Conexiam Blog
Strong Enterprise Architecture Ensures Value Materializes Last week we started talking about strong enterprise architecture. The type that improves successful organizations like we have. Real organizations. Organizations that are not broken, and are not happy. Organizations where every change proposal must earn permission to interfere with current successful operation. Explore TOGAF Certification Training The professional bar for enterprise architecture are change proposals that gain permission. Permission to spend scarce resources. Permission to put current success at risk. Over the years we been privileged to help build great EA teams. The best-practice teams that changed their organization’s story. We’ve lived on all sides of transformative architecture projects that changed the story. Throughout, we have continually honed what it means to be a best practice enterprise architect. […]
Strong Enterprise Architecture Delivers Value, not Activity Last week, I closed off the Architecting Digital Products series with using your architecture to fence the ecosystem. Fencing the ecosystem spoke to controlling the yellow line collisions. My consulting team pointed out I keep returning to the same theme-effective enterprise architecture. Whether we talk about digital products, architecting for a current threat (Glasswing), or developing a roadmap, I keep circling the same issue-guiding effective change. They told me it was time to come-clean. To lay out why we believe our profession-enterprise architecture-exists. We believe best practice enterprise architecture is the right way to guide effective change. Explore TOGAF Certification Training And then? Then lay out the core tools and method-Navigate and TOGAF-that I keep speaking to. Let’s […]
Architecting Digital Products: Fencing the Ecosystem Last week, I closed off the Glasswing sidetrack- starting with architecting the Glasswing shock, how all architecture must face the challenge of time, and closing with talking to stakeholders to understand what matters to them. At every turn as enterprise architects we keep following the same pattern and guiding effective change. We look for the best answer to the key stakeholder question-what, if anything, should we do? Explore TOGAF Certification Training Everyone else wants the stakeholders to solve their local issue. The implication is obvious-everyone else wants the stakeholder’s power for themselves. We help the stakeholders drive their agenda. To be effective, we must sit on their side of the table. We provide solid advice grounded in our analysis […]
Engaging Stakeholders Happy Victoria Day! In Canada, we have been celebrating Queen Victoria’s birthday since 1845-27 years longer than Canada has been a country. The long weekend is celebrated as the start of summer. Summer is important to Canadians. Last week, in Architecting When the Decision Window Collapses we looked at the impact of time. I told you that time is always of the essence. It should be clear that as an enterprise architect, time is never on your side. I even challenged you to think about your current work and find when the change ceases to matter. Explore TOGAF Certification Training Because of the pressure of time, even the most agile enterprise will let most threats and opportunities slide by. The strongest organizations rely […]
Architecting When the Decision Window Collapses Last week we looked at Architecting the Glasswing Shock. That message prompted more feedback than normal. I had some interesting conversations. Common themes in the conversation were: that was a very interesting approach, but was it enterprise architecture? is this complete? There is a lot more to do to be safe, but you stopped. where do you take ideas and recommendations like these? Explore TOGAF Certification Training I believe everything in Architecting the Glasswing Shock represented best-in-class work from an enterprise architect. Many of us implicitly expect enterprise architects to produce complex models and diagrams. To look at big pictures. To look through a long‑horizon lens. Work framed in weeks rather than years, just feels light. Or, incomplete. Even […]
Architecting the Glasswing Shock Over the past couple of weeks we have been looking at data architecture of digital products. First by ensuring we know the terms of use, then last week we looked at a common theme enabling stakeholders by understanding constraints and offering trade-offs. We had planned the close of that story to take you deeper into Navigate to help you understand how we pragmatically deliver best practice EA. Explore TOGAF Certification Training That is the purpose of these emails, help you be a better architect. In our free Enterprise Architect’s Kickstart I’ll tell you some of your job is predictable. While other parts are unpredictable. All of our work is constrained by time. You always have exactly the amount of time between […]
Architecting Digital Products: The Yellow Line Collision Last week we started a sequence of messages on Digital Products and Digital Data. The foundations are the data terms of use-the commitment you make to your customers. The cornerstone of your value proposition. Our architecture challenge is that classic enterprise data architecture models break when the customer is inside the machine. I used a stark example about using customer data for your own purposes, contrasting Facebook who peeks for a living, the Post Office who peeks when directed by a judge, and Apple who cannot peek. Explore TOGAF Certification Training None of these terms of use is better, or good. They are just different. Your architecture must honour the value proposition and terms of use. If you […]
Architecting Digital Products: Start with the Terms of Use Last time I sent a message, we were looking at constraints. I wanted you to understand that the constraints placed on you are your best friend. As part of the journey to build a candidate target architecture and roadmap, we talked about surfacing inconvenient facts. All to guide effective change. My team cornered me. They demanded I pivot and focus on a thorny data architecture problem for a client. Their pivot pulls my email messages because we use the drafting process to lock down demonstrated best-practice for enterprise architects. Explore TOGAF Certification Training So, this week, we are stepping away from roadmaps and going back to the digital fuel: Data Architecture. If you recall our data […]
The Ugly Truth: Constraints Are Your Best Friend I needed to take a break from sending a note the last couple of weeks. Work was busy-I had an Initiative Strategy Workshop and started working with a new EA Team. I also started riding to work again. Everything combined to eliminate my free energy. Explore TOGAF Certification Training My last message continued the architecture roadmap conversation. We talked about co-creating a dynamic roadmap. This built on the central thesis that architecture roadmap shares nothing in common with a brittle plan, and that an enterprise architect has to be prepared for three-layer conversations. Last week, I looked close at honestly facing inconvenient facts with your stakeholders. This week, we’ll go after the pervasive practice of pretending. Pretending […]
Co-Creating the Dynamic Architecture Roadmap In the last couple of weeks, we moved our architecture roadmap conversation from simple brittle plans and random walks to highlighting the three-layer conversation. This week we’ll talk about how to co-create a dynamic architecture roadmap. Explore TOGAF Certification Training Co-creation is different than the simplistic top-down myth. The one that is based on simplistic analogies like building a house, where a designer works with the owner. They spend all their time on layout and light. Then reality strikes-the builder says, “this foundation can’t support the second story on this soil.” Gotcha! This is a simple strawman argument. It requires hidden facts. It needs separate disconnected dialogues. The fact it feels almost authentic shows how far we are from best-practice […]
Conexiam is a a leading enterprise architecture consulting organization.
We do two things
We get asked to tell stories. We share.
We share enterprise architecture best-practice
We share enterprise architecture training and how to get TOGAF certified
We share our success stories
We share free enterprise architecture downloads
Be a better enterprise architect
Join our free Enterprise Architect's Kickstart Course
