Topic 2 - Enterprise Architecture - Structure & Culture PDF

Topic 2 Enterprise Architecture The Structure and Culture of Enterprises INFO7018 – Enterprise Architecture The Structure and Culture of Enterprises There is a need for enterprise architects to understand the role of organisational structure and culture in developin...

Topic 2 Enterprise Architecture The Structure and Culture of Enterprises INFO7018 – Enterprise Architecture The Structure and Culture of Enterprises There is a need for enterprise architects to understand the role of organisational structure and culture in developing EA Structure and culture are important to include in the EA in order to accurately reflect the true nature of organisational goals, processes, and informal structures which influence the current and future views of the architecture  Understanding structure and culture are also important in working with stakeholders to gain their support and manage expectations for the development and implementation of the EA program. CIT / ITT Merger Key Term: Culture The beliefs, customs, values, structure, normative rules, and material traits of a social organisation. Culture is evident in many aspects of how an organisation functions. Key Term: Stakeholder Everyone who is or will be affected by a policy, program, project, activity, or resource. Stakeholders for the EA program include executive sponsors, architects, program managers, users, and support staff. EA is not just about processes and resources… Enterprise architecture is as much about people and social interaction as it is about processes and resource utilisation. Proces People People s Technology Understanding each of these aspects of Process an enterprise is essential to the development of accurate views of the current architecture and relevant, meaningful views of the future architecture. Home Architecture Analogy: An architect needs to understand the composition, preferences, and activities of the occupants to be able to produce an effective design for their new or remodelled home. How they will use the rooms, their activity patterns, and storage needs are examples of the factors to be considered. One of the key measures of success in this scenario is how happy the client is with the end result Difference between Organisation & Enterprise Organisations and enterprises are similar in that they are both types of social entities that have a culture, a formal and informal structure, goals, activities, and resources. The difference is that an enterprise can be defined as a subset of an organisation or can involve multiple organisations. Structure Enterprises are normally made up of vertical, horizontal, and extended components. Vertical components (also known as lines of business or segments) are activity areas that are particular to one line of business (e.g., research and development) Horizontal components (also known as crosscutting enterprises) are more general areas of activity that serve multiple lines of business. Extended components comprise more than one organisation (e.g., extranets and supply chains). Understanding Culture Every enterprise is different in some way, as are the vertical, horizontal, and/or extended sub-enterprises. This is due to the culture of the enterprise being an amalgamation of the values, beliefs, habits, and preferences of all of the people throughout the enterprise or sub-enterprise. Change Management People are often resistant to change in their environment, whether it is at home or the workplace If the EA program promotes changes in the enterprise, and if people are often resistant to any type of change when they do not have some level of control, then the EA program may be resisted by stakeholders unless something is done to increase their level of control. Increasing their level of control helps to successfully manage change and increase buy-in, and can be accomplished in several ways, including: Gaining ‘Buy-In’ Involving stakeholders in the EA program’s establishment and management Regularly and effectively communicating EA activities to stakeholders Allowing for stakeholder input to EA planning and decision-making Managing stakeholder expectations as to what the EA program can do Key Term: Change Management Change management is the collective term for all approaches to prepare, support, and help individuals, teams and organisations to successfully adopt change, in order to drive organisational success It is a systematic approach to dealing with the transition or transformation of an organisation's goals, processes or technologies. The purpose of change management is to implement strategies for effecting change, controlling change and helping people to adapt to that change The process involves setting expectations and involving stakeholders in how a process or activity will be changed, so that the stakeholders have some control over the change and therefore may be more accepting of it Questions 1. Why is it important to understand the “people side” of EA? 2. Compare and contrast an organisation and an enterprise. 3. Who are stakeholders in the EA program and associated activities and might they want to resist the EA program and associated activities? 4. What are four ways to manage change with stakeholders?