Emerging Trends in the Evolution of Service-Oriented and Enterprise Architectures by Eman El-Sheikh Alfred Zimmermann & Lakhmi C. Jain

Author:Eman El-Sheikh, Alfred Zimmermann & Lakhmi C. Jain
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Springer International Publishing, Cham

7.3 The Lightweight Enterprise Architecture Framework—A Very Focused Customization of TOGAF

There are many enterprise architecture frameworks the architect can chose of: From the ancestor of all of them, the Zachmann framework to the widely accepted standard TOGAF, the architecture framework of the open group and some more which come with various tools the architect may use.

All of these architecture frameworks are quite comprehensive and it will cost much effort and time to follow them thoroughly. Obviously, there is no use in defining just another framework. As TOGAF is the general accepted standard for enterprise architecture, we follow in this description the TOGAF definitions. This proposed framework is not totally new, but orients towards and makes use of TOGAF, especially of its Architecture Development Method (ADM) and its content metamodel. So the framework proposed here is basically a very focused customization of TOGAF.

Taking TOGAF literally and to the full extent of its described deliverables, there is always the risk of interpreting it in a way we want to avoid. In the digital transformation scenario, it is of no use to define the whole target architecture in terms of business, information system and technology architecture after obtaining a statement of architecture work, which is based on the architecture vision. (TOGAF 9.1). As learned from some digital transformation projects, the enterprise architect needs her assignment based on the business strategy, the underlying business ideas and the business objective. The enterprise architect may already contribute to this according to the opportunities IT may provide to the business ideas. An architecture vision and a coarse architecture action plan—an extension to TOGAF for Phase A proposed here—aligned with stakeholders is all what is needed to start a digital transformation program. The actual architecture change takes place in the projects of this digital transformation program. The digital transformation program can and will not wait for a comprehensive architecture designed by the omniscient and omnipotent enterprise architect.

The TOGAF ADM proposes a preliminary phase, which serves for customization, tool selection etc., basically the preparation of the “TOGAF architecture project”. Though I think some preparation is always useful, the proposed lightweight enterprise architecture framework does no reference this phase explicitly. The considerations of this article together with implementation for an actual digital transformation program more or less follows the idea of this preliminary phase.

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