Move the future

Västerås, Sweden, June 02, 2008 — Enterprise architecture, Zachmans Framework, Methodologies for Enterprise architecture and Enterprise architecture communication tools are amongst the nine most non disruptive business tools that will shape the business landscape over the next five years, according to research and advisory person Jörgen Dahlberg.

1. Enterprise architecture as a practice
2. Zachmans Framework envisaged as the periodic table of EA
3. Methodologies for Enterprise architecture, such as modaf, togaf and agileEA
4. Enterprise architecture communication tools, such byggplast, post-it notes, wiki, blog, portal, dashboard
5. Enterprise architecture repository and modeling tools such as aris, qualiware,
6. Enterprise architects
7. Other architect specialists such as information architects, technology architects and business architects…
8. The solidification of EA as a practice used to create configurable enterprises
9. The certification of people as enterprise architects by organizations such as universities, togaf, EACOE…

All the while Gartner insist on identifying the top ten most disruptive technologies, read more about that here http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=681107

I’ve been pondering this simple question “what do I do?”. Not the simple what do I do question, but the really hard what do I do with a super capital “I“. It’s so easy to throw out something saying I’m an enterprise architect, or I work in IT and information architecture or I map processes and strategy so I must be a business architect with an IT twist. Sure I hold certificates in the fields of IT-architecture and business architecture, I’ve served under good and bad leadership and I’ve created great and not so great architectures. But does all this put me in any special architect role and is this what I do.

Most of the time I function as a pathfinder, scouting out the best strategy, the most suitable method or a really great service. How does that tie in to being in the field of Enterprise architecture? Am I an architect or have I become an Internet native, a nomad roaming the fields of the web looking for greatness. It sure sounds more exciting being a pathfinder, an ea-nomad an internet native. Maybe I’ll get to put pathfinder on my next business card instead of enterprise architect.

Ugh!

Three little things to remember…

1. Practice the use of the six companions: Who, What, When, Where, Why and How.
2. Be sure to make use of them in the different perspectives of us all.
3. Don’t forget to ask your self the questions, regarding the work at hand.

Zachman did a great job on clarifying 1 and 2.

We see change is coming with the digital natives using mashups to manipulate the environment, social networks to connect with others, content communities to express themselves, blogs to remember who they are, wikis to educate themselves and others and instant messaging to communicate. Further down the aisle of time it will all go mobile and then we lose whatever traction we’ve got.

“Social Computing is not a fad. Nor is it something that will pass you or your company by. Gradually, Social Computing will impact almost every role, at every kind of company, in all parts of the world. Forrester Research, Social Computing - How Networks Erode Institutional Power, And What to Do About It”

Here is another article on the same issue: http://www.informationweek.com/shared/printableArticle.jhtml?articleID=201804743

We see this change is coming fast down the back of an aging workforce and managerial philosophies that erodes slower than the managers them selves.

Who

Digital natives and the rest of us.

When

Now and Zen.

Why

Evolution happens.

Where

Internet, Intranet, Xtranet, Younet, Themnet, Everynet

How

SOA is one part of the stew that will enable a company to transform it’s enterprise architecture into a  constantly moving window of opportunity.

What can be done about it

Leave the fortress and build huts instead which means in EA-speak “Think, act and breathe agile and lean EA”.

Far to often we find our selves in a situation where we simply don´t get things done. What can be done about it? How can we avoid falling in to the tar pit of nodo. I don´t know about you but I see three ways:

1. Don´t start things if you ain’t sure to finish it (aka pointing with the whole finger way)
2. Get someone else to do it (aka the management way) will not work if you have a problem with nodo in manangement ;-)
3. Just do it (aka the Zen way)

nodo=no doing.

In an article today at AdaptivePath Kate Discusses the Role of Design in Business with Nathan Shedroff. Specifically they address the topic of design-led innovation process. There is a trend today towards design-led innovation. I foresee a twitch in the architecture field when the emphasis on EA moves from documentation to strategy, then perhaps we will pick up the best pieces from the field of design.

http://www.adaptivepath.com/ideas/essays/archives/000920.php

That’s why I named my company “desiarch” short for design and architecture.

I just needed to get these things down so I can move on with todays work.

Super interesting statistics regarding the usage of social networking sites from an American perspective. I think it does give a peek into what happens in the world regardless of it being just the American statistics.

http://blog.compete.com/2008/03/07/top-social-networks-traffic-feb-2008/

Then Joining Dots has a post on the Web 3.0 issue and they cite the statistics from above. I have to read the post once more at least.

http://www.joiningdots.net/blog/2008/03/mobile-social-networks.html

Joining Dots linked to a wonderful post by Charlene Li, where she exposes here thoughts on web3.0 in an up and coming book.

http://blogs.forrester.com/charleneli/2008/03/the-future-of-s.html

In an interview Stephen Anderson Tells Todd About Implementing Visionary Ideas , “someone asked me about how to get other, less visionary stakeholders, to understand and embrace some of the ideas I was describing. My short answer was prototyping. As quickly as possible, in whatever form you choose, translate your concept into something visual that people can ‘see’ or experience”

It’s not that this has never been said before, it’s that we do need to remind our selves about it from time to time. Keeping things simple and prototype them will get you stakeholder buy in quicker than anything else.

The art of architecture #6 simply says: To make sure the success of an entreprise architecture effort one should strive to express the heart of it in a “one liner”.

Others have written about the importance of one liners, not in the common understanding of what EA is but from the stance of strategy. Remember that my stance on EA is an EA focused on strategy where descriptive activities is just one part of the whole effort.

Kenichi Ohmae wrote in his classical work The mind of the strategist, “Inability to articulate a strategy in a single incisive, natural-sounding sentence is a sure sign that there is something wrong in the strategy itself”. More recently W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne wrote in the now famous book Blue Ocean Strategy, “a good way to test the effectiveness and strength of a strategy is to look at whether it contains a strong and authentic tagline”.

In an article in Computer Sweden today, Ivar Jacobson the father of use-case wrote about being smart. In conclusion he wrote that “you don’t have to repeat the mistakes of others”.

I gave it some thought and of course you should try not to repeat the mistakes of others, but inevitably you’ll make some mistakes that others has made before you. The biggest problem in todays IT-driven business isn’t that we occasionally repeat others mistakes, it’s that we continue to upgrade the mistakes we are faced with. Thus creating one of two problems, either a highly complex environment or a monolithic inflexible structure. Worse we could create a highly complex monolithic structure. Remember that the mistakes we are faced with, might be the success of yesterdays heroes (the boss of today). So tread carefully on the marshland of change, but be swift when the sponsor is in and make the move without remorse.

Do you have samples of where the pattern of continuously upgrading mistakes has been at play, then comment this so we can learn.

Myself I’ve seen several such mistakes. One that comes to mind is an organization that installed a portal software as an organizational wide intranet. They where never able to capitalize on the capabilities of the software, mainly because lack of interest from division managers. They have decided to upgrade the software to the next generation, an even more complex product. Of course they will fail once again, since it is the same staff and the same managers, thinking the same thoughts. This is a perfect example of “continuously upgrading mistakes”.

Thank you Ivar for the spark of thought gave me on this Friday morning, now I’ll go and tear down the ceiling in my living room.