EA Methodology
Implementation methodology is a key element of
Enterprise Architecture (EA) program. EA methodology is a detailed description
of how the EA program is to be established and run, and how the documentation
of the EA is to be developed, maintained, and used.
The purpose of an EA methodology within the EA
program:
-
EA methodology is a detailed procedure for establishing, maintaining and
using an EA framework and documentation approach.
-
It is the first step in coordinating the EA documentation approach.
-
Adopting it reduces the risk of creating an ineffective EA program and/or
inaccurate EA documentation.
EA Methodology Comparison
With
different kinds of EA frameworks, EA methodologies are very different
respectively in their approaches. However, it is hard to know which one is best
EA methodology. Each kind has advantages and disadvantages, so choosing what
kind of them is depending on each organization. There are twelve criteria that
are most often used for comparing and evaluating enterprise-architectural
methodologies. Not all of these criteria might have a connection with your
organization, and some might be more important than others. But, basing on
them, IT specialists can evaluate and choose suitable kinds of EA methodologies
applied their organization. There are some ways to rank each methodology in
each criteria. For examples, the ratings will be assigned as follows:
-
1: Does a very poor job in this
section
-
2: Does an inadequate job in this section
-
3: Does an acceptable job in this
section
-
4: Does a very good job in this
section
The
criteria and ratings are summarized in the table below:
Ratings
|
||||
Criteria
|
Zachman
|
TOGAF
|
FEA
|
Gartner
|
Taxonomy
completeness
|
4
|
2
|
2
|
1
|
Process
completeness
|
1
|
4
|
2
|
3
|
Reference-model
guidance
|
1
|
3
|
4
|
1
|
Practice
guidance
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
4
|
Maturity
model
|
1
|
1
|
3
|
2
|
Business
focus
|
1
|
2
|
1
|
4
|
Governance
guidance
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
3
|
Partitioning
guidance
|
1
|
2
|
4
|
3
|
Prescriptive
catalog
|
1
|
2
|
4
|
2
|
Vendor
neutrality
|
2
|
4
|
3
|
1
|
Information
availability
|
2
|
4
|
2
|
1
|
Time
to value
|
1
|
3
|
1
|
4
|
Table.
Criteria and ratings for each methodology
The table above shows that none of the enterprise-architecture methodologies is really complete. Each has its strengths and weaknesses.
In
order to choose an appropriate methodology, companies can follow these steps:
- Go through the rows (criteria) in the table, eliminating any that they feel are not important to their organization.
- Add any additional rows (criteria) that are important to them, and rate each of the methodologies in that area.
- Change any of ratings above with which they disagree.
At
the end of this task, they should have a good idea about the strengths and
weaknesses of each methodology with respect to their enterprise's needs, then
decide a suitable methodology. It is also important to find an EA consultant
who specializes in helping enterprises implement that methodology.
For many organizations, the best
choice is all of these methodologies, blended together in a way that works well
within that organization's constraints.
With that way, they create their own enterprise-architectural methodology
consisting of bits and pieces of each of the methodologies that provide the
highest value in their specific areas of concern.
References:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb466232.aspx
Lecture note – Week 6