Poesis
If you want a curated, architect-owned application portfolio with mature reporting and a large ecosystem, the established EA category is a safe choice.
A LeanIX alternative where the repository cannot drift
EA management tools like LeanIX gave enterprise architecture a shared repository and a common language. Poesis for IT starts from a different premise: the architecture model should be a governed definition of the estate — sourced from the systems that actually run, and continuously evaluated against the obligations that bind them.
Credit where due
What the enterprise architecture management category does well.
The EA-repository category — of which LeanIX is a leading example — excels at giving architects a curated inventory, portfolio reports, and a shared vocabulary for application landscapes. If your need is an architect-maintained catalog with strong reporting, the category serves it well.
Where the approaches differ
Description versus definition.
The difference is not feature count — it is what the model *is*. A repository describes the landscape as architects record it; a governed definition is typed, sourced from reality, and evaluated continuously.
| Dimension | EA repository approach | Poesis for IT |
|---|---|---|
| Source of truth | Inventory recorded and maintained by architects (surveys, imports, curation) | Definitions continuously sourced from code, API contracts, SBOMs, and infrastructure — with confidence and provenance |
| Drift | Detected when someone notices the map no longer matches the territory | Observed the moment it appears — declared definitions are reconciled against the running system |
| Obligations | Standards and policies referenced as documents alongside the model | Directives and Norms are governed definitions — machine-evaluable, with verdicts computed from the model |
| Impact of change | Read from diagrams and dependency views | Simulated through typed relations — blast radius traced before you commit |
| AI-readiness | Reports and exports for human consumption | Every definition typed by a GSM Archetype — a governed context humans and AI agents act on |
An honest answer
When to choose which.
If you need the model to stay true to what actually runs, obligations to be evaluated continuously rather than audited annually, and a source of truth AI agents can act on — that is what Poesis for IT is built for.
For many estates this is not either/or: an EA repository is a curated account of intent, and intent is an input. Poesis can treat it as a knowledge source — checked continuously against what the code, contracts, and infrastructure say is actually true.
LeanIX is a trademark of LeanIX GmbH (an SAP company). Poesis is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by LeanIX or SAP.