Light Enterprise Architecture

1
Light Enterprise Architecture

• by
• John Chi-Zong Wu
• peaitce_at_yahoo.com
• www.liteea.com

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It is futile to design Enterprise blueprint

• EA was initiated to overcome the challenge of
  silos system via the engineering of reuse and
  consolidation.
• However, inherited from silo system culture, EA
  is better known as enterprise wide solution
  architecture blueprint.
• It requires significant investment of time and
  resources for large organization with resources .
  
• The enterprise blueprint become obsolete before
  ink dry because Enterprise is organic.
• EA is an emerging paradigm rather than large
  scale solution architecture effort.

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Light EA on Enterprise primitives

• Light EA is a light approach to focus on
  enterprise primitives by learning experiences of
  the others.
• Enterprise primitives are the common knowledge
  infrastructure which is relatively static.
• Parallel to Industry direction on SOA,
  virtualization and cloud computing
• In John Zachman' words Enterprise Architecture
  is the set of primitive, descriptive artifacts
  that constitute the knowledge infrastructure of
  the Enterprise.

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The purpose of EA

• Architecture is a mean rather an end, it is a
  journey instead of a destination. LEA serve as
• As a visible master plan, LEA see the unseen
  enterprise big picture and the master plan on how
  to take advantage of technology evolution.
• As a process, LEA is a approach to overcome the
  challenge of silo system which does not only
  occurred in IT but also in human resource,
  budgeting and security.
• As a stage for agile to dance.
• As a strategy, LEA guide the right strategic
  direction to predict and adopt change
  holistically.

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Basic Idea

• LEA establish a visible master plan and focus on
  establishing enterprise primitive to resolve silo
  system, in the mean time, it enable agility to
  adapt change. It close the business performance
  gaps with segment architecture and solution
  architecture.

Enterprise Master Plan
Business Performance Gap analysis
Determine Area of Under performance
Segment Architecture
Solution Architecture
Learning Experience of others
Close Business Performance Gap analysis
Architect Enterprise Primitives
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Light EA is not a big bang

• Light EA is not a big bang approach to design the
  Enterprise blueprint, because it is futile under
  an organic enterprise environment. Instead, it
  takes the following three level approach.
• The master plan to see the unseen enterprise.
• The segment architecture as the architecture plan
  to adapt change.
• The solution architecture to address a specific
  requirement.

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Strategy to adapt change

• LEA invest on static master plan and enterprise
  primitives to adapt change.
• Although enterprise change constantly, there are
  some area change rapidly and some change
  gradually similar to water flow in a channel.
• Solution architecture is unique to a set
  specific requirements at a specific time.
• Master plan and enterprise primitive are
  relatively static.

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Paradigm Shift

• The EA professional need a paradigm shift to
  understand EA.
• It is a hard way to understand EA from the top
  down approach which created silo system to start
  with.
• EA is a paradigm shift from the vertical
  architecture to cross cutting architecture in
  horizontal direction.
• It is also step into the paradigm of holism from
  the ontology of hierarchical being.

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Definition

• Enterprise primitives Enterprise primitives
  which is derived from enterprise reuse pattern
  are the build blocks of the enterprise.
• Enterprise topology The visual presentation of
  the unseen enterprise big picture where every one
  in the enterprise can find a place for
  themselves.
• Alignment Architecture Facilitate business
  community to take advantage of technology
  evolution
• Agility architecture A cross cut architecture
  approach for the engineering of reuse,
  consolidation and interoperability to derive the
  enterprise primitives.
• Coherence Architecture To plan right
  architecture for the right people on the right
  place at the right time.

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Principles

• EA is the glue not the guru.
• Learning experience of the others.
• Focus on EA as a set of enterprise primitives.
• Human centric.
• Enterprise is organic.
• Holistic.
• Agility to adapt change.
• Serve both business and engineering community.
• Facilitate collaboration and reconciliation.
• For large and small organization.

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Strategy

• See the unseen enterprise big picture with
  collaboration and reconciliation.
• Learn the right experiences of the other via
  reference models.
• Establish the enterprise primitives instead of
  bluepirnt.
• Resolve silo system and enable agility via the
  engineering of reuse, consolidation and
  interoperation.
• A three way approach
• Alignment via vertical way.
• Agility via horizontal way.
• Coherence in circular way.

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Light EA model
Adapting Change coherently

• Enterprise is organic.
• Business architecture to see the unseen
  Enterprise big picture.
• Light EA resolve silo systems and adapting change
  via
• Vertical Alignment architecture.
• Horizontal Agility Architecture.
• Circular Coherence Architecture.

Enterprise Business Architecture
References
Reuse
Consolidation
Standardization
Compliance
Align Business Processes
Align Information Technologies
Align Human Resources
Align Budget
Align Security
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The Light EA in perspective

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Light EA Method
Business Arch.
Coherence Architecture
Enterprise Topology
Segment Scope
Alignment Arch.
Segment Architecture
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The visible master plan

• LEA establish visible enterprise master plan to
  see the unseen enterprise big picture.
• The enterprise topology
• The high level business architecture
• The alignment architecture
• Learning experience of the others for the same
  line of business and technology category.

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The Agility Architecture

• Agility architecture design the enterprise
  primitives to resolve silo system and enable
  agility.
• It is a cross cutting architecture approach in
  horizontal direction.
• Agility architecture via
• Engineering of reuse and consolidation.
• Governance and compliance.
• The out come to establish the enterprise
  knowledge infrastructure.

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The Coherence Architecture

• Coherence Architecture is the just in time and
  just right architecture approach.
• It is inspired by ancient holistic philosophy.
• Segment Architecture is the EA on demand.
• Enterprise primitives enable the simplicity and
  agility.
• Empower by the wisdom of seeing the whole and
  harness with the knowledge of enterprise
  patterns, it serve well to support enterprise
  vision and strategic planning.

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The Coherence Architecture

• Coherence model illustrate the concept of right
  architecture for the right people on the right
  place at the right time during the change.
• It leverage on ancient Chinese five elements (Wu
  Xing) model with the notional primitives of
  Metal, Wood, Water Fire and Earth.
• The model serve as a strategic and diagnosis tool
  on the complex system
• Politics.
• Business.
• Medicine
• Society.
• Martial Art.

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Organic addition to Zachman Framework

• Both the Zachman framework and the Coherent
  framework serve as a thinking tool which
  complementary to each other.
• The Zachman framework is a thinking tool for the
  enterprise primitives.
• The Coherent framework add organic consideration.

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Light EA roadmap
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LEA Time Line
Planning
LEA see the whole and conduct the holistic
analysis at the Initial EA effort and
establish the common building blocks to enable
agility analyze business performance gap and
initiate segment architecture to close business
performance gap via transition planning and
modernization. It is a continuous architecture
effort as shown in the following loop.
Enterprise Topology
High level Business Architecture
Notional Target Architecture
Agility Architecture
Business Performance Gap
Segment Architecture
Transition plan
Organization should be able to establish the
initial EA in the first years
Year 1
Modernization
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The EA Discipline

• Enterprise architect serve a glue for all the
  parts to function together rather a guru to know
  all.
• It consist of a specific set of discipline to
  distinguish from the other established paradigms.
  
• See the unseen enterprise big picture.
• Facilitate collaboration and reconciliation
• The engineering of reuse, consolidation and
  interoperability.
• The discipline to learn the right experience of
  the others.
• Stream line governance and compliance processes.
• Support strategic planning.