The workshop “Embedding enterprise architecture into the corporate culture” held on 22nd October 2009 was attended by 27 delegates from 23 organisations representing the Aerospace, Airline, Central & regional government, Automotive, Construction, Energy supply & distribution, Financial service, FMCG, Law Enforcement, Legal, Petrochemicals, Retail, Transport Infrastructure, Travel sectors. 

The key points to emerge from the discussions were: Management buy-in; Business and IT engagement (The following is a brief summary from 5 break-out groups)

• Top tip: sell the outcome, not the method
• Top tip: speak their language
• Pick the right battles
• Measure ROI using business type metrics, e.g. score cards; risk reduction
• Produce metrics early
• Credibility means get IT basics right service delivery
• Top tip: start small, get some wins, build trust

Effectiveness, Value and Benefits (5 different break-out groups)

• Effectiveness is measured over the medium-long term
• Possible metrics
  • Long term running costs } These may both have multiple contributing factors,
  • Cost avoidance } and hence multiple claimants for the savings
  • Business agility
  • Ability to outsource
  • Soft measures impression of effectiveness by key stakeholders
• One group felt that non-acceptance of a particular EA recommendation from is not necessarily a failure. Other groups disagreed.
• One group felt that success was the delivery of actionable architectural recommendations, which were subsequently actioned.
• EA is iterative
• Give a horizontal view especially where the business has a mostly vertical, even silo, view
• Is EA the blueprint and visioning part of Prince 2?
• Minimise the cost of running the business (not just IT)
• Maximise reuse
• EA allows prioritisation
• Candidate definition of EA
  • Every enterprise has an architecture. EA is optimising/improving what exists. Delegates felt optimising was not the best word though the delegate who proposed the candidate definition had not been able to find a better one yet.
• The size, complexity and (architectural) maturity of an organisation do matter.
• Top tip: be close to what works in your business understand the Soft Machine
• Theres a choice between a collaborative and a directive approach. Choose to fit your organisation.

Governance

• Straw poll was conducted on whether the EA function can stop projects
  • Yes, in 7 organisations
  • In 2 further organisations, may have a role in doing so, e.g. providing information to someone else who has the power to stop a project
• Top tip: get a seat on the organisations major expenditure committee, or equivalent
• Top tip: dont just say no provide/suggest an alternative
• Gartner suggests that a Governance Body should sanction approximately 80% of proposals it vets. Much different means the rules are too lax or too strict.
• One organisation makes adherence to standards a disciplinary issue. This could not be implemented in the public sector.
• Top tip: get detractors on the EA board

Standards and methodologies

• TOGAF is a framework not a methodology
• ISEB was not seen as very useful
• ITIL is trying to expand out from the Service Delivery space but confuses EA terminology
• Methodologies only build structure
• If you want to build your EA function on standards, you will have to choose elements from more than one set.