Enterprise Architecture Best Practices in Large Co PDF
Enterprise Architecture Best Practices in Large Co PDF
Enterprise Architecture Best Practices in Large Co PDF
Article
Enterprise Architecture Best Practices in
Large Corporations
Ibrahim Abunadi
College of Computer and Information Sciences, Prince Sultan University, Rafha Street,
Riyadh 11586, Saudi Arabia; iabunadi@psu.edu.sa
Received: 15 August 2019; Accepted: 20 September 2019; Published: 23 September 2019
Abstract: Enterprise architecture (EA) is an integrated strategy, business, and information systems
approach for analysis, governance, and information technology (IT) alignment. It is a comprehensive
blueprint that requires the careful planning, documentation, and analysis of all the operations of an
organization. Employing EA helps companies achieve strategic goals with the support of business
activities and information systems. However, some large corporations avoid EA frameworks and
methodologies owing to their implementation difficulties or the presence of conflicting frameworks
and business needs. The goal of this paper is to increase large organizations’ awareness of enterprise
architecture best practices (EABPs) and methods of EA framework implementation. Thus, this
research has developed an EABP capability matrix to measure companies’ capacities to implement
EABPs and provided lessons based on how 17 organizations implemented EABPs. Based on an
analytical literature review, the developed matrix includes eight critical EABPs categorized under four
themes: EA framework and methodology, strategic practices, business activities, and information
systems. As practical and theoretical contributions: (1) This inclusive approach was not found in the
EA literature as most past research focuses on only one of these themes. (2) The EA matrix can be
used as a measurement matrix research methodology to measure the extent to which cases adopt
EABPs, making it beneficial to EA researchers and practitioners. (3) EA practitioners can also use it to
practically determine and rectify the weak points of EABPs, thus taking advantage of EA frameworks.
The findings indicate that many large organizations implement EABPs as business-as-usual practices
without EA frameworks and methodologies. However, those that adopt an EA framework use
the open group architecture framework and rely heavily on enterprise resource planning in the
implementation of EABPs.
1. Introduction
Enterprise architecture (EA) promises great benefits to organizations that seek to improve their
strategies, optimize their business activities, and better utilize information technology (IT). Through
EA’s guiding principles, organizations can more easily achieve their goals and initiatives and implement
critical information systems [1,2]. EA-based business activities can work coherently toward strategic
aims and lead to better organizational outcomes [3]. IT resources can be tracked using EA repositories
and subsequently aligned with business activities to steer a business towards its goals [4]. EA
frameworks thus integrate strategies, business activities, and information systems by providing a
representation of current organizational capabilities and enabling desirable results.
Although EA is widely praised in the relevant literature, its implementation success rate remains
low [1,5–7]. EA’s difficult implementation is attributable to its need for complex maintenance and its
comprehensive coverage of all organizational areas. For successful implementation, EA requires the
continuous documentation and analysis of all activities and resources throughout the organization
while leading a given business to its desired strategic state [8,9].
Understanding organizations’ technological practices that are analogous to enterprise architecture
best practices (EABPs) is critical; this is the starting point at which organizations can begin successfully
implementing EA. Large organizations with greater EABP capabilities are more likely to incorporate EA
frameworks and methodologies [1,10–12]. EABPs are a set of activities that are conducted to enhance
an organization’s strategic fulfillment through business tactics and information analysis. Although
many technology-based business organizational practices (e.g., modeling business processes using
a software) could be placed under the umbrella of EA because it is a comprehensive blueprint for
organizations, certain horizontal (cross-sectional organizational practices) EABPs are essential in the
adequate functioning of EA frameworks and methodologies [13]; this paper focuses on those EABPs.
Horizontal EABPs serve an entire organization and have a strong impact on organizational success
rates in EA implementation. In this research, “EABP capability” is defined as the effectiveness with
which an organization can successfully apply the best practices of EA. Here, large private organizations
are focused on because their commercial nature and complexity demand a greater need to enact EA
frameworks and methodologies. In addition, this study emphasizes on horizontal EABPs, which are
significant in the complete implementation of EA because they are conducted throughout an enterprise.
In contrast, vertical practices (practices applied in one managerial unit or line of business) are outside
the scope of this study [6,8]. Various studies focusing on best practices in EA research, including
EA methodologies, strategic practices, business activities, and information systems practices, have
been conducted. However, little research has combined these aspects, particularly for horizontal
practices within large organizations. Implementing EABPs has many advantages, including directing
organizational efforts toward achieving specific strategic goals, unifying employees’ way of work,
creating the organizational backbone for integrating the use of business processes, and integrating the
organization using horizontal information systems [1,7,9,14,15]. Grounded on previous EA research, a
matrix has been developed and tested in this study to measure an organization’s capacity to utilize
horizontal EABPs. Using this EABP matrix, organizations would be able to determine the shortcomings
in their EABP implementation, leading to better decision-making for top and middle management.
Through multi-case study analysis, the EABPs within 17 large corporations have been examined. This
study investigates the following research questions: (1) What are the critical EABPs that are needed
for the successful implementation of EA? (2) How can EABP capabilities within organizations be
measured? (3) How are EABPs currently implemented in large organizations? Thus, this study will
contribute to the EA literature as follows:
1. Identify the critical horizontal EABPs for the successful implementation of EA.
2. Provide a matrix that can be used to measure the EA capabilities within an organization.
3. Provide insight into how organizations actually implement EABPs.
This paper will proceed as follows. First, an analytical literature review will be conducted to
determine the common horizontal EA practices found in past research. Second, the methodology and
its results will be described. Finally, this study’s findings and conclusions will be discussed.
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found in recent literature. However, this discussion is theoretical, with no clear consideration of the
practical underpinnings within organizations [15]. The additional current organizational advancement
that affected EA research is the evolved business models that now rely more on social media for
marketing, e-commerce for sales, big data analysis for information, and shared economy (industry
4.0) for infrastructure. According to previous studies [26–28], organizations using these technologies
can lose track of information and resources and require higher levels of control, particularly the
horizontal views and control, provided by EA [26,27]. Other studies [15,26] found that with the
availability of advanced information systems and enterprise resource planning (ERP), EA frameworks
and methodologies had a stronger impact on organizations. In the last five years, the number of
publications discussing TOGAF EA frameworks and their organizational adoption, as well as the
decline in the adoption of other frameworks, has increased [25]. This is attributable to the continuous
support and improvements received by this framework from the Open Group, which keeps up with
the current dynamic market and industry changes [29]. In addition, TOGAF is supported by many
commercial off-the-shelf software such as SAP (Systems, Applications and Products in data processing)
ERP, which simplifies its implementation for larger organizations [30]. The discussed publications in
this section focus mostly on the EA frameworks or methodologies and do not seek a rounded approach
to EA practices [6,30–32].
strategy [27]. In the study, an increasing need for large organizations to have their own core traditional
strategy that is supported by an IT strategy is observed. EA comes into the picture here, as the
authors discuss [27], by supporting organizations to govern their IT by traditional and IT strategies. A
gap exists in the EA literature because strategy and governance are usually considered individually,
without a deeper understanding of other related EA practices [9,32,37,39,45]. A growing trend in the
EA literature is the discussion on the usage of strategic and governance practices such as strategic
auditing, SWOT analysis, balanced score cards, and competitive advantage [13,39]. This shows that
EA research is streamlining from being a computer and information systems discussion-engrossed
discipline to only a more organizational and strategy-based approach [45]. All of these business tools
were suggested in conjunction with an EA framework for planning as well as an EA methodology as
an arm for the governance and implementation of strategic goals [13,23]. The author [6] discusses that
a strategy can be integrated into an organization’s planning via an EA framework and applied through
information systems and business processes.
of processes [3,11]. Yet, architectural modeling using tools, such as ArchiMate, would be misguided
without the structure of an EA and organizational direction guided by a strategy [45,60].
Table 1. Critical enterprise architecture best practices (EABPs) found in the literature.
3. Methodology
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A total of 21 semi-structured interviews were conducted for the 17 organizations. Interviews were
conducted with CEOs (Chief Executive Officer), CIOs (Chief Information Officer), IT managers, and
senior project managers. Only those informants having horizontal knowledge of the organization and
detailed knowledge of their organization’s functions in terms of EA frameworks and methodologies,
strategic practices, internal business activities, and horizontal information systems were selected. Three
approaches were employed to find out whether the informant possessed the relevant knowledge in the
key research areas: snowball sampling (asking current participants about future subjects and their
knowledge), reading about their position in the shared organization documents or professional social
media (e.g., Linkedin), and asking them directly about their knowledge in these areas [75,77,78]. For the
proper evaluation of horizontal EABPs, the largest firms in the sample—Organization (Org) 1, 2, 4, and
11—required two interviews, whereas the other firms required only one interview. Subsequent to the
interviews, shared and online organizational documentation for each of the contacted corporations
was used as secondary data to verify the information. Published reports found on the internet and
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news articles about the companies were also useful in confirming the information obtained from
the interviews.
Thus, the interviewees were asked about EABP details as they were conceptually discussed in
the EA literature. The interviews sought to evaluate EABPs within all 17 organizations using the
evaluation matrix in Appendix B; therefore, the questions generally pertained to the companies’ current
EABPs. The interviewer asked details about each EABP to assess the effectiveness of its implementation.
First, interviewees were asked about their company’s typical practices, e.g., “Does your company
have a strategy?” Next, they were asked for details regarding EABPs such as “Has the strategy been
announced?” If the interviewee answered “no” to the second question, EABP implementation was
considered limited compared with the cases outlined in the literature. However, if an interviewee
replied “no” to both questions, then it was determined that their organization employed no EABPs.
Interviewees were also asked to explain more about their company’s EABP usage; for instance, an
interviewee would be asked “How is the strategy communicated to employees across the whole
organization?” A senior project manager from Org 12 stated, “The strategy is announced on our
website; employees receive information about the strategy in their email and we discuss the strategy
with our employees in meetings.” The purpose of such discussions was to evaluate the efficacy of
EABP implementation within all sampled organizations. A few interviewees were unsure of certain
EABP information, such as their firm’s resource tracking practices. However, this information was
found in the reports on the organizations’ website or in published articles about the organization.
The same procedure was followed for all EABPs in the 17 companies. All the data were collected
through electronic notes because many interviewees declined recorded interviews.
The electronic notes from 21 interviews were thoroughly reviewed, analyzed, and summarized in
a tabular form (see Table 6). This analysis aimed to evaluate each organization individually using the
criteria in Appendix B. The outcome of these evaluations is presented in Table 4.
To understand the companies’ EABP capabilities compared with the cases found in the literature,
the interviewers’ notes were thoroughly analyzed for details regarding each EABP. Documents were
also used to verify information about each EABP when needed. The results are detailed in Section 4.
and to find details about the EABPs within both organizations. The coding was guided by the eight
EABP definitions synthesized from the literature in Section 2. The data was scanned for practices that
are related to EABP definitions. These practices were highlighted and grouped into labels. The labels
were then grouped according to their corresponding EABPs and used to organize thought and logic
while discussing the case studies in phase 2. The labels were also useful to determine the location of
the related quotes while writing the findings of the case study [81,85].
Table 3 shows the interviewees’ managerial positions, which pertain to EA implementation and
maintenance. The table also indicates the experience of each interviewee, including their specific
experience in technology and EA. The interviews presented in Table 3 are in addition to those conducted
in phase 1 (Table 2) for Org 1 and 2. Consequently, different participants were interviewed to acquire
further information about EABPs in Org 1 and 2.
Documents were collected internally from organizations’ corresponding departments, online from
their official websites, or from other websites. Table 4 describes the 18 collected documents and the
organizations they are related to.
Table 4. Cont.
4. Findings
4.1. Phase 1
The EABP capability matrices in Appendix B and Table 5 were developed and synthesized
following the reviewed EA literature. This study created themes from the literature and EABP criteria
to measure the organizations’ capabilities by following an approach similar to the questionnaire design
in organizational capability or maturity matrix development studies found in information systems
research (see [86,87]). First, the assessment of EABPs is conducted via the EABP evaluation matrix (see
Appendix B). In each of the 17 organizations, interviewees were asked about the practices that existed
in their organization according to the evaluation criteria of the matrix in Appendix B. Literal exact
wording for each criterion was not required as every organization was different in their adoption of the
EABPs; thus, the questions differed according to the situation. The interviews however assured that all
of the criteria were covered. Each score was recorded in the EABP capability outcome matrix in Table 5.
Based on the literature [13,14,21,25,37], the following EABPs counted for four evaluation points
because they were identified as the most important EABPs: announced strategy, effective governance,
EA methodology, and EA framework [14,21,37,82]. The remaining EABPs were allocated only two
evaluation points because they were considered essential but not as imperative as the previous four
EABPs [13,25,88]. Four levels and their corresponding scores (see the “Capability” column in the table
below) were identified in the matrix: low = 1–6, average = 7–12, high = 13–18, and capable = 19–24.
These four scoring levels were adapted from previously published articles [85,89,90].
The mean score for EABP capability between all organizations was 13.12, indicating that most
large organizations in the sample have a high chance of successfully employing EABPs. This is a
sensible outcome because most large organizations are in a greater need of practices that can increase
the cohesion of strategy, business, and technology. However, only 1 of the 17 organizations (Org 1)
fully adopted an EA framework and methodology, and only two organizations (Org 2 and 11) applied
them in limited vertical parts of the organization. Organizations with a high capacity of using EABPs
are more likely to adopt an EA framework and methodology because they already employ the most
critical EABPs.
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Org EA Method (4) EA Framework (4) Strategy (4) Governance (4) Business Processes (2) Modeling (2) Cloud Repository (2) Resources Tracking (2) Score (24) Capability
1 4 4 4 4 2 2 2 2 24 Capable
2 2 2 4 4 2 2 2 2 20 Capable
3 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 1 5 Low
4 0 0 4 4 2 0 2 2 14 High
5 0 0 4 4 2 2 2 2 16 High
6 2 2 2 4 2 2 2 2 18 High
7 0 0 4 4 0 2 2 2 14 High
8 0 0 4 0 2 2 2 2 12 Average
9 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 3 Low
10 0 0 4 4 2 2 2 2 16 High
11 2 4 2 2 2 2 2 2 18 High
12 0 0 0 4 0 2 0 2 8 Low
13 0 0 0 4 1 1 2 2 10 Average
14 0 0 4 4 2 1 0 2 13 High
15 0 0 2 4 2 2 0 1 11 Average
16 0 0 2 4 2 1 2 2 13 High
17 0 0 4 4 0 2 2 0 12 Average
Information 2019, 10, 293 13 of 26
Organizations that were evaluated as “high” in the EABP matrix are as follows: 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11,
14, and 16. These organizations had better levels of EABP implementation than those with “average”
and “low” scores in the EABP matrix. The interview transcripts showed that the organizations with
“high” scores had a vibrant strategic direction, had effective governance boards, and implemented an
advanced horizontal information system. The strategic direction for these organizations was clear,
and according to the interviewees (I1, I5, I6, I7, I8, I13, II8, and I17), the employees were aware
of organizational strategic plans and the different objectives that can contribute to fulfilling them.
This finding is consistent with the findings of [36–38,91] because a vibrant and well-communicated
strategic direction can lead to better levels of focused change or a higher level of EABP implementation.
Governance boards in these organizations focused on fulfilling organizational strategies and were
data-driven. According to the interviewees, the governance boards facilitated EABP implementation by
removing the barriers obstructing its adoption (I1, I5, I7, I8, I13, and I12). For instance, the governance
boards of Org 4, 6, and 10 conducted a thorough assessment of the policies and technologies that can
hinder the fulfillment of their strategy and implementation of business process management. A key
finding of phase 1 is that all the organizations scoring “high” in the EABP matrix implemented a
horizontal information system that assisted in the incorporation of EABPs within the organizations (I1,
I13, I6, I7, I13, II8, and I17). For example, Org 6 and 11 implemented the SAP ERP information system,
which assisted in resource and employee tracking and enabled better documentation throughout
the organization. Both these organizations employed an EA framework (TOGAF) within the SAP
ERP system for a few departments only (vertically), which in this case lowered the impact of the EA
framework to only a limited number of departments. This finding is consistent with the findings
of [9,23,63,64,88] as a successful implementation of horizontal information systems leading to higher
levels of EABP implementation. Overall, these organizations adopted effective strategic practices and
had advanced technological capabilities but lacked the usage of an EA framework and methodology.
Four organizations were evaluated as “average” in the EABP matrix: Org 8, 13, 15, and 17. These
organizations adopted adequate levels of strategic practices and high levels of architectural modeling.
The strategic direction of Org 8 and 17 was clear and well-communicated, which is considered an
important EABP. Moreover, the governance boards managed the transition of their organizations
toward achieving their strategy by providing the necessary resources (I10 and I21). Although the
governance board of Org 15 was keen to fulfill their strategic objectives, the strategic statement and
goals were not adequately communicated through different employee levels (I19). Org 13 adopted
operational governance of resource policies but lacked strategic direction. Thus, Org 13 did not
effectively adopt EABPs, leading to non-unified and scattered operational efforts. This finding is
similar to previous research [38,82,91] as the lack of strategic practices can impact the successful
implementation of EABPs.
The organizations evaluated as “low” on the EABP matrix were Org 3, 9, and 10. These
organizations lacked strategic direction, organized business processes, and technological capabilities.
In both Org 9 and 12, in providing health services to customers, it was noticed that the senior
management were specialized in medical fields and lacked organizational technology and business
training. This is a common practice in some health service organizations [92–94]. Since the senior
management of both organizations were responsible for creating strategic direction and governance,
EABP implementation in both organizations was affected (I11 and I16). Org 3 adopted fair information
systems EABPs, which supported their sales and services. Nevertheless, it lacked many EABPs,
particularly strategic practices and business activities (I4). Table 6 provides a summary of the eight
EABPs for the organizations evaluated as “high,” “average,” and “low” in the EABP matrix. The two
“Capable” organizations are discussed with additional details in the following section and are therefore
not included in this table.
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Table 6. Summary of the used EABPs for the organizations evaluated as “high,” “average,” and “low”.
Table 6. Cont.
To better understand current EABPs in large corporations, phase 2 focused on the “capable”
organizations evaluated in Table 5 (Org 1 and 2).
To handle many of the previously discussed issues, Org 1’s governance board decided that an EA
was required. After researching the matter, the company’s computer center implemented the SAP
EA framework (SAPEAF). The firm had already horizontally implemented SAP as an ERP system to
link different departments within the corporation, but several resource alignment and documentation
structuring issues were still present. SAPEAF was thus a reasonable EA framework choice because it
could integrate systems outside of the SAP environment under a well-established architecture. SAPEAF
is a commercial extension of the TOGAF framework that also supports transitioning to service-oriented
architecture (SOA) if required [95].
Many organizational entities within Org 1 implemented SAPEAF, but the firm’s computer
center had the most responsibility in doing so. The computer center received an international
award in EA excellence in 2016 for its successful EA implementation. According to Interviewee 1,
“The implementation of SAPEAF has enabled [Org 1] to go through a smoother digital transformation,
which would have been a more lengthy and complex procedure for such a large body.”
Org 1 divides its operations into “upstream,” which includes development and production
procedures, and “downstream,” which includes distribution and merchandizing processes.
After SAPEAF implementation, the turnaround time decreased for upstream partners who participated
in the development and production supply chain. The quality of the firm’s business services increased
in the upstream, and according to Interviewee 2, more than 500 processes were modeled using
ARIS and SAPEAF. The ARIS approach is used for holistic enterprise business process modeling,
governance, and administration [96,97]. The computer center incorporated ARIS into SAPEAF to
facilitate the modeling and governance of business processes. Applying EA enriched both upstream
and downstream processes through EA practices, such as enterprise-wide technology standardization,
enabling reusable services via SOA and software development lifecycle as part of the EA methodology
planning, and documentation of software development projects. SAPEAF enabled Org 1 to focus its
business processes and technological initiatives on serving its strategic goals and global organizational
vision. Org 1 has shared its strategy on their website, and it is also visible through SAPEAF, reminding
employees about it. The firm focuses on using technology, innovation, and business processes to
become a global leader in energy and chemical products. Digital transformation is a crucial part of
this strategy because Org 1 views technology as a catalyst for change and innovation. According to
Interviewee 2 and the annual review reports, technological alignment with business processes and
operations has driven Org 1 to achieve its financial and operational goals for 2018. The governance
board includes more than 12 members with various backgrounds in technology, chemistry, economics,
and finance. The board’s purpose is to oversee the company’s overall performance and monitor its
operations. These activities are supported by EA initiatives, which enable the vigorous review of
operations and open reporting channels. SAPEAF has placed different KPIs into perspective and
under a common structure where they can be systematically tracked. This enables meaningful and
structured data analyses in the context of relevant architectures or perspectives, such as production or
procurement. SAPEAF has also based the firm’s business process architecture on TOGAF and has led
processes to focus on services and reusability according to SOA. The business process architecture
was founded on TOGAF, which is used for highlighting key processes, defining best practices, and
outlining methods of governance and structure for each process [98]. Influenced by SOA, Org 1
frames key processes as services through SAP NetWeaver after being integrated with ARIS. NetWeaver
is a platform for integrating data, processes, and other systems within the SAP environment [99].
Architectural modeling is conducted through ARIS, which sends and receives information to and
from the SAP ERP software; this enables mining, optimization, and automation of processes. ARIS
work-handlers are used to distribute tasks to employees, while process models guide work and link
different departments. For documentation and electronic resource tracking, SAP Ariba is used to
further enable a company’s digital transformation. Compounded with the SAPEAF architecture,
documentation was organized into categories according to the TOGAF architecture, as shown in the
Figure 2 below.
conducted through ARIS, which sends and receives information to and from the SAP ERP software;
this enables mining, optimization, and automation of processes. ARIS work-handlers are used to
distribute tasks to employees, while process models guide work and link different departments. For
documentation and electronic resource tracking, SAP Ariba is used to further enable a company’s
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digital transformation. 17 of 26
Compounded with the SAPEAF architecture, documentation was organized
into categories according to the TOGAF architecture, as shown in the Figure 2 below.
The privatization, internalization, and robust competition pressured the company to adopt best
practices that could lead to better governance and optimized operations, documentation, and resources.
Consequently, the firm’s governance board formulated an EA center of excellence. Other centers of
excellence, including strategy execution and project management, existed before the EA center of
excellence. This center decided to adopt TOGAF because it accorded with the corporation requirements.
TOGAF was incorporated into an in-house software called telecom company enterprise architecture
(TCEA). This software was integrated with the Siebel customer relationship management (CRM)
system. Org 2 used Siebel to handle customer requests and increase loyalty management, which is a
necessity in the firm’s competitive industry. TCEA is used to document and track resources according
to TOGAF repositories and methodologies. It is also used to ensure that processes and operations are
strategized and optimized according to a corporation’s goals. Therefore, using Siebel CRM and TCEA
as an EA governance software aligns with a customer-satisfaction-oriented loyalty strategy and is
applicable to the EA of an entire corporation.
As part of their EA methodology, Org 2 has adopted the information technology infrastructure
library (ITIL), which is linked to TCEA and Siebel. ITIL is a library of best practices used in IT services
and organizational business requirements alignment. It is used to standardize documentation about
technology–business alignment practices, services, processes, and procedures within the company [100].
Customer requests, or “incidents” as they are called in Org 2, go through Siebel and get documented in
the micro-view through ITIL. Next, the requests are placed in a macro perspective through TOGAF
(or TCEA). Power BI is a Microsoft business analytics tool that creates aggregations, dashboards, and
visualizations for an organization [101], and this tool receives feeds from Siebel, TCEA, and other
processes. Its views are created according to TOGAF and the organization’s strategy. Org 2’s centers of
excellence and EA center handle Power BI; however, the final yearly, monthly, and sometimes daily
reports and dashboards are also viewed by upper management and the governance board. Interviewee
6 said “After applying the TOGAF framework via TCEA, we were able to structure our strategy and
clearly determine responsibilities which fall under these structures. Additionally, TCEA allowed for
upper management’s higher levels of control over our processes; they are able to shape these processes
and steer them towards the realization of our goals and strategy.”
Org 2’s strategy is divided into multiple clusters: (1) digitalization of internal operations
and higher dependency on data; (2) improving overall performance and efficient resource use;
(3) providing a leading customer experience; and 4) planning measured service expansion and
market-penetration—this strategy is highlighted on their website. Their KPIs are also set within the
TCEA environment and structured according to the strategy cluster. This has enabled top management
to monitor the outcomes of each strategic goal periodically or, if necessary, in real time. The process
architecture designed within ARIS classifies processes into three categories: core, management, and
supporting. ARIS is integrated with TCEA to structure processes according to TOGAF. Moreover,
information from these processes is retrofitted into their respective locations conferring to the TOGAF
framework, which is helpful for governance and performance monitoring. Interviewee 4 said “ARIS is
used in our organization as a business process management system, which conducts itself as an ERP
system in terms of connecting the enterprise.”
The firm initially conducts architectural modeling through a piece of software called Bizagi, while
the storage of process architecture and all mature models is conducted through ARIS. Bizagi is an
enterprise business process modeling tool with three versions: Modeler, Studio, and Engine [102].
However, Org 2 relies on Bizagi for BPMN modeling only while ARIS manages the storage of process
models, development of process applications, monitoring, simulation, automation, and process mining.
Furthermore, resource allocation and tracking are both conducted through ARIS, which guides the
strategy and TOGAF framework. The project management office (PMO) conducts resource planning
and performance tracking using the Power BI, ARIS, and TCEA dashboards. The PMO applies
the PRojects IN Controlled Environments (PRINCE2) method for project and resource management.
PRINCE2 is part of TCEA and structures projects for different TOGAF architectures.
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practices such as ITIL and configuration management enable better unification of EA documentation
practices and software development, which is especially important in large organizations. Moreover, EA
methodology provides the model and standardized method of documentation for large organizations.
Both aspects of EABPs (EA framework and methodology) are not broadly used in large organizations,
with the only exceptions of the two analyzed organizations. On the contrary, the adoption of a shared
strategy is found to be one of the most used practices in large organizations. Realization of a strategy
is conducted through an EA framework, as the phase 2 findings indicate. However, it is noticeable that
organizations divide and categorize their strategies with a strong focus on technology, which is an
important component of EA. Adopting an EA framework is recommended because it enables better
categorization of KPIs and different performance indicators. This categorization also facilitates the
aggregation of different KPIs, which is necessary for governance within large organizations. Business
processes, as a model of improvement, management, and control of processes, are not extensively
adopted in large organizations, as shown by the matrix [104]. However, it is a highly recommended
practice for large organizations because it assists in the standardization of business activities and
documentation. Working under an EA framework, these business processes become more purposeful
and reusable, as indicated by the findings of phase 2. Both organizations depended on a BPMS for the
management and modeling of business processes, which is a successful practice in improving the quality
of processes. According to the case studies, architectural modeling facilitated detecting bottlenecks
and problematic processes. Modeling is not a common practice within large organizations, as shown
by the matrix. However, it is important for the successful implementation of the EA framework
and methodology because it provides transparency in overviewing the organizational structure and
business processes. Although cloud repositories can be considered as a nonessential feature for large
organizations, they are imperative for EA framework and methodology. It is a recommended EABP
because large organizations use it for sharing the EA framework and methodology documentation.
Moreover, cloud repositories assist large organizations in their digital transformation by being a
common ground for electronic documentation and resource management. Project management in
alignment with an EA framework is a recommended practice for resource management, which could
lead to better strategic outcomes.
Theoretically, this study combined the strategic, business, and technological perspectives of
EA that, to the best of the researcher’s knowledge, has not been presented in EA research. This
theoretical perspective is a synthesis of viewpoints focusing on distinct EA: methodological, strategic,
or technological. The inclusive perspective is practical because organizations have to consider EA
practices from all of these viewpoints. This practical study showed what the 15 large organizations
lacked for the successful implementation of EABPs using the EABP matrix. Moreover, it discussed
the successful EABP implementation in two large organizations using a multi-case methodology.
The study also discussed how the two large organizations successfully integrated EABPs, reaping the
benefits of EA.
This study only focused on horizontal practices and did not discuss vertical EABPs; therefore, EA
research can be further extended by focusing on vertical EABPs. Another limitation of this study is that
only large organizations were analyzed and the EABP matrix was designed to measure the capability
of only large organizations. Future research could therefore test the matrix on small to medium-sized
organizations to broaden its applicability to smaller organizations. However, studying EABP literature
that is more relevant to small and medium-sized enterprises is recommended. Qualitative research
has its limitation on generalizability; thus, this paper calls for upcoming research to adopt the EABP
matrix to other large organizations. Other methods such as quantitative study might be used to create a
questionnaire based on the analysis and outcomes of this study. The sample of the largest organizations
in this study was limited to one only country, which is another limitation; future studies might consider
organizations from multiple countries to obtain a more diverse perspective.
Information 2019, 10, 293 21 of 26
Evaluation Criteria
Average Level of EABP
EABP High Level of EABP Adoption Low Level of EABP Adoption
Adoption
Weight: (4–3) Weight: (0)
Weight: (2–1)
Architectural modeling is
Different tools, software, and
conducted within only IT or other
methodologies exist to
6. Architectural modeling departments without the No architectural modeling
horizontally map organizational
[25,54,56,58] cross-cutting adoption of methodologies or tools exist.
departments, processes,
modeling tools
and operations.
and methodologies.
A documentation central cloud Different departments have their
No documentation repositories
7. Documenting material using repository is horizontally adopted own repositories and these
exist, and documents are stored
cloud repositories with visual representations, repositories are not fully
only on paper or other means such
[9,23,63,64,72] cataloging, or indexing for integrated with other
as email.
document retrieval. organizational entities.
Horizontal information systems or
ERPs are used to track the
8. Using technological Resource tracking is only used
performance and usage of
competencies to track and utilize vertically or within a few linked No resource tracking or
resources. These information
resources departments without clear prioritization exists.
systems are used to prioritize
[56,59,68,70] strategic prioritization.
resource allocation according to
strategic needs of the organization.
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