How to activate the important Enterprise Architecture function
In today’s digital world, Enterprise Architecture is an integral part of technological leadership. Yet often, Enterprise Architecture functions struggle to achieve their potential and fulfil their role as a strategic enabler. So how can CIOs and Enterprise Architecture leaders turn the tide? Ghassan Dhane from Elm shares his vision.
In organizations across industries, a common story unfolds. It begins with the recognition that strategic, enterprise-wide architecture governance is needed. Investments are made – teams are assembled, tools are purchased, and high-level roadmaps are created. There’s initial enthusiasm and executive support.
Yet months later, the Enterprise Architecture (EA) function finds itself struggling to deliver tangible value. The team operates in isolation, disconnected from critical decision processes. Their carefully crafted standards are routinely bypassed. Their roadmaps quickly become outdated. The expensive tools sit largely unused. What was envisioned as a strategic enabler has become a theoretical exercise with limited practical impact.
This is the story of the dormant EA function – technically present but practically ineffective.
For leaders, it is key that they change the Enterprise Architecture narrative in their organization – from a dormant capability to an activated, value-generating function embedded in the organization’s decision fabric. Doing so demands a methodical approach that addresses fundamental barriers to EA effectiveness. It requires moving beyond the theoretical to create a practical, integrated capability that delivers continuous value.
The Challenges
Analysis of Enterprise Architecture functions across industries reveals three primary barriers to activation:
1. Governance Barriers
Challenge: EA teams operate in organizational silos with no formal integration in project lifecycle
- EA excluded from critical processes including RFPs, proposals, and solution design reviews
- No EA representation in key IT committees (Change Management, Demand Management, etc.)
- Architecture decisions made without EA input, creating downstream integration challenges
- Lack of formal checkpoints where EA approval is required before proceeding
2. Operational Barriers
Challenge: EA lacks structured planning and continuous improvement mechanisms
- Reactive versus Strategic Planning: EA operates reactively without a structured operational plan, responding to immediate demands rather than working from a strategic operational plan.
- Roadmap Obsolescence: Initial EA roadmaps quickly become outdated due to the absence of a systematic refresh process, diminishing their relevance and value
- Missing Scanning Mechanism: EA lacks a proactive approach to continuously scan the organization for new improvement opportunities that should influence architectural direction
- Resource Misallocation: Time and effort are consumed by manual, administrative tasks rather than high-value strategic activities, preventing EA from delivering meaningful impact
3. Capability barriers
Challenge: EA teams lack the essential capabilities to function as architecture solution guardians
- Technical Advisory Deficit: Organizations expect EA to be the definitive technical SME, but teams lack deep domain expertise across critical technology areas to provide authoritative guidance
- Architecture Guardian Gap: EA struggles to fulfill its core function of evaluating and validating solution architectures due to insufficient technical expertise and credibility
- Tool Underutilization: Significant investments in EA tools remain unused or underutilized, limiting the team's ability to model, document, and communicate architecture effectively
- Manual Methodology: Automation opportunities remain unexplored, with EA continuing to use manual, labor-intensive approaches that reduce time available for high-value advisory work
A Framework for Activation
A three-step framework for activating the Enterprise Architecture function.
1. Building the Foundation: Capability Development
Without technical credibility and capability, EA efforts in governance and operations will fail. Technical expertise is the foundation upon which all other EA activities must be built, as stakeholders expect EA to be the definitive solution architecture authority and the critical bridge between business strategy and IT execution.
The journey begins with building a balanced architecture capability. While EA is already mature in understanding business processes and customer journeys, organizations must complement this by hiring experts with deep domain knowledge in critical technical architecture areas (Application, Data, Technology and Cybersecurity) who bring proven implementation experience. With this comprehensive team in place, they conduct skills assessments and develop existing talent through targeted upskilling programs and architecture excellence centers that bridge business needs with technical solutions.
Simultaneously, they activate their EA tools by auditing current utilization, developing focused use cases, and segmenting the organization into distinct domains. They build stakeholder-focused reports and implement training programs that demonstrate tangible value, establishing the technical foundation upon which all other EA activities will build.
2. Establishing Presence: Governance Integration
Building on capabilities: With technical credibility established, EA can now meaningfully engage in governance. The technical expertise developed in the first phase provides the foundation for EA to add value in decision processes and committees, ensuring their input will be respected and adopted. EA secures formal representation in vital committees like Change Management and Demand Management. They map critical organizational processes and embed EA checkpoints at key decision points, implementing a stage-gate model that requires architectural sign-off.
EA becomes embedded directly in ITSM tool workflows as a formal approval gate with automated notifications, creating digital integration between EA tools and enterprise platforms (ITSM tool, Internal Portal, etc.). A comprehensive governance framework with clear roles and RACI matrices eliminates ambiguity about architectural decision-making, transforming EA from an isolated function to an integrated part of organizational governance.
3. Operationalizing Value: Structured Iteration
With technical credibility and governance integration established, EA can now implement a structured operational approach. The cornerstone of this approach is segmenting the organization into distinct domains for focused architectural analysis. This segmentation strategy breaks down the complex enterprise landscape into manageable areas, allowing EA to conduct deeper, more meaningful assessments than would be possible with broad enterprise-wide scanning.
Using this segmented approach, EA develops an operational plan (based on iteration) to systematically examine each domain in sequence. This creates a continuous cycle of discovery and refinement, ensuring all areas receive focused attention over time.
To execute this strategy effectively, EA establishes cross-functional squad teams that pair EA specialists with representatives from business and IT departments relevant to each domain. These collaborative squads combine architectural expertise with domain-specific knowledge, creating joint ownership of architectural outcomes and accelerating implementation.
Within each segment, EA squads conduct regular discovery processes to identify improvement opportunities that might be missed in higher-level assessments. This granular analysis generates insights that directly inform the operational plan and architecture roadmap. The squad model ensures that architectural direction incorporates departmental realities while also helping departments understand architectural considerations.
This segmentation-based operational approach with embedded cross-functional squads enables EA to maintain continuously relevant roadmaps through systematic, focused examination of the organization’s architecture landscape, transforming EA from a periodic planning function into a continuous value-creation engine deeply integrated with the departments it serves.
Conclusion: From Activation to Strategic Partnership
Activating the Enterprise Architecture function requires systematically addressing the governance, operational, and capability barriers that prevent EA from delivering its full value. The key insight is that EA must be integrated throughout the entire project lifecycle, with formal representation in critical organizational processes and committees.
Successfully activated EA functions transform from isolated technical advisors to strategic enablers embedded in the organization’s decision fabric. By establishing formal governance mechanisms, developing structured operational capabilities, and building robust technical expertise, organizations can elevate EA from a theoretical function to a practical, value-generating capability.
The journey doesn't end with activation – once the EA function is integrated into organizational processes, the focus shifts to continual refinement and expansion of influence. Regularly assess EA maturity, gather stakeholder feedback, and evolve the approach to ensure the Enterprise Architecture function remains a vital, strategic asset to the organization.
