Enterprise Architecture: An Overview of Concepts and Importance

This report provides a comprehensive overview of enterprise architecture (EA), defining it as a practice for analyzing, designing, planning, and implementing enterprise strategies. It highlights the importance of EA across various business departments, including IT, finance, HR, and project management, and draws a parallel between EA and city planning to illustrate its role in guiding organizational development. The report outlines the benefits of EA, such as improving organizational design, standardizing processes, enhancing project management, and reducing IT complexity and risks. It also addresses key challenges in implementing EA, including vision and leadership, stakeholder buy-in, governance, and future-oriented thinking. Finally, the report suggests how Phoenix Logistics can utilize EA principles to improve its logistics operations, enhance information systems, and increase customer satisfaction through better e-commerce delivery services. Desklib offers a wealth of similar resources for students and researchers.

Running head: ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE
ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE
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Table of Contents
Explanation of EA......................................................................................................................2
Importance of EA.......................................................................................................................2
Similarity of EA to city planning...............................................................................................4
Benefits of EA............................................................................................................................5
Key challenges of EA.................................................................................................................6
Utilization of EA by Phoenix logistics.......................................................................................6
References..................................................................................................................................8

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Explanation of EA
Enterprise architecture, which is abbreviated as EA is referred to as a well defined
practice that is generally conducted for the analysis of an enterprise, along with the processes
of designing, planning as well as implementing with the utilization of a comprehensive
approach referring to all the times. This process has the primary objective of successfully
developing as well as executing the proposed strategy within an existing enterprise. The
processes existing within the enterprise architecture lies within the usage of the principles
existing within the field of architecture along with that of the practices taken in by the
organizations as a means of guidance [3]. The organizations adopt the necessary means of
guidance existing within the field of information, processes along with that of the changes
occurring within the technology, which are completely necessary for the execution of the
strategies.
The people practicing the principles related to that of the enterprise architecture are
commonly referred to as the enterprise architects. These architects are entrusted upon with
the responsibility of performing various types of analysis related to that of the business
structure as well as the processes that are more often taken into consideration from the
existing information to collect the primary objectives of the enterprise as stated by the
structure, which the organization follows [5]. The primary aims of an enterprise to be
achieved consists of the inclusion of effectiveness, agility, efficiency within the work
performed within the organization along with that of the continuity existing within the
business operations, which are complex.
Importance of EA
The importance of implementing the Enterprise Architecture within a specific
organization lies with that fact that all the related principles lead towards the benefits of

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various kinds to all of the existing business departments having played a major role within
every sector of the business field [1]. The importance of Enterprise Architecture within the
various fields of industry have been mentioned below in detail,
i) Information and Technology- approach of the Enterprise Architecture within the
specific departments of information and technology provides with a helping hand
towards the unification of the various processes that occurs within this field. The
principles of EA provision the applications with an allowance for the repetition of
the various process in a loop. Basically, the methods existing within the enterprise
architecture simplify all of the processes that take place within the field of
information and technology.
ii) Finance- as a reason of the introduction of the new regulations related to the
emerging software along with that of the updates can give rise to unexpected
situations of clashes [10]. The department working within the field of finance, is
specifically vulnerable of becoming a multi-layered as well as obscure towards the
creation of problems related to the existence of the new staffs along with the
method of making it a difficult situation for the board of directors.
iii) Human Resource- the method, which the EA takes into consideration regarding
the communication can help with the functioning of the HR departments working
within all of the business sector related organizations on a global level.
iv) Project management- Enterprise architecture fits in naturally within this field of
business because of the method by which it gets facilitated along with that of the
collaboration. Having a prime focus upon the practicalities as well as the pathway
following which the tasks are performed by all the various existing parties fitted
together, making a much easier move from that of a shared idea to that of the
processes, which are shared within the process related to that of production.

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Similarity of EA to city planning
City planning technically refers to the metaphor, which the architects can make use of
to have a better communication that is effective to the nature as well as the value of the
architecture by the related unseen behavior of the enterprise architecture relating towards the
concepts existing within the real world carrying a better understanding [8]. The success
related to that of the Enterprise Architecture shall be determined with the extent of the
corporate as well as the specific line of business managers having comprehended as well as
supporting along with the inclusion of enforcing the existing architecture.
The global companies belonging to the 21st century have been using as well as
implementing the methods related to that of city planning to put forward a definition of all the
processes along with that of the deliverables related to the program of architecture. The
model related to that of the city planning helps the stakeholders of the architecture to have a
better understanding of the role played by that of the architecture. Particularly, all the existing
companies play the prime focus upon the “building codes” that gives s definition of the
principles along with that of the guidelines related to that of the architecture. This also
provides the “building permits” that are easily granted with the change of initiatives deemed
by the compliant through the usage of the architecture process review [11]. According to the
recent findings, the companies provide with 20% of the issue related to the “building
permits” having a part of the review process related entirely to that of the architecture.
However, the approach placed forward by the city planning does not entirely imply
with that of the architecture. In fact, the model followed by the city planning can be related to
that of the META group’s enterprise architecture as a proposed method for the similar
building processes that need to be inherited.

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Benefits of EA
The benefits related to enterprise architecture have been achieved through the direct
as well as indirect contributions placed towards the goals of the organization [6]. Hence,
specifically the benefits placed forward by the implementation of the Enterprise Architecture
can be observed in the following fields,
i) Design of the organization- EA provides specific support within the areas that are
related to the design as well as the re-design of the structures existing within the
organization during the processes of mergers along with that of acquisitions as
well as general change taking place within the organization.
ii) Processes of the organizations and related standards- Enterprise Architecture helps
with the enforcement of discipline along with that of the standardization of all the
related processes belonging to that of business. This also enables the process
related to that foo consolidation, reusing as well as integration.
iii) Portfolio management of project- EA provides with a support towards the
decision-making of investments along with that of prioritizing the work.
iv) Project management- Enterprise architecture specifically aims towards the
enhancement of the collaboration along with the inclusion of communication
taking place within the project stakeholders and the team of the project [4]. In
addition to this, enterprise architecture also provides a contribution towards the
efficiency of the scoping related to that of the project.
v) System development- EA contributes towards the development of a specific
system.
vi) IT value- EA helps within the reduction of the operation costs related to that of the
system development.
vii) IT complexity- EA contributes towards the reduction of complexity.

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viii) IT risk management- Enterprise architecture contributes towards the reduction of
all the risks, which might act as a barrier within the projects getting implemented
in the field of information and technology.
Key challenges of EA
The specific challenges that are in general faced by the Enterprise Architecture have
been listed below [2]. These are,
i) Vision and Leadership- any of the Enterprise Architecture methods has to be
implemented in such a way that it results to the profits made by that specific
organization.
ii) Getting hold of the Buy in- this specifically refers to the buy in that need to be
absorbed from all of the stakeholders present within the business.
iii) Governance- specifically setting up of the processes related to that of the
governance starting from the initial phase to the linking of the vision for the
specific business organization.
iv) The Future First- there lies a specific need for the architecture of the enterprise
having kept the foremost future within the mindset of the organization
implementing the methods of architecture [9].
Utilization of EA by Phoenix logistics
There is a relying scope for the Phoenix logistics to implement all the principles
related to that of the Enterprise Architecture to have a common view of all the methods
providing a helping hand towards the better execution and working of the work that they
perform within the field related completely to that of logistics [12].
The phoenix logistics can provide better outputs to their customer dealing with that of
logistics with the implementation of better Information systems to keep the track of all the

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outgoing and incoming deliveries related entirely to that of the customers’ existing within the
market [7]. Having better information and IT systems can lend a hand towards the better
satisfaction of all the customer utilizing the E-commerce platform and getting their products
delivered right to their place by the Phoenix Logistics.

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References
[1] P., Hansen, and S., Hacks. Continuous delivery for enterprise architecture
maintenance. Full-scale Software Engineering/The Art of Software Testing, 56, 2017.
[2] K., Hinkelmann, A., Gerber, D., Karagiannis, B., Thoenssen, A., Van der Merwe and R.,
Woitsch. A new paradigm for the continuous alignment of business and IT: Combining
enterprise architecture modelling and enterprise ontology. Computers in Industry, 79, pp.77-
86, 2016.
[3] J., Lapalme, A., Gerber, A., Van der Merwe, J., Zachman, M., De Vries. and K.,
Hinkelmann,. Exploring the future of enterprise architecture: A Zachman
perspective. Computers in Industry, 79, pp.103-113, 2016.
[4] D.N., Chorafas. Enterprise architecture and new generation information systems. CRC
Press, 2016.
[5] E., Niemi and S., Pekkola,. Using enterprise architecture artefacts in an
organisation. Enterprise Information Systems, 11(3), pp.313-338, 2017.
[6] B.D., Rouhani, M.N.R., Mahrin, F., Nikpay, R.B., Ahmad and P., Nikfard. A systematic
literature review on Enterprise Architecture Implementation Methodologies. Information and
Software Technology, 62, pp.1-20, 2015.
[7] M., Lange, J., Mendling and J., Recker. An empirical analysis of the factors and measures
of Enterprise Architecture Management success. European Journal of Information
Systems, 25(5), pp.411-431, 2016.
[8] G., Shanks, M., Gloet, I.A., Someh, K., Frampton, and T., Tamm. Achieving benefits with
enterprise architecture. The Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 27(2), pp.139-156,
2018.

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[9] D.H., Olsen, and K., Trelsgård. Enterprise Architecture adoption challenges: An
exploratory case study of the Norwegian higher education sector. Procedia Computer
Science, 100, pp.804-811, 2016.
[10] D.D., Dang, and S., Pekkola. Systematic Literature Review on Enterprise Architecture in
the Public Sector. Electronic Journal of e-Government, 15(2), 2017.
[11] M., Dale. Re-Thinking the Challenges of Enterprise Architecture Implementation.
In Enterprise Information Systems and the Digitalization of Business Functions (pp. 205-
221). IGI Global, 2017.
[12] S., Kotusev, M., Singh, and I., Storey. Investigating the usage of enterprise architecture
artifacts, 2015.