Architecture Portal

Work and responsibility

Agreement, ownership and exceptions.

Adrian Sutherland · Version 1.0 · · © 2005–2026

BP-V03 (Work and responsibility) · Version 1.0 · September 2026

Work and responsibility

The case keeps an owner through agreement and exceptions.

Design state
PROC-01 (Process-only proposal)
Level
Logical
Design
Proposed; checks unrun
Scope
Provider-run course cancellation
ASAF aspects
Process, Structure, Customer, Channel, Supplier

On a small screen, scroll the diagram sideways or read the text description below.

The case owner opens a case and identifies alternatives. The learner can accept or reject an alternative. A matching confirmation resolves the case. An unavailable alternative or authority gap is escalated while ownership and next action are retained. Handover changes the assignment only on explicit acceptance.
BP-V03 (Work and responsibility). Fictional process proposal; service checks are unrun.

Key

  • Rounded boxes mark a start or outcome. Rectangles are activities; diamonds are decisions.
  • Labelled arrows show possible progress. An accepted handover can occur during active work.

Linked records

Text description

The case owner opens a case and identifies alternatives. The learner can accept or reject an alternative. A matching confirmation resolves the case. An unavailable alternative or authority gap is escalated while ownership and next action are retained. Handover changes the assignment only on explicit acceptance.

Responsibilities

PR1 (Resolution process) carries out the resolution work. RO1 (Case owner) maintains I1 (Cancellation case record) until resolution is confirmed or an explicitly accepted transfer takes effect. OP-D1 (Accepted-transfer procedure) defines that transfer: the receiver checks the current record, authority, access and capacity; the shared record retains the effective acceptance and history.

Role Responsibility and decision
Learner Chooses whether an alternative meets their need.
Booking and course teams Identify alternatives and provide the booking confirmation.
Case owner Maintains the record, contacts the learner and progresses resolution within the agreed scope.
Receiving case owner Accepts the current version and next action or returns a query.
Duty coordinator Arranges suitable cover; unresolved capacity or authority gaps reach the service owner.
Service owner Agrees meaning, scope, service readiness and unresolved exceptions.
Data steward Maintains definitions and coordinates recurring quality problems.

The coordinator is a responsibility that could sit in an existing role. Named staff, cover and response targets remain to be agreed. V1 (Two-handover check) and OP-V1 (Handover checks) specify unrun checks of two handovers and the related organisational failures.

Customers and channels

CU-D1 (Customer roles) distinguishes the learner, payer and representative. Paying for a course does not establish the learner’s agreement; a representative needs explicit authority for the information and actions involved.

CH-D1 (Cross-channel journey) keeps the same case and meaning through a cancellation message and an assisted call. A sent message is not agreement. CH-S1 (Pending and accepted actions) requires a later mobile client to distinguish a locally saved proposal from accepted service state. A reconnecting client must handle a changed case or withdrawn permission. CU-F1 (Channel research) would test whether online and assisted routes allow the same choice; that research has not been run.

Partners

SU-D1 (Partner responsibilities) describes the later partner arrangement. Before PART-01 (Partner extension) can be introduced, the provider and partner must agree who may offer, reserve, confirm, change or cancel a place; what information may be shared; and who resolves unknown or disputed outcomes. The internal case owner retains responsibility for resolution.

L1 (Partner confirmation gap) is the hypothetical finding that exposes an unagreed partner-confirmation responsibility. Partner courses and refunds remain escalations in PROC-01 (Process-only proposal). SU-X1 (Partner exit exercise) would exercise exit with an open case, retained commitments and removal of the previous partner’s access. Its result is unrun.

Connected records

The Process example owns the handover procedure. Customer, Channel and Supplier records retain the wider decisions. Follow the case lifecycle and the software acceptance contract to see how these responsibilities are preserved.

About this edition

Refreshed for the September 2026 website update. This edition develops earlier Architecture Portal and ASAF material; the fictional service example was added in 2026.

Scope, limitations and next checks

Status and accountability

Read this page with its boundaries visible

Status

Proposed

Last reviewed

Intended users

  • Architects describing, comparing and adapting an architecture

Non-goals

  • A prescribed product stack or a claim of measured service outcomes

Limitations

  • The service is a fictional design. Its proposed implementation and operational checks remain unrun.

Next evidence sought

  • Apply the views and linked checks to an actual service.