Summary
Enterprise Architecture as a
Business Strategy
,Table of Contents
1. Week 1: Introduction & defining EA.................................................................................................... 1
2. Week 2: EA as a framework for design: introduction to the Zachman Framework ............................ 4
3. Week 3 (3a): EA as a method for organizational change .................................................................. 13
4. Week 4 (3b): Complexity and design principles ................................................................................ 20
5a. Week 5a: EA as a business strategy: operating model .................................................................... 24
5.1. Foundation for Execution ........................................................................................................... 25
5.2. Operating model......................................................................................................................... 26
5b. Week 5b: EA as a business strategy: core diagram ......................................................................... 29
6. Week 6: EA as a business strategy: maturity of the firm & IT engagement ...................................... 35
6.1. EA maturity (CMM)..................................................................................................................... 35
6.2. IT engagement ............................................................................................................................ 42
7. Week 7: ArchiMate (guest lecture) ................................................................................................... 45
8. Week 7: Theories that explain business value of EA ......................................................................... 47
Article 1: Comparison of the Top Four Enterprise Architecture Methodologies (Sessions, 2008) ....... 51
Articles ................................................................................................................................................... 56
(Sessions, 2008) ................................................................................................................................. 56
(Sowa & Zachman, 1992)................................................................................................................... 57
(Kappelman & Zachman, 2013) ......................................................................................................... 59
(Groot, Smits & Kuipers, 2006) .......................................................................................................... 60
(Haki & Legner, 2013) ........................................................................................................................ 61
(Tamm et al., 2015) ........................................................................................................................... 62
(Haki & Legner, 2020) ........................................................................................................................ 63
,1. Week 1: Introduction & defining EA
What is enterprise architecture (EA)?: the goal is to better align technical projects with business needs.
Consists of four architectural models:
• Business architecture: the business mission, strategy, line of businesses, organization
structure, business process models, business functions, etc.
• Data / information architecture: defines what information needs to be made available to
accomplish the mission, to whom, and how.
• Application / system architecture: also known as functional architecture. Focuses on the
application portfolio required to support the business mission and information needs of the
organization. At the next level of detail, it addresses the common business components and
business services that can be leveraged by multiple applications.
• Technology / technical architecture: defines the technology services needed to support the
application portfolio of the business. It also documents the software, hardware, and network
product standards.
EA challenges over the ages: EA moved from the complexity of an individual system to the dynamics
of multiple systems. Security by design can be considered separate. However, information security
shouldn’t be considered separate, because it is very important to make sure that your architecture is
secure.
Core components of EA:
• As-is: the current state assessment of the organization.
• To-be: the future state and, generally, the main focus of an EA assignment.
• Migration plan: without a viable route from as-is to to-be the architecture has already failed.
• Principles: guidelines for users of the architecture, such as ‘buy not build’ or ‘adherence to
published data standards’.
• Decisions log: started during the development of the EA but a key part of the ‘living’
architecture. Which decisions have we taken during the EA process?
1
, Linking EA & strategic alignment: both address how the designs of business and IT affect performance.
Linking EA & business models: both define how, who, what, when, and where value is created
(operating model) and for which markets (value proposition). The business model of a firm defines the
value proposition (what value is offered to whom) and the operating model of a firm (how is the value
created).
What is architecture?
• Architecture as model: “a set of things”.
• Architecture as modelling: “making things clear with models” & “reducing complexity with
models”.
IT management: enterprise architects and the IT department (CIO office) play a key role in EA
development, advisory and use.
2
