Enterprise Architecture Tools
Good enough Point of View
Behzad Andishmand
SWEAN 14 : 2010-05-07
Content

First , some definitions and questions
 How to select an EA tool
 Quick comparision of some EA tools
 Lessons learned
 More information
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FIRST, SOME DEFINITIONS AND
QUESTIONS
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Football
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Football
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Good enough definition of EA
Enterprise Architecture is
the art of making sure that
the right people do
the right things in
the right place at
the right time!
How?
Why?
Who?
What?
Where?
When?
Question 1:
Which one of these do You
cover in the answers
that your EA work provides?
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Different usage of the information, from perspectives of different
stakeholders, is a challenge for the EA repository.
Question 2a: What is the focus area of your EA work?
Question 2b: Who are your stakeholders?
Question 2c: What information do you deliver to them?
Question 2d: What information do n’t you/them have?
Question 2e: Where do you find/create all that information?
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Question 3: In which areas do you have the most current/reliable information about
how your company’s EA looks like and performs in reality?
Scope definition
Principles
&
Guidelines
Business definition
Functions/
Services
Processes
More
(if needed)
Stakeholdes
Lifecycle definition
Goals
Information
definitions
Measurement
points
Locations
Hand-over,
Operation &
Maintenance
Vision
To-Be
Architecture
Architecture
Scenarios
Needs &
Concerns
Development
& Test
Component definition
As-Is
Architecture
As-Is definition
Functional
Requirements
NonFunctional
Requirements
Scenario definition
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Architecture definition
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Question 4
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Assuming that your EA work:
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Is quite successful :
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You have good enough information about what you need to know
And You are able to provide good enough information for your
stakeholders,
then what is wrong with the tools that you already use?
Or is not as successful as it should be or perhaps it is in the
beginning phase and you still don’t know if it will succeed:

then what is wrong with the tools that you already use?
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HOW TO SELECT AN EA TOOL
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Gartner says

It is a view of the
market as a
whole.
 Best EA tool for a
given organization
might well be
outside of the
Leaders quadrant.
 Often, niche
problems reuire
niche solutions.
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How to select a tool that is better than what
you already have:
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Decide which areas are in focus of the EA work
Check evaluation guides (links available in ”More information”)
Create customized checklist from above
Evaluate the existing tool(s) according to the checklist
Evaluate the selected EA tools according to the checklist
Decide which EA tool to go on with
Plan and define the scope of a Proof-of-Concept
Perform a Proof-of-Concept
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Through a minor (or preferably none) customization of the tool’s repository meta model and
And a quick evaluation of integration with your current repository, documentation, communication
and reporting tool(s)
Analyze, define and report the findings and the short-term implementation roadmap
And when the tool is in place:

Implement a real-life pilot (from a real-life stakeholder’s perspective)
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
Analyze and make the adequate adjustments to the implementation roadmap
Follow the implementation roadmap, stepwise and with the adjustments due to your own (which
should be equal to your stakeholders) prioritizations
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Areas in focus of the EA work
Governance
design, development & management
Integrated
Application portfolio landscape
design, development & management
Data landscape
design, development & management
Infrastructure landscape
design, development & management
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Secured
Business process landscape
design, development & management
COMPARISION OF SOME
EA TOOLS
The evaluation was done according to a customized checklist based on
the evaluation area definitions and questions in this questionnaire
provided by Institute For Enterprise Architecture Developments.
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Definitions
Evaluation
area
Expected
Minimum
results
Evaluated
Tool’s
results
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ARIS (IDS Scheer)
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System Architect (IBM)
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Troux Transformation Platform (Troux Techn.)
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Qualiware (Qualiware)
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Enterprise Architect (Sparx systems)
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LESSONS LEARNED
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Lessons learned

If you can manage your EA approach by using the tools that
you already have, then you will be able to get it done even
with an EA tool
Documentation & Repository tools
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Analysis & Design tools
One tool does not do it all for all stakeholders
Prioritize and decide what and for whom and
in which tool
”A fool with a tool is still a fool”
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Reporting & Communication tools
More lessons learned
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Even if an EA tool will improve the process and increase the quality of
your work with EA, they usually slow it down a bit at the beginning. It is
recommended to avoid to start your EA initiative by bringing in an EA
tool at the same time.
An EA tool implementation is not different from other tools
implementations. Start small and deliver results that your stakeholders
can use in their day-to-day work from day 1.
Automated information gathering and distribution is a key success factor
for the EA repository.
My personal opinion is still that most EA tools are:
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Really good for As-Is and To-be documentations, when it does not fit into
some Excel sheets
Quite helpful for communication of your EA work
As good as Excel and other Office tools for simple but yet useful analysis
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MORE INFORMATION
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More information

EA tool selection criteria (link)
 Togaf : Tools for Architecture Development (link)
 Applicable standards for tools selection:
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Reports:
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IEEE Std 1209-1992
ISO 14102
Gartner: Magic Quadrant for Enterprise Architecture Tools
Forrester Research: EA Tools and IT Planning
Open source alternatives:
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The Essential Project (link)
Iteraplan (link)
And if your EA work is focused on providing a repository for your
(customizable) Togaf 9.0 methodology: Eclipse Process Framework (link)
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Thank You
Copyright:
GAME
(Good
enough Architecture
Architecture Methodology)
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– Good
enough
MEthodology
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