An Examination of the Role of Enterprise Architecture Frameworks in Enterprise Transformation

Abstract

2 Enterprise architecture frameworks have been used to plan and manage large-scale enterprise information technology and business process deployments for more than four decades. They are increasingly being used as a proxy for managing and transforming entire organizations-enterprises. However, as an interdisciplinary tool for the management and transformation of the enterprise, there are limitations to their efficacy. This article discusses these limitations and proposes enhancements to the use the frameworks in enterprise transformation based on research into extant business management frameworks and surveys of enterprise architects and systems engineers involved in enterprise architecture and transformation. Research into the common elements of successful business management frameworks combined with surveys and interviews with enterprise architecture experts confirms the limitations of existing frameworks and suggests key considerations for enhanced efficacy. The article concludes with implications of these findings for systems engineers engaged in enterprise architecture and enterprise transformation efforts and a recommendation that systems engineers take a more holistic approach in their enterprise architecture and enterprise transformation efforts.

Enterprise architecture implementation as interpersonal connection: Building support and commitment

“…It has for some time been an accepted fact within EAI research that many of the problems arising when undertaking an EAI are social in nature (Lange, 2012;Spewak, 1992). The relationship between EAI failure and the inability of architects to build stakeholder commitment and support is well documented (Donaldson et al, 2015). According to Rouse (2005) "the people and organizational issues associated with transformational solutions are often the thorniest part of the road to success" (Rouse, 2005, p. 143).…”

“…Authors' prescriptions for improving relations with stakeholders are varied and include enhanced management training of architects (Donaldson et al, 2015), increased business exposure for architects (Ross et al, 2006), more vigorous and rigorous use of structured methods (Aier & Schelp, 2010), and a variety of mechanisms for facilitating closer interaction between architects and stakeholders, such as methods for understanding organizational culture and subcultures (Aier, 2014), governance processes (Mocker, Ross, & Hopkins, 2015), and interdisciplinary architecture teams and liaison positions (Aier, Riege, & Winter, 2008;Strano & Rehmani, 2007). Some researchers have proposed new methodologies specifically designed to facilitate more significant stakeholder involvement (Jahani, Reza Seyyed Javadein, & Abedi Jafari, 2010).…”

“…Whilst existing EAI research acknowledges the importance of social factors to the outcomes of an EAI, the interpersonal antecedents that may give rise to these factors has not attracted the attention of researchers to the same extent. This is significant since EAI research acknowledges the dependency of architects on the participation of stakeholders (Donaldson, Blackburn, Blessner, & Olson, 2015), and, as it is characterized in the extant research, the relationship between architects and stakeholders is one of mutual dependence (Ahlemann, Mohan, & Schafczuk, 2012): conditions conducive to these types of connections (Rosenkranz et al, 2014). To date, this aspect of the architectstakeholder relationship is viewed as a black box, and the contribution of this paper is to theorize these processes and to highlight the effect of the permeability of boundaries around architects, which can enable or prevent them from building support for and commitment to the selected technology products and programmes of technology projects.…”

A Detailed Examination of the Enterprise Architecture Frameworks Being Implemented in Pakistan

“…Donaldson, Blackburn, Blessner, and Olson [9] discussed various constraints that occur during the implementation of Enterprise Architecture Framework and also suggested the enhancements that can play a vital role in the transformation of an enterprise. In the first part of the paper, different factors are identified that lead towards the failure of EAF execution.…”

In Praise of the “Ologies”: A Discussion of and Framework for Using Soft Skills to Sense and Influence Emergent Behaviors in Sociotechnical Systems

“…The analysis found all three of the classic soft systems elements—leadership, culture, and organizational behavior—to be significantly underrepresented. When asked about adding these elements to classic systems engineering skill sets, 72% of the respondents recommended the addition of the elements [Donaldson et al., ].…”