The categories in the Application and Software Services Reference Taxonomy provide the basis for developing specific application and software services reference architectures and patterns, and defining application and software services capability.

These reference architectures and patterns can be more readily used across government where the terms from the reference taxonomy are used consistently.

Purpose of the taxonomy

The Application and Software Services Reference Taxonomy is used to:

• identify duplication of application and software services within and across agencies, and corresponding opportunities for cost reduction
• identify opportunities for collaboration, shared services, and solution reuse in agency IT portfolios
• identify gaps in application and software services within and across agencies, and corresponding opportunities for investment to improve customer centric service delivery, and related agency, cluster, and sector support functions
• map and catalogue sector, cluster and agency data and information assets
• define business capabilities
• categorise the Government Digital Standards Catalogue.

Understand the taxonomy structure

The reference taxonomies are categorised into different levels.

The Application and Software Services Reference Taxonomy has 3 levels. Domains are at the top level, areas are the second level, and categories are the third level.

Each taxonomy category has a unique ID, for example A1.

The Applications and Software Reference Taxonomy has 9 domains:

• A1 — Corporate Applications
• A2 — Common Line of Business Applications
• A3 — End User Computing
• A4 — Data and Information Management
• A5 — Identity and Access Management Services
• A6 — Security Services
• A7 — ICT Components, Services and Tools
• A8 — System Integration
• A9 — Specialist Line of Business Applications.

Corporate Applications

These are standard corporate applications within government to support the internal facing functions for managing staff, money and the way government agencies run their business.

Note 1: Many commercial applications may contain elements of applications listed here and specific software solutions may offer a mix of these in one suite, such as an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) suite.

Note 2: While the term ‘corporate applications’ has been used, these are often referred to as ‘enterprise applications’. Others may use the term ‘backoffice’, although this older term often included everything that was not a front office system — that is, those systems dealing with customers.

Common Line of Business Applications

These are standard business applications within government to support the outward facing functions for managing touch-points with customers, partners and anyone who interacts with government.

Note: The applications found in this domain can also be used as ICT services or application components. Many commercial applications may contain elements of applications listed here, and specific software solutions may offer a mix of these in one suite.

End User Computing

The End User Computing application domain brings together the various applications and ICT services needed to support a range of end user computing devices, from traditional PCs to smart phones, tablets and personalisation services.

Data and Information Management

This domain, previously Data and Information Management Services, includes software and services that support management of government data and information, and the alignment with standards, quality initiatives, good practice, accessibility and more. This includes the development, execution and supervision of plans, policies, programmes and practices that control, protect, deliver and enhance the value of data and information assets.

Related terms: Data Management, Information Management, Information and Records Management

Narrower term: Records Management

Identity and Access Management Services

This domain includes software and services to support Identity and Access Management (IAM), and identify, control and audit interactions with government assets. This enables the security discipline of authorised access to the right resources at the right times for the right reasons.

Security Services

The Security Services domain defines the methods of protecting information and information systems from unauthorised access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification or destruction in order to provide integrity, confidentiality and availability. That is, protecting the assets at rest and in-transit.

ICT Components, Services and Tools

Software and services for operational management and maintenance of applications, ICT components and services.

System Integration

System integration — previously Interfaces and Integration — is defined in information technology as the process of linking together different computing systems and software applications physically or functionally, to act as a coordinated whole. System integration involves integrating existing often disparate systems and is also about adding value to the system, capabilities that are possible because of interactions between subsystems.

Source: System Integration — Wikipedia

Narrower Terms: Enterprise Service Bus (ESB), Enterprise Application Integration (EAI), Middleware.

Specialist Line of Business Applications

The Specialist Line of Business Applications domain is intended to be used by agencies to add the unique business applications used to support specific functions within that agency. It could also be a unique application supporting multiple agencies, for example within a sector such as health. An MRI machine and associated applications is an example of a specialist line of business application, as is an air control radar system.

Note: The specific line of business applications should have direct alignment to the Business Reference Taxonomy sub business functions or line of business.

Note: This domain should not contain common business applications — a common application is when multiple agencies have an implementation of a business application category.

Download the taxonomies

The taxonomies are available on data.govt.nz. You can download or access the Application and Software Services Reference Taxonomy or all of the reference taxonomies together.

• GEA-NZ Reference taxonomies modelling files — data.govt.nz
  Data sets of all the reference taxonomies or each individual taxonomy, in XML format, exported using XMI 2.5.1.
• GEA-NZ All reference taxonomies — data.govt.nz 
  Data sets of all reference taxonomies, in both XLSX and CSV formats which can be either downloaded or accessed via the data.govt.nz API.