{"id":6556,"date":"2019-07-03T11:29:00","date_gmt":"2019-07-03T10:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.avolutionsoftware.com\/?p=6556"},"modified":"2023-05-25T23:26:21","modified_gmt":"2023-05-25T22:26:21","slug":"diagram-driven-data-driven-new-enterprise-architecture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.avolutionsoftware.com\/news\/diagram-driven-data-driven-new-enterprise-architecture\/","title":{"rendered":"Diagram-Driven & Data-Driven Enterprise Architecture"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Art and Science of Architecture<\/h4>\n

In the movie Moneyball, <\/em>Brad Pitt\u2019s character breaks with baseball convention by relying on data science instead of traditional scouting to choose a team he hopes will stop the Oakland A\u2019s losing streak.<\/span><\/p>\n

His analysts use probability to see past biases and identify both champions and affordable players that everyone else has overlooked.<\/p>\n

As enterprise architects we\u2019ve always been comfortable with data. But the addition of integrations and APIs has meant huge leaps in the volume <\/em>of data we can use to understand operational and technical infrastructure and guide decisions.<\/p>\n

The way we store data also improved our ability to access and analyze it: We\u2019ve written before about the benefits of graph databases<\/a> in managing large data volumes.<\/p>\n

Add to this new enterprise architecture analytic techniques<\/a> and interactive data visualizations. Enterprise architecture is quickly becoming, and needs to be, data-driven.<\/p>\n

What of diagrams then, the \u201cart\u201d of enterprise architecture. Are they now old-school?<\/p>\n

Enterprise architecture models, diagrams, designs, process models, flowcharts<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most business strategist use diagrams or visual models to do design.<\/p>\n

The first thing people reach for when planning, or conceptualizing a new line of business is not a spreadsheet: it\u2019s a whiteboard and a marker.<\/p>\n

And later they might \u201cdraw\u201d plans in PowerPoint, Visio or another drawing tool with a canvas-and-stencil functionality.<\/p>\n

Diagrams and visual sketches help us to communicate designs. But they also help architects to do<\/em> design, to think through <\/em>a design, explore interdependencies visually, and create better designs \u2013 what architects call \u201cfuture-states\u201d.<\/p>\n

Industry frameworks<\/strong><\/p>\n

Used smartly, business reference models can speed and orient planning, allowing a team to draw on existing industry best practice.<\/p>\n

For a telecoms company the precise layout of the eTOM<\/a> model is valuable groundwork.<\/p>\n

For an insurance company the ACORD layout is a familiar reference-point. For a bank or insurance company, the BIAN<\/a> (Banking Industry Architecture Network) layout is a familiar reference point.<\/p>\n

But if a diagram isn\u2019t interactive, dynamic and connected to fresh, real-time data, there is a real risk it will lose relevance.<\/p>\n

Strategy & Execution<\/strong><\/p>\n

The value of enterprise architecture always lies in capturing strategy and guiding execution against defined business outcomes, not in the style.<\/p>\n

Architects need to take the pulse of different facets of each line of business, and make decisions to rebuild parts of it whilst still ensuring it functions<\/em>. A challenge similar to fixing the suspension of the car whilst it\u2019s still travelling beneath you.<\/p>\n

To do this really well you\u2019ll want plenty of operational data, and you\u2019ll want analytics for calculating what impact external forces and internal changes will have, and diagnostics for keeping a multitude of projects happily on track.<\/p>\n

Diagram-driven architecture works best when diagrams are:<\/strong><\/p>\n