So now that we have the basics of understanding and implementing an EA, how do we profit from it? that's the subject of Chapter 5 in the Ross text. There are many benefits of EA we can focus on: reduced IT costs, increased IT responsiveness, improved risk management, and increased managerial satisfaction to name a few.
As far as reduced IT costs, there are multiple avenues for improvement. IT operations units includes costs of services, i.e. laptop provisions, the help desk, access to data, email, network capability, etc. But there are also maintenance costs to consider. This is the cost of making changes to existing infrastructure as business needs change. (Ross 93-94) IT can also become much more responsive by defining an EA. For starters, business leaders often have less varied technology from in a standardized environment, and so spend less time addressing technical issues. This frees up time for other activities. (Ross 96).
As IT is cleaned, companies generally see improved risk management. First, there is a reduced business risk as systems are up and running more consistently and frequently, supporting business needs. IT also sees an increased ability to minimize losses during events outside their control, such as outages. Lastly, and probably most importantly, security breaches can be kept to a minimum. (Ross 97).
As the increased value of IT becomes readily more apparent, management can adapt practices to realize this value and turn it into bottom line profit. Managerial practices such as case analyses or project methodology typically help to create value from business silos. IT steering committees or a formal infrastructure renewal process will help streamline basic processes. The last stage, though, often involves direct interaction with business leaders: process owners, business leaderships, etc. (Ross104-107).
Agreed, but the trick is getting past your last point, where business leader interaction happens. There always seems to be a communication breakdown and misconceptions on why a new business solution has to meet the existing architecture.
ReplyDeleteI run into the same problem of silo-ing in my organization as well. Different units seem to have different approaches and different technology solutions to similar problems. Also, some units have unique technological requirements, and are unable to manage their own requirements. Buy-in from management is crucial to support EA efforts. Though unfortunate, I agree it's a process to gain acceptance from business leaders for EA, with business leader acceptance coming at the end of the process, not the beginning. I think a results-focused approach to EA would help explain and prove the process to business leaders, as a more traditional approach is much more difficult to explain.
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