Avolution sat down for a panel discussion with three seasoned industry professionals to get their thoughts on the successful Enterprise Architect\u2019s playbook. David Hornford is a Partner at Conexiam who has worked in a variety of industries and formerly served as the Chair of the Open Group. Christine Stephenson is a Consultant at Penrod Consulting who has managed many successful business units and has special expertise in strategy and IT management. Darryl Carr is editor of the Enterprise Architecture Professional Journal and a Consulting Enterprise Architect at JourneyOne with over 30 years of experience specializing solution architecture and enterprise architecture.<\/p>\n
While technical expertise can be helpful, soft skills are often what set a star Enterprise Architect apart. <\/em><\/p>\n According to the panelists, collaboration<\/strong> is a key skill among high-performing Architects \u2013 knowing which experts to bring in at what time allows you to gain a complete view of the organization. \u201cThe skill of collaborating and knowing how to form an answer rather than having the background or experience to state the answer is an absolute critical requirement for the job\u201d says Hornford.<\/p>\n According to Carr, empathy<\/strong> is another important skill to have. Being able to understand the concerns of your organization\u2019s stakeholders helps you to tailor solutions and ensure you\u2019re making meaningful changes. Critical thinking<\/strong> is also necessary to analyze and understand the problems your organization is facing.<\/p>\n Putting these skills into practice requires an open dialogue<\/strong> within your organization. Carr makes the point that as an Architect, you will need to question current ways of doing things: \u201cHaving the safety to be able to have those conversations and challenge the status quo and come up with ideas \u2026 is an important thing to encourage in organizations.\u201d<\/p>\n Enterprise Architects can\u2019t work in a vacuum. Building relationships across the organization allows you to understand how things are functioning at the employee level and affect change. <\/em><\/p>\n \u201cHappy employees are productive employees\u201d says Stephenson, \u201cso if we give them tools that are simple and enjoyable to work with then they\u2019re going to be extremely productive.\u201d<\/p>\n Stephenson also noted that the most important relationships she built in her career were with the HR Team<\/strong>. Working closely with them, she was able to make changes that improved employee wellbeing and demonstrated the value Enterprise Architecture can bring to an organization.<\/p>\n Hornford noted that working closely with business operations<\/strong> is the best way to zero in on where change is taking place in the organization. Carr argues that a successful Architect should be working to build relationships with everyone in the organization, as that can provide them with the \u00a0viewpoints from which to analyze problem areas.<\/p>\n With numerous frameworks available to Architects, which are most useful in 2022? <\/em><\/p>\n The panelists agree that while frameworks are beneficial, they are only one element of successful Enterprise Architecture.<\/p>\n \u201cOrganizations are meant to be using these frameworks as references\u201d says Stephenson, \u201cthey are not the prescription of how you do enterprise architecture.\u201d<\/p>\n Whether you are using an broad framework like TOGAF<\/a> or Zachman, an industry-specific framework like BIAN<\/a> or DODAF, or a domain-specific framework like SABSA for security, you should think about your organization\u2019s needs and the problems you are trying to solve. With the right framework, architects can understand problems and implement solutions faster.<\/p>\n In addition, architects can also supplement their practice with other solution development or change management frameworks such as PESTLE and Business Model Canvas<\/a>\u00a0that are not developed specifically for enterprise architecture.<\/p>\nImportant Relationships to Build as an Architect<\/h2>\n
Enterprise and Business Architecture Frameworks<\/h2>\n
To watch the panel discussion in full, watch below:<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n