Enterprise architecture and innovation management are linked in several ways. EA provides guidance to help implement innovative ideas successfully and make informed decisions about which ideas to invest in. An agile approach to EA, using techniques like Scrum, allows architecture to be developed incrementally to support innovation. Innovation management platforms have not fully leveraged EA, but linking the two can help companies select the best courses of action and demonstrate how ideas have evolved. Bringing together innovation management, agile EA, and tools that connect the two can provide true decision making support for innovation initiatives and architectural activities.

1. Enterprise Architecture&InnovationManagement:exploringthe links.
In a corporate sense,innovationmanagementisaboutquicklyandeffectivelyimplementingyour
organizationgoalsthroughthe adoptionof innovative ideas,products,processesand business
models.Mostorganizationsare beginningtorealize thattodrive businessgrowthandmaintaina
competitiveadvantage,innovationneedstobe discoveredandimplementedquicklyandwithcare
to ensure maximumvalue.
The processof innovationneedstobe managedandgovernedinthe organizationandisan
importantfacetof a company'soverall function
Enterprise architecture (EA) isaperennial tool forinnovation.Thisisbecause once youdevelopa
goodidea;youneedto ensure thatEA isleveragedtounderstandhow toimplementitsuccessfully.
Investmentinaparticularidearequiresadegree of confidence thataproduct,service,ITcomponent
or businessprocessisgoingtomake itto marketor change the businesspositively.Conversely,IT
requirestraceabilitybacktothe innovationthathasdrivenit.Nothavingthistraceabilitymeansthat
it’sdifficulttosee the value of ITand how itdrivesthe business.Additionally,there isaneedto
leverage the limitedinteractionbetweenthose whoinnovate andthose whomanage EA.
WithoutEA,decisionmakingaroundthe rightideasandrequirementsismuchmore of a lottery.
And,while there are more andmore projectsonthe go anda rise inagile developmentapproaches,
companiessimplydonotinvest enoughtime incombininginnovationandEA.DevOpsand
continuousdeliveryare prime candidatesforconnectionintoinnovationmanagement.Inthe
contextof speedandtime tomarket,where the frequency,capabilityandrelease cyclesare keyto
competitiveadvantage;EA’ssupportof decisionmakingallowsinnovative ideastobe de-risked
withoutcostlymistakes.
The importance of an agile approachto Enterprise Architecture
Enterprise architecture hasoftenfailedwhenit’stargetedatmodelingthe entire enterpriseso
performingthe appropriate amountof enterprisearchitecture isrequiredtoachieveresults.Agile
approachessuchas Scrum can sometimesbe usedtobuildsmall piecesof enterprisearchitecture
that deliverexactlywhatisneeded.Scrumtechniquesharnessteamworking,deliveryintime slots
and identifying‘experts’tohelpwithspecificissues.
Othertechniquessuchas‘Kanban’can be usedto helpvisualize the statusof architectural concepts
and theirjourneyinthe agile process.Ininnovationmanagementwe canshow usersthe journeyof
differentconceptsinthe innovationlifecycle,whichimprovesthe visibilityforthe whole team.
WhencoupledwithEA frameworkssuchasArchiMate and TOGAF,Scrum providesthe focustoEA.
An Agile approachtoEA allowsforcontinuousimprovementandtiesnicelytoincrementalideasthat
the businessreceives.
Agile Enterprise Architecture andInnovationManagementinsummary
We’ve noticedthatEA thinkingisnotinfluencinginnovationmanagementinthe wayitshouldbe
because innovationprojectsare notnecessarilyalignedwiththe transformational needsof the
business.EA istypicallyaddressingtransformational challengessuchasmergers/acquisitions,

2. businessandITalignment,adoptionof bigdata,IT outsourcingetc.There are too many ideasand
manymore projectsthanthere needstobe.
EA needstofinda place to influence innovationmanagement.Where innovationisgrowing,EA
providesjustenougharchitecturetohelpinfluence innovationdecision makingandcurrent
innovationmanagementplatformshave notaddressedEA.
It's an oversightbutitsunderstandable becausethe heritage of theseolderplatformsdoesnot
provide the rigourneededforanEA approach. Organizationsare tellingustheirresourcesare scarce
so it'sabsolutelycrucial thatwe make use of the resourcesina way that benefitseveryone.With
InnovationManagementandEA,we can helpcompaniesdothisbyprovidingthemwithguidance in
selectingthe rightcourse of actionfromthe resourcesavailable.Consequently,aplatformthatcan
marry innovationmanagementandagile EA canprovide true decisionmakingforinnovation
initiativesandEA activities.
Innovationneedstobe real,andlinkingittothe underlyingenterprisearchitecture demonstrates
howideashave evolved.EnterpriseArchitecture needstobe able toaddressreal innovation.If the
architecture changeswhateffectdoesthishave oninnovationanditsrelatedstrategies?Innovation
ManagementandAgile Enterprise Architecturegohandinhand.Althougheachcan be successful in
theirownright,it's whentheyare usedinconjunctionwitheachotherthatthe full benefitscanbe
realized.
Source : corso3.com
Recommendedby:
JonCohn ,CTO, VP IT Architecture
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonacohn
joncohn@comcast.net
"JonCohn ExtonPA""JonCohn Exton""JonCohnEvolution"