2008

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A Survey of Enterprise Architecture Model Transformation Efficiency

Consistent with its goal of providing a management planning tool in the context of complex information technology, Enterprise Architecture (EA) unifies a broad range of documentation artifacts from different disciplines. Each of these artifacts is expressed in the language of its native discipline. By inclusion in an EA framework, the artifacts constitute the nouns of the EA language used to describe strategy and its transition to business capabilities. EA frameworks define paths through which decisions and facts flow in the course of pursuing an enterprise level initiative. The dimensions of an EA framework expose the boundaries that occur along these paths. When boundaries are crossed as detail is added and refined, transformations occur. Transformations are the verbs of the EA language. EA frameworks go to great lengths to describe their nouns and organize them into understandable dimensions as a form of dictionary to guide the practitioner. Yet the verbs that are equally important contributors to the quality of an enterprise initiative receive less attention. Like artifacts, transformations also have properties that can be tailored for efficiency. As a complement to EA artifacts, design and selection of EA transformations must also receive consideration when selecting an EA framework for a specific purpose. Fortunately for EA transformation analysis, a transformation is bracketed by the set of input and output artifacts involved. Thus it is instructive to use the extensive artifact descriptions from an EA framework to make value judgments regarding the choice of transformation techniques. Combined with known transformation techniques and transformation theory, an EA practitioner can tailor a framework for both artifact and transformation efficiency. Following an introduction that establishes transformation principles, this paper looks at a series of well-documented EA frameworks as means of illustrating the extent to which their dimensional structure and artifacts support efficient transformations. The analysis reveals the range of explicit support for efficient transformations within the EA documentation. Where transformations are not explicitly discussed as part of the methodology, characteristics of each framework that might form the basis for tailoring a transformation strategy within the framework are discussed. To conclude, a brief summary of transformation theory is presented in the form of a meta-model and a procedure for evaluating EA transformations.

Framework Standards – What’s It All About?

Two years ago, some of my friends pressed me intensely to be more definitive about the Framework concepts. Even though, I had written “The Book,” they were specifically asking me for definitions of the entities that comprise the meta model of Row 2 of the Enterprise Framework. It has taken me and a team of dedicated folks two years, however we have progressed far beyond the original requirement. We have produced definitions, not only of the meta entities of Row 2 of the Enterprise Framework, but also we have dictionary definitions of the meta entities of Row 1, Row 2, Row 3, Row 4, Row 5 and Row 6 of the Enterprise Framework plus dictionary definitions for the Product Framework (where I learned about the Framework classification in the first place), for the Profession Framework (that I used to call the I/S Framework, the “meta Framework” relative to the Enterprise Framework) and for the Zachman Classification Framework (the Framework classification for all Frameworks). This work is particularly significant at this point in time for several reasons.

The Organization’s Compass – Enterprise Architecture

This article seeks to establish Enterprise Architecture (EA) as a discipline to achieve an organization’s operating model and position it beyond its current perceived value as framework for standardization and documentation. This is analogous to using a compass, not just to establish the magnetic north but also to chart the direction to go. It describes our operating models, problem space, and the work that has been done to advance the maturity of EA. This is in the form of a foundation layer in the common integrated operating environment that is enabled by our IT governance process. This incremental approach enables projects to incorporate enterprise requirements and collectively build up capabilities to achieve our desired operating model. In this aspect, EA can enable the Ministry of Defense and the Singapore Armed Forces to achieve their operating models – and in the process become their organizational compass.

A Goal-Oriented Way to Define Metrics for an Enterprise Architecture Program

Metrics are becoming more and more important in the development of enterprise architecture (EA) programs. Therefore, guidelines and support to define metrics for EA programs are needed. A goal-oriented approach for defining metrics for EA program and the measurement aspects for EA program are presented in this article. This approach was developed and tested during the development of proposals of EA program metrics for two companies.