Introduction
In the complex world of enterprise architecture, determining the scope of architectural activities is a critical step in ensuring the success and coherence of the overall effort. TOGAF, or The Open Group Architecture Framework, provides a comprehensive methodology for developing and managing enterprise architecture. One crucial aspect of this methodology is scoping the architecture—a process that involves defining the boundaries, objectives, and constraints of the architectural endeavor.
Reasons for Scoping
The need to constrain the scope of architectural activities arises from various factors, including organizational authority, stakeholder concerns, resource availability, and the overarching objectives of the enterprise. Effective scoping allows for the governance and integration of architectural work within the enterprise, preventing duplication or conflicting activities. TOGAF emphasizes the importance of aligned “architecture partitions” and the definition of reuse and compliance relationships to streamline architectural efforts.
Dimensions of Architecture Scope
TOGAF identifies four key dimensions that play a pivotal role in defining and limiting the scope of enterprise architecture:
Breadth
- The breadth dimension addresses the full extent of the enterprise and specifies which part of this extent the architectural effort will focus on. In many cases, enterprises are vast, comprising organizational units that could be considered enterprises in their own right. The modern enterprise extends beyond traditional boundaries, encompassing a dynamic mix of business units, suppliers, customers, and partners.
Depth
- Depth refers to the level of detail to be included in the architectural effort. It raises questions about how much architecture is “enough” and where the demarcation lies between architecture and other related activities like system design and engineering. Defining the appropriate level of detail is crucial to avoid overloading the architecture effort with unnecessary complexity.
Time Period
- The time period dimension involves articulating the duration for the Architecture Vision. Practicality and resource considerations dictate whether the detailed architecture description will cover the same period. If not, the definition of Transition Architectures becomes necessary, each with its distinct time period.
Architecture Domains
- A complete enterprise architecture description encompasses four domains: business, data, application, and technology. However, resource and time constraints often challenge the creation of a top-down, all-inclusive architecture. Organizations may need to prioritize and select specific domains that align with their problem-solving objectives.
Optimizing at the Enterprise Level
- In large-scale environments where architectures are developed in a federated manner, there is a risk of architects optimizing within their specific scope, potentially neglecting the overall enterprise level. TOGAF emphasizes the need to seek the highest level of commonality and focus on scalable and reusable modules to maximize enterprise-level reuse.
Architecture Scoping Strategies
Summarize the architecture scoping strategies above in table format and what criteria based
| Dimension | Definition | Criteria Based |
|---|---|---|
| Breadth | Full extent of the enterprise and the focused part of the architectural effort. | – Identify organizational units that could be considered enterprises. |
| – Consider the dynamic mix of business units, suppliers, customers, and partners. | ||
| Depth | Level of detail in the architectural effort. | – Determine how much architecture is “enough.” |
| – Define the demarcation between architecture and related activities (design, engineering). | ||
| Time Period | Duration for the Architecture Vision and the coverage in the detailed architecture description. | – Evaluate practicality and resource considerations for the defined time period. |
| – Determine the need for distinct Transition Architectures with their time periods. | ||
| Architecture | Four domains: business, data, application, and technology. | – Prioritize domains based on the problem-solving objectives. |
| Domains | – Consider resource and time constraints when selecting domains. | |
| Optimizing | Seeking the highest level of commonality and focusing on scalable and reusable modules. | – Avoid sub-optimization within specific scopes, prioritize enterprise-level optimization. |
| at the Enterprise | – Emphasize scalability and reusability to maximize benefits at the enterprise level. |
Criteria Based:
- Identify: Recognizing organizational units that could be considered enterprises.
- Consider: Taking into account the dynamic mix of business units, suppliers, customers, and partners.
- Determine: Establishing the appropriate level of architectural detail and the demarcation between architecture and related activities.
- Evaluate: Assessing practicality and resource considerations for the defined time period.
- Prioritize: Ranking architecture domains based on problem-solving objectives and considering resource and time constraints.
- Avoid: Steering clear of sub-optimization within specific scopes and prioritizing optimization at the enterprise level.
- Emphasize: Focusing on scalability and reusability to maximize benefits at the enterprise level.
Conclusion
Scoping the architecture is a pivotal stage in the TOGAF methodology, ensuring that enterprise architecture efforts are targeted, coherent, and aligned with organizational goals. By carefully navigating the dimensions of breadth, depth, time period, and architecture domains, organizations can optimize their architectural activities to achieve maximum effectiveness and value. TOGAF’s emphasis on governance, integration, and scalability makes it a valuable framework for enterprises seeking to harness the power of well-defined and strategically aligned architectures.