Based on my research and experience, the following two lists contain some of the latest drivers and trends, respectively, in EA Training and Consulting. I will address some of these in future articles of this newsletter. In the meantime, please take my related polls at https://www.menti.com/xcuts5cd4y and provide suggestions and feedback to directly to me ([email protected]):

Drivers

1. Simplicity
2. Ubiquity
3. Transparency
4. Coherency
5. Agility
6. Digital
7. Scalable
8. Federated
9. Actionable
10. Customer-Driven
11. Emerging Contexts and Technologies (e.g., Remote Work, Cloud, AI, ML, AR, Drones, 3D Printing, Advanced Analytics)
12. Need for Speed
13. Security
14. Uncertainty
15. New Business Models

Trends

1. Uptick in interest in Business Architecture and Solution Architecture
2. Recognition of the need to engage the  wider enterprise on Business Process Management via workflows
3. Insistence on consideration of “Agile” and “Digital” in EA courses and consulting approaches
4. Development of EA courses for particular industry verticals instead of just generic ones and which include relevant examples and exercises
5. EA tools that are simpler to configure and rollout across the entire enterprise
6. Greater understanding and help with application and data integration
7. Interest in EA relationships to other areas (e.g., IT Portfolio Management, Solutions Architecture, Business Process Management, Product Architecture, Cybersecurity, Operational Technology, Systems Engineering)
8. Greater interest in better business cases for transformation
9. Greater interest in more transparent and actionable Strategic Planning approaches (e.g., linking Strategy to Operational Planning and metrics)
10. Increased interest in and commitment to long-term relationships with outside architecture experts to assist with maturing EA and associated modeling investments
11. EA as a product instead of a permanent program
12. Increasing move toward standards-based architecture, which includes the understanding that some standards are meant, however, to be customized…(i.e., customization is essential in the successful use of TOGAF or even Agile methodologies)

Authored by Dr. Steve Else, Chief Architect & Principal Instructor