Architect Roles and Relationship with EA

During the IASA World Summit in New York City last week, George and I were asked to speak about the different levels of architecture and the roles of the architects that work in those levels. The presentation is below. Slide 18 seemed to generate the most discussion with the participants. Remember that we are not talking about individuals or titles, we are talking about roles. Many individuals may fill more than one role, and one role may be filled by many individuals, regardless of title. All of the roles need to be filled, and in more mature organizations, the Architecture community grows and there may be multiple people in each individual role, with the coordination and collaboration across all levels.

Are all of these roles filled in your organization?

Reminder – Join us at IASA World Summit NY for “Variations on the Architecture Theme”

In a Keynote Presentation at the upcoming IASA World Summit 2010, September 22-24 in New York, Tim Westbrock and George Paras will be sharing ideas and leading a discussion on the dynamics that exist between the roles of Solutions, IT, and Enterprise Architects, what they mean to your enterprise, and what they mean to practitioners and IT leaders.  We hope you can join us.

Abstract: Most organizations that claim to be practicing “enterprise” architecture are really just doing “IT” architecture (ITA), and many of those are primarily focused on “solution” architecture.  If they are all “architecture”, do the distinctions matter?  Absolutely! And all these variations of “architecture” are important.  Our research and client observations reveal that most organizations do not have clarity on how to leverage these roles or even how to set expectations and measure their contributions.  For an organization to extract the highest value from architecture, and for the practitioners to get the most satisfaction and rewards for their work, it is critical that the stakeholders understand the differences.  It is also imperative that the organization learn that all these roles must exist and that they must work together to achieve the organization’s objectives.         

Topics will include:

• The key characteristics of EA, ITA and Solutions Architect roles and practices
• Leveraging your Solutions Architecture and ITA work to move up to holistic EA – preparing yourself for your next leap
• Moving from the Traditional to the Transformational View of EA to lead true business transformation
• Getting Started with Business Architecture and Strategic Capabilities Analysis as part of EA
• Tips on what to do if your organization does not yet have an EA or ITA practice
• The personal skills required for each role, and how to move from one to another

If you’d like to contact us and arrange a time to meet at the event, please us the form below:

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Variations on the Architecture Theme: Solutions, IT and Enterprise Architectures – IASA World Summit 2010 New York

In a Keynote Presentation at the upcoming IASA World Summit 2010, September 22-24 in New York, Tim Westbrock and George Paras will be sharing ideas and leading a discussion on the dynamics that exist between the roles of Solutions, IT, and Enterprise Architects, what they mean to your enterprise, and what they mean to practitioners and IT leaders.  We hope you can join us.

Abstract: Most organizations that claim to be practicing “enterprise” architecture are really just doing “IT” architecture (ITA), and many of those are primarily focused on “solution” architecture.  If they are all “architecture”, do the distinctions matter?  Absolutely! And all these variations of “architecture” are important.  Our research and client observations reveal that most organizations do not have clarity on how to leverage these roles or even how to set expectations and measure their contributions.  For an organization to extract the highest value from architecture, and for the practitioners to get the most satisfaction and rewards for their work, it is critical that the stakeholders understand the differences.  It is also imperative that the organization learn that all these roles must exist and that they must work together to achieve the organization’s objectives.         

Topics will include:

• The key characteristics of EA, ITA and Solutions Architect roles and practices
• Leveraging your Solutions Architecture and ITA work to move up to holistic EA – preparing yourself for your next leap
• Moving from the Traditional to the Transformational View of EA to lead true business transformation
• Getting Started with Business Architecture and Strategic Capabilities Analysis as part of EA
• Tips on what to do if your organization does not yet have an EA or ITA practice
• The personal skills required for each role, and how to move from one to another