Abstract
Enterprise Architecture (EA) is increasingly being adopted and utilized by all types of organizations (Fri 2007; Jung 2009; Kappelman et al. 2008). Despite its growing popularity, the challenge facing many organizations is how to measure and provide evidence of the value that EA provides to an enterprise (Boster et al. 2000; Plessius et al. 2012). This challenge includes determining the best ways to effectively evaluate and measure the impact EA has on an enterprise. To provide some insight into this problem, this article provides an overview of the means used to measure the value of EA within organizations. This article seeks to accomplish four tasks. First, to demonstrate that EA value measurement is a challenge that needs to be addressed within organizations. Second, to highlight the variety of methods and measures that organizations currently use in their attempts to measure the value of EA. Third, to provide insight into the reported challenges facing organizations involved in the process of measuring the value of EA. Fourth, to propose a conceptual model for EA value measurement that can be utilized by organizations who have implemented EA. To provide support and evidence for all four of these tasks, we present the results from a survey that contains the responses from 276 participants whose job roles and responsibilities directly reflected working in EA within their organizations.
Keywords
Enterprise Architecture, Value Measurement, Strategic Alignment, Metrics, Survey, Business Value
Acknowledgements
The authors of this article would like to thank the industry associations who participated in this research: The Open Group, the Association Enterprise Architects (AEA), the Association for Enterprise Integration (AFEI), the Industry Advisory Council (IAC) – Enterprise Architecture Shared Interest Group (SIG), the Object Management Group (OMG), the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO), and Gartner.
About the authors
Brian H. Cameron PhD is Executive Director of the Center for Enterprise Architecture at the Pennsylvania State University.
Eric McMillan is a PhD student at the Pennsylvania State University.
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Journal of Enterprise Architecture