Enterprise architecture (EA) practice exists in every company, but in some companies, it’s dormant or ceremonial, and in some, it’s prominent. Coronavirus (COVID-19) is an unexpected driver validating the effectiveness of EA in an organization
As Enterprise Architecture exists in every organization, all Information Technology professionals, irrespective of their role or domain, need to have an overview of enterprise architecture concepts or practices based on their position.
This article will provide an overview of Enterprise Architecture its practice Pre-COVID-19 and Post COVID-19. Also, EA effectiveness in digital transformation success.
What is Enterprise Architecture?
Enterprise Architecture is a holistic approach that proactively realizes the business vision with applicable technology capabilities and works with the business to innovate using emerging technologies.
What is the scope of Enterprise Architecture?
The goal of enterprise architecture is to future proof information technology landscape. Also, to provide the organization with the flexibility and agility to transform the business model to meet the market condition.
Therefore, the scope of the enterprise architecture includes the people (who define the vision), processes (a procedure to identify the business service, function, events, information), and technologies to realize the business objectives. Enterprise architectures address the changing business needs by defining the technology building blocks that are vendor and technology agnostic.
The necessity of Enterprise Architecture?
Generally, organizations have procured systems based on business needs. Also, business models evolved due to emerging technologies. Thus, the architecture in an organization generally evolves due to necessity. To get an understanding, we take an analogy of a city, Sydney, which grew driven by economics and population, whereas Canberra a well-planned city from inception to construction.
The outcome of architecture by necessity has resulted in multiple redundant systems, duplicated business processes, information silos, and hard-wired systems. In the 21st century, organizations to be competitive or to survive information to flow seamlessly across the organization that provides real-time reports for decision making
Why is Enterprise Architecture Important?
Benefits of Enterprise Architecture
- Enables high-level alignment between an organization’s business processes and the underlying ICT systems,
- Facilitates clear communication between different groups of people,
- Provides a roadmap to achieve business goals through
- Rationalize & Improve business processes,
- Increase efficiency of Day-to-day operations and
- Effective management of information systems of an organization
- Addresses architectural governance and decision-making.
Current Enterprise Architecture practice
The Enterprise Architecture Department (EAD) is under the Project management office or IT department or report to an executive. The team size generally one to 20 members based on enterprise architecture maturity in the organization. The Enterprise Architecture department’s role is for advisory only. Decisions are taken by PMO or IT department or Executive
Google trends analyzed to determine people’s interest in Enterprise architecture comparing to other practices.
From the above results, its evident enterprise architecture practice is yet to get recognized. The cost of projects is getting reduced, so the interest in Project Management. As customers are more demanding, an increase in Customer Support. Operations management and Customer support reduced as Infrastructure gradually moving to the cloud.
What is Enterprise Architecture practice: Pre COVID-19?
Enterprise Architecture Pre COVID-19 can be categorized based on the procurement of technology infrastructure:
- Capital expenditure (Capex) upfront investment
- Operational expenditure (Opex) consumption-based.
Procurement in Capital expenditure (Capex) model
In the CapEx model, procured hardware owned by the organization and software license is perpetual. Therefore, rarely organizations replace their technology infrastructure unless deemed necessary. E.g., One-third of the organizations in 2019 were still running Windows XP, according to TechRepublic, though Microsoft stopped the support in April 2014.
Enterprise Architecture in the CapEx model was to determine stable technology to address the business objective, identify and recommend products from proven vendors who are reliable. Generally, the company’s technology assets determined by the product vendors, usually the organizations were referred based on their product vendor as IBM shop, Oracle shop, SAP shop, etc. Also, the CapEx model systems’ acquisition was to meet the needs of the individual department or influential stakeholders’ needs.
In the CapEx model, Key performance indicators (KPI) for EA was arbitrary. As projects were running multiple years to implement, the business values were never fully realized. Also, there was no traceability to determine the identified KPI at the start of the initiative.
Generally, EA practice in the CapEx model was ceremonial.
Procurement in Operational expenditure (Opex) model
In the OpEx model, Everything as a Service (XaaS), where new services or features released on a daily or weekly basis.
Enterprise Architecture in the OpEx model is to rationalize the business process, eliminate the duplicate systems, streamline the application, and determine the technology capability. Then identify and recommend a service provider based on organization context as budget, risk appetite, type of organization public or private, etc.
The current practice XaaS acquired for new services. The existing legacy systems generally replaced with XaaS or virtualized and deployed on the cloud platform. Critical core applications like HR, Finance, email considered organization-wide. But services are provided to meet the needs of individual departments, sometimes not finding the requirement or impact across the organization. Also, the consumption model as given rise to shadow IT, where individual or departments have their services without informing the IT department.
In the OpEx model, it’s possible to determine the Key performance indicators (KPI). As projects implemented in weeks or months, it’s possible to verify if the business value realized validating against the KPI.
EA practice in the OpEx model is gradually gaining momentum due to the XaaS model. But enterprise architecture practice may be taken seriously due to COVID-19.
In the OpEx model, it’s possible to determine the Key performance indicators (KPI). As projects implemented in weeks or months, it’s possible to verify if the business value realized validating against the KPI.
EA practice in the OpEx model is gradually gaining momentum due to the XaaS model. But enterprise architecture practice may be taken seriously due to COVID-19.
COVID-19 Prediction: notable technology failure of the modern digital world
Though the technology world has the competency and capability but failed to predict the pandemic. The cutting-edge predictive technologies like data mining, machine learning, AI, Quantum computing supported by IoT, Cloud computing, social media not utilized efficiently to predict.
Companies forecast customers sentiment and determine product features, produce consumer edible or nonedible products. But the same concept was not applied for COVID-19. Observing and learning from Wuhan were COVID-19 bought under control and minimized the spread of infection within China.
What will be Enterprise Architecture: Post COVID-19
COVID-19 a perfect driver to test the organization’s ability to run the business from the staff working remotely. Every organization are in their digital transformation journey but have not realized the full potential of existing technology. Organizations have partially moved to the cloud. Still, large organizations typically have 100 of redundant systems, duplicate business processes, silo data, and legacy technology infrastructure.
Generally, there is no real-time data collected across the organization, assimilated, and presented to business for decision making. Only some core business applications, vital data are determined for high-level reporting. To collect data across the organization, assimilate and provide to businesses needs may take a minimum of one day to a few weeks depending on the organization type, domain, and size.
Also, some of the systems migrated to the cloud were lift and shift. The applications not designed for the cloud; it can’t be scaled and shrink based on the demand to use cloud capability.
Enterprise Architecture post-COVID-19, XaaS organization-wide approach from a business perspective. To rationalize the business process, eliminate redundant applications, collect data across the organization, and provide real-time analytics and reports where businesses can make decisions. Eliminate human intervention automating human tasks wherever possible. Provide the self-service capability to staff as well as customers.
Key takeaways
- Enterprise architecture (EA) practice exists in every company, but in some companies, it’s dormant or ceremonial, and in some, it’s prominent.
- The current role of Enterprise Architecture role is advisory rather than decision making.
- KPI for EA practice in the CapEx model was arbitrary, whereas, in OpEx, it’s measurable.
- Enterprise Architecture for XaaS to be an organization-wide approach from a business perspective.