Enterprise Architecture as a Service: and the band plays on
“An enterprise architect is a lot like an orchestra conductor. They have to make sure that every instrument plays its part at the right time.” A nice metaphor, for sure. But in a fast-changing world, the music never actually stops. Which is why we’re introducing Enterprise Architecture as a Service: a long-term, always-on approach to aligning business and IT.
Enterprise architecture is essential to aligning business and IT and leads to more efficient planning and resilience to change. It also generally saves time, and results in a more effective use of budgets. “To generate real value, it needs to be a long-term commitment,” Frederik-Jan continues. “Especially now that IT has evolved from purely operational support to being a strategic partner for many businesses.”
Two EA trajectories
Because the scope of EA is, by definition, very broad, delaware proposes two different models:
- Project-based: The enterprise architects become part of the customer’s internal project team, offering strategic advice, assisting with implementation, coordinating internal and external partners, monitoring progress and results, etc.
- General EA: The enterprise architects function as a strategic sparring partner and sounding board to the CIO, offering ad hoc advice and support.
Why choose delaware?
“Historically, we’re a technical implementation partner,” says Frederik-Jan. “Over time, we’ve evolved to include more strategic approaches as well. As a result of this evolution, we can boast the practical and technical expertise many purely strategic partners are lacking. In addition, we are fundamentally vendor agnostic. That means that, as enterprise architects, we’re always looking for what works best for the client. That means we always aim to transcend the usual sales talk, and take the side of the customer.”