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1. Purpose and Scope

Executive Summary​

  • Key benefits: capability-driven reuse; predictable deterministic paths; controlled AI augmentation; stronger governance, auditability, and provenance; incremental migration to reduce risk.
  • Strategic goals: accelerate delivery velocity; enable safe and measurable AI adoption; decouple experience from legacy systems; enforce capability-level governance and ownership.
  • High-level outcomes: faster time-to-value for new features; reduced integration and maintenance cost; auditable AI usage with structured confidence and provenance; independent executor evolution.

1.1 Purpose​

This document defines the target architecture for a capability-driven Digital Experience Platform (DXP) and integration model designed to support scalable, high-velocity delivery, controlled adoption of AI, and sustainable modernisation of complex organisational environments.

The purpose of this architecture is to:

  • Establish a clear, shared architectural model that enables consistent decision-making across product, engineering, security, governance, and operations.
  • Define a capability-first integration approach that shifts the organisation away from system-centric and interface-centric design.
  • Provide a structured framework for selective AI adoption, ensuring AI is applied only where it delivers measurable value and does not compromise determinism, performance, cost control, or trust.
  • Enable incremental modernisation without requiring wholesale replacement of existing systems.
  • Create a platform model that supports long-term adaptability, allowing components, technologies, and execution models to evolve independently.

This architecture is intended to be both implementable and governable: it must support real delivery constraints while remaining defensible in regulated, high-assurance environments.

1.2 Scope​

This Architecture Definition Document defines:

  • The conceptual, logical, and physical architecture of a capability-driven DXP.
  • The capability model, including identification, definition, lifecycle, and governance.
  • The invocation model for capabilities, including deterministic and AI-assisted execution paths.
  • The role of Model Context Protocol (MCP) as a capability invocation and composition mechanism.
  • The integration strategy, including deterministic system integration and semantic (AI-assisted) integration patterns.
  • The user interaction model, including work aggregation, prioritisation, batch operations, and deep-dive interactions.
  • The governance model for AI usage, security, compliance, and auditability.
  • The delivery and operational model, including performance, cost management, resilience, and observability.
  • The migration and adoption approach, supporting incremental transition from existing platforms and integration patterns.

The scope includes both technology architecture and operating model architecture, recognising that sustainable delivery requires alignment across:

  • Platforms
  • Processes
  • Governance structures
  • Delivery practices
  • Risk controls

1.3 In Scope​

This document explicitly covers:

  • Capability definition and standardisation
  • Capability contracts and versioning
  • Capability invocation mechanisms
  • MCP usage patterns
  • API management and exposure
  • Deterministic execution pathways
  • AI-assisted execution pathways
  • DXP structure and composition
  • Page, layout, and rendering models
  • Integration containment strategies
  • Security boundaries and trust zones
  • AI governance and controls
  • Performance and cost controls
  • Reliability and resilience patterns
  • Delivery and operational models

1.4 Out of Scope​

This document does not define:

  • Vendor selection decisions
  • Specific product implementations
  • UI design systems or branding standards
  • Business process re-engineering
  • Organisational restructuring
  • Procurement models
  • Funding models
  • Commercial frameworks
  • Detailed project plans
  • Detailed data models for domain systems

These are intentionally excluded to ensure the architecture remains:

  • Technology-agnostic
  • Organisation-agnostic
  • Implementation-flexible
  • Future-proofed

1.5 Intended Audience​

This document is intended for:

  • Enterprise and solution architects
  • Platform and integration architects
  • Engineering leads and technical delivery teams
  • Security, risk, and compliance functions
  • Digital and product leadership
  • Governance and assurance bodies

It is designed to provide:

  • Strategic clarity for leadership
  • Structural guidance for architects
  • Operational direction for delivery teams
  • Governance assurance for risk and compliance stakeholders

1.6 Architectural Posture​

This architecture is based on the following foundational posture:

  • Capabilities are the primary unit of design
  • Systems are implementation details
  • Integration is outcome-oriented, not interface-oriented
  • AI is optional, constrained, and governable
  • Deterministic execution is the default
  • Adaptability is prioritised over optimisation
  • Long-term sustainability is prioritised over short-term acceleration

This posture ensures that the architecture supports continuous evolution without structural fragility, enabling the organisation to adopt new technologies and paradigms without repeated architectural resets.