As I reflect on the reading this week I can’t help but think
about the magnitude and scope of an EA program in most organizations and how to
make them agile enough to respond to ever-changing business needs of a firm.
This led me to the low hanging fruit – “Make your Enterprise Architecture
flexible also”. However, this is easier said than done. As many organizations
look for more effective ways to structure themselves around the customer
experience the IT systems and governance must adapt. We live in the world of 1
hour Amazon delivery and manufacture on demand that have changes customer
expectations. An organization that provides a poor customer experience will
never stay on top of a business. This means setting EA cycles not just more
often but with the “Just Enough, Just In Time” mentality described by Allegga
in “Enterprise Architecture: “Just Enough, Just in Time”.
This (re)new(ed) customer focus demands no silos and a
singular customer facing voice that is a contrast to how most organizations are
structured. Even in matrix and project based organizations silos can develop as
different teams adopt different tools to meet the daily needs. However now with
the expectation of “no boundaries” companies are tending to tear down these
traditional silos and this means IT tools need to be more flexible as they
reach greater constituencies and also more scalable to each constituencies size.
This is why it is critical to socialize EA and make sure the communication
component is robust.
In my experience implementing new IT applications can be
distasteful to the end user and management as learning a new system often
reduces production in the near term. To me, early and frequent communication is
not only the most effective but also an inexpensive solution ignored by project
teams. This also involves taking the time to listen to those same end users and
not just upper level management. To me that is the core challenge of EA – How
do we identify the best solutions for the enterprise with many competing
viewpoints?
What would our ideal
tools look like in the future-state, where we organize ourselves in a way that
is focused solely on our customers?
It's amazing how well Agile can work with aligning business and IT when we focus on the principles first and the methodology second. There's good reason why three of the principles focus on communication between the business and IT. So much of our sluggishness to adapt and change is really just people waiting on each other for answers. When we all get together and focus on delivering together, it's like magic happens.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.agilemanifesto.org/principles.html
Business people and developers must work
together daily throughout the project.
Build projects around motivated individuals.
Give them the environment and support they need,
and trust them to get the job done.
The most efficient and effective method of
conveying information to and within a development
team is face-to-face conversation.
Hey John,
DeleteAgile scrum is absolutely the way to go for R&D purposes. Organizing groups into sprints and having daily 10 minute stand ups can definitely get the most out of one's people. An environment of openness and trust will breed innovation and the capacity to do great things.