Use this when
leaders cannot see the full sanctioned and shadow tool estate, its costs, owners, integrations, or AI use.
Advanced practitioner depth
Layer 05 · Platforms · Platform Structure
Platform Inventory
Executive summary
Enumerate every tool, workflow tier, AI system, owner, purpose, cost, integration, and shadow platform. This advanced practitioner guide places that work inside Platform Structure. It helps leaders turn a broad concern into a specific operating decision without treating the topic as a stand-alone transformation. Use the detailed model below to clarify the current state, make trade-offs visible, and assign ownership for the next move. Apply it when leaders cannot see the full sanctioned and shadow tool estate, its costs, owners, integrations, or AI use. The practical result is a platform inventory with purpose, owner, domain, cost, integration, tier, and lifecycle status. Keep that output connected to adjacent layers so upstream constraints remain visible and downstream execution can show whether the design is working.
Practical output
Leave with a platform inventory with purpose, owner, domain, cost, integration, tier, and lifecycle status.
Detailed model
How to apply platform inventory
Use the practitioner material below after the executive orientation establishes the job, trigger, and expected output.
Platform Inventory
You cannot rationalize what you have not enumerated.
Inventory every sanctioned and shadow tool, every AI system, every workflow platform, and every system carrying operating data.
Tool or platform name
Business purpose
Operational owner
Owning domain
Users and teams
Data objects stored
Source-of-truth status
Integrations and dependencies
AI usage or AI touchpoints
Cost and contract owner
Risk tier
Retain, consolidate, deprecate, or redesign decision
Implementation Sequence
Inventory is the first move, not the cleanup afterthought.
01
Platform Inventory
Every tool. Every team. Every AI system. Sanctioned and shadow.
02
Conway's Law Audit
Map systems to the org that built them. Rate misalignment severity.
03
Domain Boundaries
One system owns each domain. Dual ownership resolved - not deferred.
Choose the next path
Return to the layer or apply this topic to the operating model.
The layer overview restores context. The recommended action turns this practitioner model into the next piece of work.