Overview of an emerging standard on architecture processes — ISO/IEC/IEEE 42020

A new, emerging standard on architecture practices is under development as ISO/IEC/IEEE 42020. This paper provides an overview of the key concepts in this standard and the rationale for these ideas. The standard defines six architecture-related processes: governance, management, conceptualization, evaluation, elaboration, and enablement. These are comprised of 45 activities, having five to eight tasks specified for each activity. It is expected that these processes will be incorporated into the next version of INCOSE's Systems Engineering Handbook and in the Guide to the Systems Engineering Body of Knowledge. This standard can be used as a foundation for organizational training and guidebooks on architecture management and development.