Design an Enterprise Architecture Strategy

Demystify enterprise architecture value with key metrics.
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Major Business Pain Points

  • The enterprise architecture (EA) team is constantly challenged to articulate the value of its function.
  • The CIO has asked the Enterprise Architecture team to help him understand the value the team brings to his department.
  • While there may be an IT strategy documented, no EA strategy exists, or at best, some loose collection of ideas form the basis of the EA strategy.
  • The business focuses on a projects, ignoring holistic value of an overarching architecture.
  • This “project-only” view results in poor technology investments, resulting in massive technical debt, and most enterprises are not ready to adjust to the Agile practices, further increasing technical debt.
  • In addition, enterprises struggle with rapidly changing technologies.
Design an Enterprise Architecture Strategy-Pain Points

Recommendations

Key Points

  • EA can deliver many benefits to an organization. However, in order to increase the likelihood of success, the EA group needs to deliver value to their organization based on the operating environment and the direction of the enterprise.
  • An EA strategy anchored in a value proposition will ensure that EA focuses on driving the most critical outcomes in support of the organization’s enterprise strategy.

Approach

Design an Enterprise Architecture Strategy-Recommendations
  • Create an EA value proposition based on enterprise needs that clearly articulates the expected contributions of the EA function.
  • Establish the EA fundamentals (vision and mission statement, goals and objectives, and principles) needed to position the EA function to deliver the promised value proposition.
  • Identify the services that EA has to provide to the organization in order to deliver on the promised value proposition.
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Methodology and Tools

Executive Brief

Read our concise Executive Brief to find out why you should create an EA strategy to establish a successful EA practice, review the methodology, and understand the four ways we can support you in completing this project.

  • Design an Enterprise Architecture Strategy – Executive Brief
  • Design an Enterprise Architecture Strategy – Phases 1-3
  • EA Function Strategy Template

1. Value proposition

Identify EA stakeholders and their needs, identify the pains preventing those needs from being addressed, and articulate a set of promises of value based on stakeholder needs to show EA’s value proposition.

  • Design an Enterprise Architecture Strategy – Phase 1: Value Proposition
  • Stakeholder Power Map Template
  • PESTLE Analysis Template
  • EA Value Proposition Template

2. EA fundamentals

Create the EA fundamentals based on the previously identified promises of value to guide the future decision of the EA function.

  • Design an Enterprise Architecture Strategy – Phase 2: EA Fundamentals
  • EA Goals and Objectives Template
  • EA Principles Template – EA Strategy

3. EA service design

Identify the EA services your EA function needs to provide the organization to fulfill its promises of value.

  • Design an Enterprise Architecture Strategy – Phase 3: EA Service Design
  • EA Service Planning Tool

All resources on this page are provided to Cyber Leadership Hub members under license from third parties including Info-Tech Research Group Inc, a global leader in providing IT research and advice.