Enterprise Architecture Fundamentals
EA is the backbone of successful digital transformations: learn how to architect a fit-for-purpose architecture for your enterprise, so that it aligns with business strategy, and is able to evolve and adapt to changing needs.
Why this course?
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This foundation-level course is designed for both aspiring and early-career architects, and lays the groundwork for further certification and mastery; it will teach you how to think like an enterprise architect, helping you to advance your career into an enterprise architect role.
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It provides a comprehensive introduction to EA concepts, terminology, and methodologies necessary to contribute effectively to an EA initiative
- It explores the criticality of alignment between business and IT, and how architecture can contribute to such alignment.
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You will gain a foundational understanding of various Enterprise Architecture frameworks, e.g., TOGAF®.
- You will learn how to understand an enterprise business and operating context, and design an aligned and fit-for-purpose enterprise architecture.
- You will learn how to define, communicate, and deploy effective EA Principles, Standards, and Guardrails
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You will gain the confidence to coordinate de-centralised high-quality architectural decisions aligned with business strategy and stakeholders' goals.
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You will learn theory & practical techniques, and receive direct feedback from an expert practitioner with 30+ hands-on years experience in the industry.
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You will learn to critically analyse Architecture as a profession, its relevancy in the context of agile development and fast evolving technology landscape, understanding why it fails in some organisations, and how to prevent common pitfalls.
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On completion of this course, you will be able to tackle more complex topics in the Enterprise Architecture Mastery course.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the course, participants will be able to demonstrates a recognised level of expertise and professionalism in enterprise architecture by being able to:
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Explain the fundamental concepts of Enterprise Architecture
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Understand the subdomains of Enterprise Architecture, including related common artefacts
- Explain the process of enterprise architecture development and common description frameworks
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Describe the core activities and artefacts produced
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Contribute to the design of Target Architectures & Roadmaps for large organisations, or design independently for small / medium enterprises.
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Apply methods and principles for the design and evaluation of enterprise architectures, independent of specific development processes.
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Apply basic techniques to facilitate and reach collaborative de-centralised enterprise architecture decisions.
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Document and communicate enterprise architectures, including architectural decisions.
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Demonstrate an understanding of Architecture Governance and its role in architecture development.
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Implement and uphold Governance and Quality Assurance
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Oversee the implementation of the enterprise architecture within projects across the enterprise.
Content
Equip participants with a foundational understanding of key terms and concepts in EA
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A Brief History of Architecture and Enterprise Architecture
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What is Enterprise Architecture?
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The purpose and benefits of Enterprise Architecture
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Why is it critical in IT strategy
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Architectural Domains (Business, Application, Information, Data, Software, Technical)
- Abstraction Levels and of Enterprise Architecture
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How does it differ from adjacent disciplines like portfolio and change management?
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The role of the TOGAF and other common architectural frameworks
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Role and Responsibilities of Solution, Domain, and Enterprise Architects
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Relate the Role of the Enterprise Architects to other Stakeholders
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Deepens participants' understanding of how business & organisational contexts impact the architecture of the enterprise
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Critical factors in creating a Value-driven Enterprise Architecture
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Dealing with key Stakeholders and their [conflicting] Concerns
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Articulating an Architecture Vision for the Enterprise
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Fundamentals of Business Architecture and Capability-based investment planning
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Architecturally Significant Decisions and Trade-offs
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Enable participants to deploy appropriate ideas, frameworks, techniques, and tools to design fit-for-context enterprise architectures that deliver business value
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Achieving Business Goals through aligned Enterprise Architecture
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Addressing the elephant in the room: can EA thrive in an increasingly agile world?
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Architecture Principles, Standards, and Guardrails
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Fundamentals of modularity, decoupling, cohesion, and dependencies
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Architecture Viewpoints and Views
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The role of EA in Digital [Innovation | Transformation | Simplification | Modernisation]
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Current / Target Architectures and realisable Architecture Roadmaps: from Minimum Viable EA to realised Vision
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Lean & Effective engagement models with Product / Project Architectures for evolutionary, decision-centric architecting
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Identify, Understand, and Manage Stakeholders
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Managing Technical Debt
- Measuring Value (and other KPIs)
- Understanding Decision Making as Cognitive Process
- Current Enterprise Architectural Topics (e.g., Cloud, Platforms, Microservices, DevOps)
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The role and potential of AI in Enterprise Architecture
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Enable participants to document and communicate enterprise architectures in a way that meets the information needs of important stakeholders and supports the delivery process
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Enterprise Architecture as a Product
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Communicate EA with words, pictures, metaphors, stories, and anything else that resonates with your audience.
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Notations & Models to Describe Enterprise Architectures
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Diagrams as Code
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Architecture as Code
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Documenting Architectural Decisions
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Tools & Templates for Documenting Enterprise Architecture
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Develop your Team & Personal Brand
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Equip EAs with the skills and knowledge needed to govern architectures effectively & efficiently
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Motivation, Goals, and Challenges for Architectural Governance
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Objectives & practices for architecture governance, risk management and compliance
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The role of an Architecture Board, Design Authority, and other formal decision making fora
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Architecture Principles, Standards, and Guardrails, and their role in Architectural Governance
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Conformance to Architectural Decisions
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As a powerless policing function, EA cannot achieve sustainable success
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The case against EA
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The Architect Elevator metaphor
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EA as a doer, influencer, translator, and facilitator
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Duties, Skills, Competences, and Capabilities
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Can AI help? How?
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Summary of Topics Covered and Key Takeaways
Hands-on Learning with real-world examples and case study: throughout the course, the content is supported and complemented by real-world examples, engaging & interactive discussions and hands-on activities based on a case study. The course blends theory with practical scenarios to help participants apply foundational architectural thinking in real-world contexts.
Target Audience
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This course is primarily aimed at both aspiring and early-career enterprise architects, and specifically:
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Enterprise Architects
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Lead Domain (Application / Technical / Information / Security) Architects
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Lead Solution Architects
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This course is also suitable for professionals working in digital transformation and software development, and seeking to broaden their knowledge or begin their certification journey in enterprise architecture
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Head of Strategy / Change
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Product / Program Portfolio Managers
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IT, business, and digital transformation professionals aiming to enhance their architectural thinking
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Prerequisites
There are no formal prerequisites for this course. It is accessible to anyone interested in understanding enterprise architecture, regardless of prior experience.
Format and Duration
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This course is typically offered as a 2 or 3 day instructor-led workshop, in-person or remotely.
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The course is also available as a residential workshop, inclusive of accommodation and meals.
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For private delivery, the duration can be adjusted depending on the levels of experience and ambition of participants.
Price and Schedule
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Free taster sessions for prospective delegates are scheduled regularly
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The context can be tailored to your requirements.
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Price reductions are available for self-funding individuals and non-profit organisations.
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For pricing & schedule details, please enquire below
