Clear as Mud!
As I start my second semester in EA, I pause for a minute to
wonder, what is EA? There’s not one
common definition or agreement on what it is. It’s not even necessary to call
the discipline EA. After reading numerous Gartner articles as part of the EA871
course as well as other research analysts, It’s looking like it’s larger than
life. I’d like to know one enterprise who has mastered this art and their
secret! But that’s impossible as it’s their competitive edge and not revealed.
So I’m going to plug along and gain as much as I can in the hope of becoming a
halfway decent Enterprise Architect one day.
Jyothi, I laughed a bit at your post as I feel the same way about EA and I think many organizations do as well. EA seems to have very differing definitions. The more I read, the harder I find myself being able to pin down a "sole source of truth."
ReplyDeleteI think a the one obstacle many organizations face is the cost of establishing a solid EA practice. Organizational leaders don't always understand the value of EA which makes funding an EA program a tough sell.
In my part of the world while business leaders understand the value of IT and is still a huge task to convince them to invest in EA and IT have found themselves having to incorporate the function in job structures that are known to business and try to allow the discipline to thrive and benefit the organization.
ReplyDeleteI know exactly what you mean - it's like peeling a never-ending onion! Perhaps the secret is to view the entire thing as a process rather than as a project or initiative. From everything I've read, whether you are on Day 1 or Day 1 million of EA, there is always more to do and refinement to be had. Thus, focusing on what known aspect(s) of EA are most applicable to 'now' may at least give direction within the fog of possibilities.
ReplyDeleteJyothi, I can't agree more with you about how broad EA is. I think each new posts or articles I read about EA it gives new information about EA and new strategy companies in order get best value from what have.
ReplyDeleteOne time thing in common I read in article and newsprint was how companies cost cut and what strategy they do.