Week 7: EA behavior theories

Question 1

Strategic alignment model

Answer 1

Operational design comes from the business models. Strategy layer provides the why/context. Architecture layers provide conceptual and logical solutions to deliver the strategy.

Question 2

EA Framework PWC

Answer 2

Divided in 2 scopes:

1. Business and IT strategy
2. Business operating model

Question 3

Main theories to explain the effects of EA

Answer 3

• Resource based view (resource dependency theory)
  + Key resources = VRIN = valuable, rare, inimitable, non-substitutable.
  + EA method and models help to acquire key resources.
  + EA method and models -> specify key resource and capabilities -> value
• Decisions theory (group decision making: governance)
  + EA method models help to make better decisions (on IT and business)
  + Group and task type and technology -> decision process -> decision outcome (value)
• Technology acceptance
  + EA method and tools are technologies and technologies only bring value of used.
  + Ease of use and usefulness -> intention to use -> use (-> value)

Question 4

Tamm et al, 2015 -> How does EA add value to organizations? CAIS

Answer 4

- EA Benefit model (EABM): proposes that EA quality leads to organizational benefits via 4 benefit enables:
\+ organizational alignment
\+ information availability
\+ resource portfolio
\+ resource complementarity

Enhanced EABM:
- EA Service Provision Resources (EA assets and capabilities) led to the development of three EA enabled organizational capabilities (planning, operating platform and project delivering capabilities) which eventually resulted in business valued from EA.

Question 5

Bohn and Yelling (2007): using EA standards in managing IT

Answer 5

Organizations increasingly need to build an enterprise-wide capability to leverage technology that is distributed in different BU’s. Results show that the use of EA standards is effective in helping organizations to better manage their IT resources.

Key questions answered by the research:

1. ‘How do different governance mechanisms affect the use of EA standards?’
2. ‘To what extend does the use of EA standards help the organizations to improve the sharing and integration of the IT resources across the enterprise?’

In order to answer the first question: Mapped the EA governance mechanisms:

1. Define key architecture roles.
2. Involving key stakeholders through liaison roles and direct communication.
3. Institutionalizing monitoring processes for setting and using EA standards.
4. Centralizing IT decision making.

Hypotheses: organizations that have these IT governance mechanisms are more likely to see greater use of EA standards.
Results: each type of governance mechanism had a different impact on each type of EA standard.

Smits adapted the model to show how EA based IT governance would increase the use of the EA standards, and as a result increase the business value of IT. Bohn and Yelling forgot the business value of IT as dependent variable. Smits added this.

Question 6

Lange et al (2016): Empirical analysis of the factors and measures of EA success.

Answer 6

Enterprise Architecture Management (EAM) discussed to guide IT implementations, alignment, compliance assessment or technology management.

Paper tries to identify EAM success factors which explain EAM success measures. 4 EAM success factors:

• EAM product quality
• EAM infrastructure quality
• EAM service delivery quality
• EAM organizational anchoring.

3 EAM success measures:

• Intention to use EAM
• User satisfaction with EAM
• Organizational and project benefits