Enterprise architecture

Being succesful as an architect

TopTech, 22-04-2010Rene van den Assem

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Meet… VKA• Verdonck, Klooster en Associates• Independent consultancy• Strategic projects with ICT

www.vka.nl 3

Meet… VKA• Since 1985• €17,2 million in 2008• 120 people small• 95% of customers come back repeatedly

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Contents

Enterprise ArchitectureWhat is it?FrameworksPrinciples, models

Architecture, the processBlueprint versus development planSteering with achitectureDo’s and don’ts

Competences of the architect

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Why enterprise architecture ?IT view

Strategic Business – IT alignment Shared visionCommunication

Sceptic’s viewSomething IT think they need to let the IT department do the right things for the company.

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Why architecture?

• Solve issues for more than one project (reuse) efficiency, time-to-market, quality, cohesion

• Standardization complexity and cost reduction, improves

controlDiscussie

ad hocWensen

lijnmanagersWensen

productmanagers

Wen

sen

CTO

Aan

nam

es

pro

jectm

an

ag

ers

•Slows projects down•Results vary per project

project …

Discussion ad hoc

RequirementsBusiness managers

RequirementsProduct managers

Req

uire

men

tsC

TO

Assu

mp

tion

sp

roje

ctman

ag

ers

••

…

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What is (enterprise) architecture?

We're not sure, but we know one when we see one. Seriously, it is a difficult concept to make precise. Perhaps this is not too surprising, given that the civil architecture community, with 5000 years or so of practice, has had little more success defining the architecture of a building.

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Views of enterprise architecture

• ANSI / IEEE1471 - 2000• Style – form – function• Arche = begin, first, principle or norm

Techne / tecton = technique, art of creating / building• “Architecture is a process”• Architecture is an experience

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Nederlandse Overheids Referentie Architectuur

Modalities (who, what, how) and aspects

Mainly principles + some models, gov building blocks

Reference architecture for entire NL government

Start of several other government architectures Gemma, MARIJ

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Enterprise architecture, the process

What is the real problem ?

The right projects,done right Make IT add value

Cost controlBetter control of IT

Help a specificbusiness change

Business IT alignment

Avoid silos andduplication

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Artist impression versus ‘under the hood’

Artist impressionManagers, general public

Under the hoodArchitectsProcess and IT designers

Why use principles?

Goal situation not completely clearToo much workToo many uncertainties

But you can define the directions, important choices and valuesMake all members of organization act similarly. Same directional statements, same sense of priorities

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Principles, format

FormatNameStatementRationaleImplications

Optional:Relation to external sources (strategy & policy documents)Relation to other principles

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Principles: Business, Information / Application, Technology

ACME promotes a high degree of ‘smooth execution’ of her services to the public.

Applications are structures according to a four tier model: presentation, application, business logic and storage

Servers are virtualized

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Technical

Obstacles

Rationale

Technicalprinciples

Implications

Functionalprinciples

Rationale

Implications

Obstacles

Functional

Linking principles

Implementationprinciples

Rationale

Implications

Obstacles

Implementation Business

Actions

Businessdrivers

GoalsBusinessprinciples

Rationale

Implications

Obstacles

Actions Actions Actions

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Linking goals and principles

Survey customers

Communicate, compensate

Changes Sales Organization

incl 3rd parties

Less / Otherwork to do

Present incentive system

Sales

Possible lossof competent

sales

Implementation view

Business view

Researchdb products

Technical view

Compatibility,integration

issues

Need to develop or outsource

Customer must check inventory, make valid orders

Use scripts,database to

checkinventory

and validity

Customersbrowse,

check inventory, order,

pay without help

Needed fore-commerce

Requires 24 X 7 system

availability

No resourcesfor 24X7 support

Functional view

Investigate partners

Driver:Competition isoutstripping

us on delivery

Goal:Improvetime-to-market

Develop e-commerce

capability

Reduces orderprocessing time

Needs modifications

to IT infrastructure

Beyond year’sbudget

How to do principles ?

Under the hood

Attempt completeness100+Exact statementsDirection, boundary conditions, construction

Artist impressionOnly the essential10-20 maxCatchy phrasingFocus on direction, behaviour, mostly business principles

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Models

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Question: Why use models?

A. The method says soB. One picture > 1000 wordsC. SimplifyD. Why not

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Assignment: draw a chicken (kip)

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Properties of models

• A purpose• Viewpoint• Scope• Focus / view• Modelling principles and conventions

• E.g. Groeping criteria

“Things should be made as simple as possible, but not any simpler.”

Einstein, Albert

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Views of the world: population

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age100+

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patents & licences

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Question:When is your drawing finished? A. When your customer snatches it from your hands (and

walks away with a )B. When your colleague architects have no more remarksC. When everything has been modelled correctly according to

the methodD. Never

Relation with ICT governance

Business Strategy

Information strategy

IT-projects

Cohesion

Stee

ring,

con

trol

Architecture Architecturemanagement

Info

rmati

on p

lann

ing

IT “Going Concern”

IT-service management IT-portfolio management

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Bridging the gap between strategy and projects

StrategicBusiness

& IM Vision

Transformation Plan

Project Level Design

Projects (Design / Development)

Enterprise levelArchitectural Design

Tactical

Operational

Enterprise architecture strategy and projects

Operational Business and IM SystemOperational Business and IM System

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Blueprint versus development planBlueprint• Uniform high level of detail.• Highly detailed goals,

masterplan, grand design.

Development plan• More attention to direction,

direction and guidelines.• Higher levels of details per

project, architecture is detailed ‘as we go’

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Architecture and planning

“IST”3. “Next minute” steps and guidelines

“SOLL”

2. Tomorrow-architecture

1. Today-architectuur

“newdevelopment”

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Speed versus cohesion

Businessgoal

ICT-solution

“quick and dirty”developers

“slowing”architects

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DYA: speed and cohesion

DYA principles

Architecture is as strategic as ITArchitecture must be able to go fast (as fast as the business requires)The strategic dialogue business – IT is central to architecture Business goals drive the architecture effortArchitecture should ride the wave of business and organizational changeJust enough, just in time architectureDifferent scenarios for reaching business goals should be considered. Scenario choices may have implicatiotions for the involvement of architecture.Embedding in the organization of the ‘working with architecture’ required

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DYA working model

Businessarchitecture

Businessarchitecture

Informationarchitecture

Informationarchitecture

Technicalarchitecture

Technicalarchitecture

Newdevelopments

GovernanceGovernance

Dynamic ArchitectureDynamic Architecture

StrategicDialogue

StrategicDialogue

Developwithout

architecture

Developwithout

architecture

Developwith

architecture

Developwith

architecture

ArchitectureServices

ArchitectureServices

DYAprocesses

ICT solutions

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With or without architectureScenarios re strategic situation in DYA

defensive, the organization is taken by surprise without architectureoffensive, the organization jumps at an opportunity and an ICT solution without architectureAnticipatory, the organization with architecture

With architecture: architecture artefacts, starting with (outline?) Project Start Architecture

Without architecture: no architecture artefacts; ensuring convergence through management letter

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DYA architect meets Prince2

PhaseStarting Up

PhaseInitiation

Project Mandate

Architectuur §

Project Brief

PSA

PID

Advice

pre-mandate

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Project Start ArchitectureAt the start of all projects ‘with architecture’

ContainsRelationship to enterprise architecture: comply or explainAnalysis of process, information and IT interdependencies / boundariesRisk analysis + advice re. ArchitectureAcceptable solution space

InterestingAnalogon to business case in Prince 2 ?However, business case is updated and evaluated in all project phases. Good idea for project architecture?

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Enterprise architecture applied

Information Planning ICT solutionsDevelopment with architecture

Apply architectureFacilitate

SupportInformation planning

Deliver Project Start-Architecture

Apply architecture

Control

Architecture audit Control execution Architecture auditManagement-letter

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Adapt to architecture maturity

Management Definitions Role architect

Process Products

Niveau 1

Initial

No steering First attempts

Not assigned None Rough idea

Niveau 2

Repeatable

Persons Defined but discussion

Assigned Per domain Uniform per domain

Niveau 3

Defined

Process Defined and accepted

Responsible for process

Cross domain coordinated

Uniform cross domain

Niveau 4

Managed

Resultats Defined and accepted

Responsible for results

Integrated Centrally coordinated

Niveau 5

Optimizing

Continuous improvement

Defined and accepted

Initiates innovation and improvement

Optimized Adapted to new situation

Bron: DYA (2002)

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TOGAF

Rapidly gaining support

ADM cycle = Process model

Collection of best practices, models, checklists

Architecture function central, bureaucratic

IT centered, slowly adding more business architecture

TOGAF Architecture governance

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Architecture governance, consider

DependenciesActivity wiseInformationInfrastructure

Structure, Cohesion, Uniformity: project, programmes, systemsArchitectural prioritiesProject Portfolio Board =? Architecture Board

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Role of the architect

Rules and regulationsConstruction principles

Customer

Architect ContractorFormFunctionDurability

Drivers

PrinciplesModelsStandards

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Roles of the architect

Staff, advisor. A manager sometimes.Clarification of principles, priority of conflicting principlesCommunicator

CustomerContractor

Match makerSource of infoEducator

IntroductieArcitectuurCommunicatiePraktijk

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Question: What will a good architect never do?

A. Change coffee in the coffee machineB. Hang a king size plot of his architecture model(s) on his wallC. Do small talk with the network managerD. Isolate himself in a ‘silent room’ to get his architecture right

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De architectura, architect’s competencesTheory and practiceIngeneous and Quick to studyKnowledge of building materialsGood writerGood at drawingExpert in mathematicsSkilled in geometry and opticsKnowledge of history and philosophyAcquainted with musicFamiliar with medicineKnowledge of jurisprudenceFamiliar with astronomy

Vitruvius 25 B.C.

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Architect, agent of change

Power SMART

ManLearn

Panta rei

De Caluwé

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Recognizing resistance

1. Appointments get rescheduled2. No (useful) information3. Information overflow4. Overly correct, but apparently understanding nothing5. Having to chase every action6. "We know how it works" 7. Questioning your task

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Architectuur, some pittfalls

Splendid isolationThe, by now yellow, book op the top shelf. Little support and use in the organization, no broad ‘ownership’

Master pieceLots of work initially, maintenance problematicNot for us ‘mere mortals’

Under construction no status?Ignoring architecture a practical possibility

According to latest fashion… and therefore next year’s history

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Wrong practices

Technology / application preference leadingTechnology pushWrong level: grand schema, single systemArchitecture: for ICT onlyArchitecture police versusassistanceBlueprint thinkingQuick fix

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Do’s

Mandate and management supportWhat is the real assignment?Stakeholder analysis. (Have you ever met ‘the business’? It’s next to the ‘any key’.)Plan for results, identify quick winsIterateGood = good enoughCommunicate, communicate,communicate ….

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Don’ts

Use the word ‘Architecture’ outside your own departmentAccept an architecture assignment at ‘face value’Stick to the method, no matter whatBe unaware of your counter parts interestsBe (too) quick to judgePlay games, hide information

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Architect(ure), the bridge to the future