures responses across all Orthogramic domains, with domain-specific attributes:

Strategy Domain Responses

Response Type	Description
Goal adjustment	Modifying strategic objectives
Strategic pivot	Fundamental direction change
Timeline revision	Changing strategic milestones

Capability Domain Responses

Response Type	Description
Capability build	Creating new capability
Capability enhancement	Improving existing capability
Capability decommission	Retiring capability

Initiative Domain Responses

Response Type	Description
Program launch	Starting new program
Project acceleration	Fast-tracking delivery
Initiative cancellation	Stopping work

Policy Domain Responses

Response Type	Description
Policy creation	New policy introduced
Policy amendment	Existing policy modified
Policy retirement	Policy no longer applicable

Finance Domain Responses

Response Type	Description
Budget reallocation	Shifting financial resources
Investment approval	New capital expenditure
Cost optimization	Reducing operational costs

Risk Management Domain Responses

Response Type	Description
Risk mitigation	Implementing controls
Risk acceptance	Documented risk tolerance
Risk transfer	Insurance or outsourcing

Impacted Organizational Units

The SRM tracks which organizational units are affected by responses using standardized relationship roles:

{
  "impactedUnits": [
    {
      "unitId": "retail-banking",
      "relationshipRole": "accountable",
      "impactDescription": "Primary owner of compliance implementation"
    },
    {
      "unitId": "enterprise-technology",
      "relationshipRole": "responsible",
      "impactDescription": "Delivers technical solution"
    },
    {
      "unitId": "legal-compliance",
      "relationshipRole": "consulted",
      "impactDescription": "Provides regulatory interpretation"
    },
    {
      "unitId": "all-business-units",
      "relationshipRole": "informed",
      "impactDescription": "Affected by policy changes"
    }
  ]
}

Relationship roles align with the Inter-Unit Relationships model.

Monitoring and Review

The SRM includes monitoring cadence to ensure responses remain effective:

Cadence	Use Case
Monthly	High-priority regulatory responses
Quarterly	Strategic initiative progress
Six-monthly	Capability development programs
Annual	Long-term strategic alignment review

Monitoring Elements

{
  "monitoring": {
    "cadence": "quarterly",
    "reviewBody": "Strategy Committee",
    "adjustmentAuthority": "CIO",
    "escalationPath": "Executive Committee",
    "nextReviewDate": "2025-03-31",
    "adjustmentHistory": [
      {
        "date": "2024-12-15",
        "adjustment": "Extended timeline by 3 months",
        "reason": "Resource constraints identified"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Integration Points

The SRM connects to other Orthogramic extensions:

Extension	Integration
Cross-Domain Relationships	Responses use cross-domain verbs (enables, transforms, etc.)
Inter-Unit Relationships	Impacted units use standardized roles
Performance Domain	KPIs link to domain performance indicators
Initiatives Domain	Response initiatives reference the Initiatives domain

Usage Guidelines

When to Create an SRM Entry

• Regulatory or compliance changes requiring organizational response
• Significant market shifts affecting strategy
• Performance threshold breaches requiring intervention
• Technology changes enabling new capabilities
• Strategic planning decisions requiring traceability

Modeling Best Practices

1. Start with the trigger — Clearly document what prompted the response
2. Justify with rationale — Explain the reasoning, not just the action
3. Specify affected domains — Map all impacted areas
4. Define success criteria — Link to measurable performance indicators
5. Assign accountability — Use standardized organizational roles
6. Set review cadence — Ensure ongoing monitoring

For Data Engineers

The SRM maps well to data lineage and impact analysis patterns. Triggers can be connected to data quality alerts, rationales to business impact assessments, and responses to data pipeline changes. Consider integrating SRM entries with your data observability platform.

Related Documentation

• Trigger Schema — Detailed trigger documentation
• Rationale Schema — Detailed rationale documentation
• Performance Indicators — KPI schema and usage
• SRM JSON Schema — Complete schema reference