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Regions Category

Overview

The Regions category represents geographical locations, markets, or organizational territories. Regions are standalone entities without a hierarchical structure.

Hierarchy

graph TD Regions[Regions
Flat list] --> Region1[EMEA] Regions --> Region2[North America] Regions --> Region3[APAC] Region1 -.contains.-> Offices[Office Locations] Region1 -.has.-> Teams[Regional Teams] Region1 -.governed by.-> Regulations[Local Regulations] style Regions fill:#e1ffe1 style Region1 fill:#e1ffe1 style Region2 fill:#e1ffe1 style Region3 fill:#e1ffe1

Note: Regions are a flat list without parent-child relationships. Use region attributes and connections to represent geographical relationships if needed.

Element Types

Region

  • Purpose: Represents a geographical area, market, or territory
  • Parent: None (flat structure)
  • Children: None (flat structure)
  • Attributes: Name, country codes, time zones, regulatory requirements, market characteristics
  • 📖 Detailed Documentation →

Region Types

  • Geographical Regions: Continents, countries, states/provinces, cities
  • Market Regions: Sales territories, distribution zones
  • Regulatory Regions: Areas with common legal/compliance requirements (e.g., EU GDPR zone)
  • Time Zone Regions: Areas for operational scheduling
  • Cultural Regions: Markets with shared language/culture

Common Regional Groupings

Continental:

  • EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa)
  • APAC (Asia-Pacific)
  • LATAM (Latin America)
  • North America
  • CALA (Caribbean and Latin America)

Economic Blocks:

  • European Union
  • ASEAN
  • NAFTA/USMCA
  • Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)

Individual Markets:

  • United States
  • United Kingdom
  • Germany
  • China
  • Japan
  • ...and more

Connections to Other Categories

→ Actors

Actors (teams, people) may be assigned to or work within specific regions.

graph LR Region[EMEA Region] -.has team.-> Actor[EMEA Sales Team] Actor -.performs.-> Process[Regional Sales Process] style Region fill:#e1ffe1 style Actor fill:#ffe1e1

📖 Learn more: Actors Category →

→ Components (Contexts)

Contexts may have regional variants or operate differently per region.

📖 Learn more: Components Category →

→ Systems

Systems may have regional deployments or data residency requirements per region.

→ Processes

Processes may have regional variations due to local regulations or practices.

→ Products

Products may be available in or customized for specific regions.

Usage Guidelines

  1. Define regions at your working level - global teams use continents, local teams use cities
  2. Align with business structure - match how your organization segments markets
  3. Document regulatory requirements - GDPR, data residency, compliance needs
  4. Link regional teams (actors) to regions
  5. Track regional deployments of systems and infrastructure
  6. Map product availability across regions

Regional Considerations

Data Sovereignty

  • Where customer data must be stored
  • Which systems must have regional instances
  • Compliance with local data protection laws

Localization

  • Language requirements
  • Currency and payment methods
  • Date/time formats and cultural norms

Regulatory Compliance

  • Industry-specific regulations (finance, healthcare)
  • Privacy laws (GDPR, CCPA, etc.)
  • Tax and reporting requirements

Operations

  • Support hours and time zones
  • Local holidays and business days
  • Infrastructure and network latency

Best Practices

  • Use standard abbreviations where recognized (EMEA, APAC, etc.)
  • Document time zones for operational planning
  • Track compliance requirements as region attributes
  • Link to responsible teams - who manages each region
  • Map infrastructure - where systems are deployed regionally
  • Consider data flow - how data moves between regions and compliance impact

Region Attributes to Track

  • ISO Country Codes: Standard codes for countries
  • Primary Languages: For localization
  • Currencies: For financial systems
  • Time Zones: For operations and support
  • Regulatory Framework: GDPR, CCPA, SOX, HIPAA, etc.
  • Data Residency Requirements: Where data must stay
  • Business Hours: Local operating times
  • Contact Information: Regional office details

Example Use Cases

Global SaaS Company

  • Regions: North America, EMEA, APAC
  • Each region has:
    • Regional data center (system deployment)
    • Regional support team (actors)
    • Regional sales process (process variant)
    • Compliance requirements (GDPR for EMEA, CCPA for California, etc.)

Retail Chain

  • Regions: Individual store locations or metropolitan areas
  • Each region has:
    • Store teams (actors)
    • Local inventory system (system instance)
    • Regional manager (actor)
    • Store-specific processes

Manufacturing

  • Regions: Plant locations
  • Each region has:
    • Production facility
    • Local compliance requirements
    • Regional supply chain processes