Lesson 64 - Classic Alternatives Strategy of Enterprise Architecture

Summary

In lesson 64 of 'Software Architecture Monday,' Mark Richards discusses the classic alternative strategy of enterprise architecture. Unlike the prescriptive approach, this centralized strategy allows business units to choose from multiple approved standards, providing flexibility while maintaining governance. Richards highlights the benefits, such as using the right tools for the job and improved satisfaction, but also notes the increased design time and higher costs. The lesson sets the stage for exploring decentralized strategies in future sessions. For more details and related training, visit developerToArchitect.com.

Takeaways

• 🏛️ The lesson discusses the classic alternative strategy in enterprise architecture, focusing on a centralized approach with multiple approved standards.
• 🔍 Enterprise architecture strategies describe the overall team structure and how standards are applied and governed across the enterprise, which can be technology, architecture, methodology, or process-based.
• 📚 The central enterprise architecture team in this strategy defines and governs standards, but unlike the prescriptive strategy, they provide multiple approved standards for business units to choose from.
• 🌈 Business units have the flexibility to choose from multiple approved standards, such as Java, .NET, Spring, Scala, MongoDB, DB2, Oracle, Agile, and Lean, allowing them to tailor their solutions to specific needs.
• 🛠️ The classic alternative strategy promotes the right tools for the right job, giving business units more control over their choices and potentially leading to better satisfaction.
• ⏱️ However, this strategy can increase design time as teams need to evaluate different options, potentially leading to more proof of concepts and analysis to determine the best standards to use.
• 💰 The strategy can also result in higher overall costs due to supporting multiple standards and the increased design time for each business unit.
• 🚫 Despite the flexibility, teams are not allowed to make their own choices that could influence the enterprise architecture team, and variance models may be used to influence decisions.
• 📈 The central enterprise architecture team forms the standards, maintaining control over the enterprise architecture while allowing some flexibility for business units.
• 🔎 The next lesson will explore decentralized models or strategies of enterprise architecture, contrasting with the centralized approach discussed in this lesson.
• 📚 For more information, the speaker recommends reviewing previous lessons on enterprise architecture strategies and the prescriptive approach to understand the differences between various strategies.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the video script?

The main topic of the video script is the classic alternative strategy of enterprise architecture, which is a centralized approach with multiple approved standards applied across the enterprise.

Who is the presenter of the video script?

The presenter of the video script is Mark Richards, a hands-on software architect and the founder of developer to architect.com.

What is the difference between the prescriptive strategy and the classic alternatives strategy discussed in the script?

The prescriptive strategy is a centralized approach where the enterprise architecture team defines and governs specific standards that must be followed by all business units. In contrast, the classic alternatives strategy allows business units to choose from multiple approved standards, providing more flexibility.

What are the advantages of the classic alternatives strategy over the prescriptive strategy?

The classic alternatives strategy promotes the right tools for the right job, giving each business unit more control over their choices, which can lead to better satisfaction and improved context fit.

What are some potential downsides of the classic alternatives strategy mentioned in the script?

The downsides include increased design time due to more proof of concepts, the possibility of incorrect choices by business units, and higher overall costs due to supporting multiple standards and increased design efforts.

How does the classic alternatives strategy affect the role of the enterprise architecture team?

In the classic alternatives strategy, the enterprise architecture team still defines and governs the standards but allows for more flexibility by providing multiple approved options for business units to choose from.

What are some examples of the multiple approved standards that a business unit can choose from in the classic alternatives strategy?

Examples include different programming platforms like Java and .NET, various frameworks such as Spring and Scala, and database options like MongoDB, DB2, or Oracle.

How does the script suggest teams can influence the enterprise architecture team's decisions?

Teams can influence the enterprise architecture team's decisions through variance models, which may suggest alternative approaches or standards that could be considered.

What is the next lesson that Mark Richards will cover after the classic alternatives strategy?

The next lesson will cover the distributed strategy of enterprise architecture.

Where can viewers find more information on enterprise architecture strategies and related training classes?

Viewers can find more information on Mark Richards' website under 'Software Architecture Monday' and explore the training classes and upcoming events sections.

What are some of the other topics Mark Richards covers in his training classes and conference talks?

Mark Richards covers topics such as software architecture, microservices, and analyzing software architecture in his training classes and conference talks.

Outlines

00:00

🏛️ Enterprise Architecture Strategies Overview

In this segment, Mark Richards introduces the topic of enterprise architecture strategies, focusing on the classic alternative strategy. He explains the centralized approach where a central enterprise architecture team defines and governs standards, but unlike the prescriptive strategy, the classic alternatives strategy offers multiple approved standards for business units to choose from. This approach provides more flexibility for departments, allowing them to select the standards that best fit their specific needs. The summary also touches on the pros and cons of this strategy, highlighting increased flexibility and the potential for incorrect choices due to the increased design time and higher costs associated with supporting multiple standards.

05:01

📈 Analyzing the Classic Alternative Strategy's Impact

This paragraph delves deeper into the classic alternative strategy's implications, discussing the potential for higher design times and costs due to the need for proof of concepts and the support of multiple standards. Richards also mentions the upcoming lesson on decentralized models of enterprise architecture and encourages viewers to review previous lessons for a comprehensive understanding. He promotes his website for further learning resources, including private training classes on software architecture, microservices, and architecture analysis, as well as his public speaking engagements at conferences.

Keywords

💡Software Architecture

Software architecture refers to the high-level design of a software system, including the selection of the structural elements and their interactions. In the video, it is the central theme as Mark Richards discusses different strategies for designing and implementing enterprise systems.

💡Enterprise Architecture

Enterprise Architecture is a strategic blueprint that defines the structure and functions of an organization's business processes, information systems, and technology. The video focuses on how enterprise architecture strategies can be applied to guide the development of solutions within an organization.

💡Centralized

A centralized approach in the context of enterprise architecture means that decision-making and control are concentrated in a single authority or team. The video discusses how a centralized enterprise architecture team defines and governs standards for the entire organization.

💡Distributed

Distributed, in contrast to centralized, implies that authority or functions are spread across multiple locations or teams. The video mentions that the next lesson will cover the distributed strategy of enterprise architecture, suggesting a model where decision-making is more decentralized.

💡Standards

In the video, standards refer to the established criteria or guidelines that teams must adhere to when developing solutions. These can be based on technology, architecture, methodology, or process, and they are defined by the central enterprise architecture team.

💡Prescriptive Strategy

The prescriptive strategy, as mentioned in the video, is a type of enterprise architecture strategy where the central team dictates specific standards that must be followed without much flexibility. It is contrasted with the classic alternatives strategy discussed in the lesson.

💡Classic Alternatives Strategy

The classic alternatives strategy is a centralized approach that offers multiple approved standards for business units to choose from, allowing for more flexibility than the prescriptive strategy. The video explains how this strategy provides business units with the ability to select from various standards defined by the central team.

💡Business Units

Business units are the individual divisions or segments within an organization that have specific business objectives and may operate somewhat independently. In the video, business units are given the freedom to choose from approved standards under the classic alternatives strategy.

💡Agile

Agile is a project management and product development approach that emphasizes flexibility, collaboration, and customer feedback. In the context of the video, Agile is presented as one of the approved standards that business units can choose to implement under the classic alternatives strategy.

💡Lean

Lean is a methodology aimed at eliminating waste and optimizing efficiency in processes. The video mentions Lean as another company-approved standard, suggesting that it is an alternative approach to Agile for business units to consider under the classic alternatives strategy.

💡Proof of Concept (POC)

A proof of concept is an initial demonstration of a project's feasibility that helps to evaluate the potential value of an idea. The video mentions that the classic alternatives strategy may lead to increased design time and more POCs as business units explore which approved standards to implement.

Highlights

Introduction to the classic alternative strategy of enterprise architecture.

Enterprise architecture strategies describe the overall team structure and how standards are applied and governed.

The classic alternative strategy specifies how solutions should be developed through multiple approved standards.

Central enterprise architecture team defines and governs standards in a centralized model.

Business units can choose to implement approved standards, offering flexibility.

Different business units may implement different parts of the standards, allowing for customization.

Central enterprise architecture team provides a choice between Java platform, .NET, Spring, Scala, MongoDB, DB2, and Oracle database.

Agile and lean are presented as company or enterprise-approved standards for departments to leverage.

Business units have more control over their choices, leading to better satisfaction.

Teams are not allowed to make their own choices that could influence the enterprise architecture team.

Increased design time due to the need for proof of concepts within each business unit team.

Choices made by business units may be incorrect, leading to potential inefficiencies.

Higher overall costs associated with the strategy due to increased design time and licensing fees.

Costs incurred due to supporting multiple standards and conducting proof of concepts.

Next lesson will explore decentralized models or strategies of enterprise architecture.

Encouragement to review previous lessons for a grounding in enterprise architecture strategies.

Information on private training classes and public speaking engagements available on the website.

Lesson 64 concludes with a summary of the classic alternative strategy of enterprise architecture.

Transcripts

hello and welcome to software

architecture Monday my name is Mark

Richards I'm hands-on software architect

and also the founder of developer to

architect comm and today's lesson number

64 and we'll take a look at the classic

alternative strategy of enterprise

architecture what we learned in lesson

62 was that the enterprise architecture

strategies describe the overall

enterprise architecture team structure

again whether its centralized or

distributed and how standards are

applied and governed across the

enterprise and those standards could be

based on technology based on

architecture and based on methodology

and based on process let's take a look

at again all four of these on the prior

lesson we took a look at the

prescriptive strategy in this lesson

we'll stick with the centralized and

look at the classic alternatives

strategy the classic alternative

strategy of enterprise architecture

specifies again how Solutions should be

developed through multiply multiple

approved standards applied across the

enterprise so in this strategy which is

still centralized we still have a

central enterprise architecture team

defining and also governing those

standards let's take a look at what I

mean so our central organization has the

enterprise architects and the enterprise

architecture team but in the classic

alternatives what they provide our

multiple approved standards notice the

different colors here of kind of the

turquoise of blue in the orange each

business unit can choose to implement

whatever particular standards that they

want to that are approved and so notice

now unlike the prescriptive each

business unit here has kind of different

parts of those strategies are those

standards in other words let's take a

look and see what the central enterprise

architecture team defined for us to use

and notice here there's a lot of choice

as a matter of fact notice here we have

both the Java platform and dotnet

there's some spring there's some Scala

mongodb we can use a db2 database or an

Oracle database and now each business

unit has to use one of these kind of

standards but they can mix and match

these any which way they want to notice

here we have both agile and lean as both

company or Enterprise approved standards

that any department can now leverage and

so if we analyze this particular

strategy we notice it comes with a lot

more flexibility for each of those

business units or departments

however teams are still not allowed to

make their own choices that can maybe

influence the enterprise architecture

team through variance models and such

but the point is that central enterprise

architecture team are the ones who are

forming these standards and so let's

take a look at some of the pros and cons

of this approach first of all let's look

at the pluses of this notice now it's

still a centralized model but now it

does start promoting the right tools for

the right job in other words as opposed

to the prescriptive which was good cost

savings and a lot of reuse

the point here is now I've got right

tools for the right job each business

unit each team within each business unit

now has more control over their choices

of kind of what fits for what particular

context and also we generally get better

improved satisfaction and so this is

looking a lot better but let's take a

look at some of the negatives associated

with this approach or this strategy

because now what we have unlike the

prescriptive in the prior lesson we now

have increased design time so in other

words there's going to be more proof of

concepts within each business unit team

to say should we use a or B hmm I don't

know and consequently because of that

some of the choices that the business

units make may be incorrect you see here

the enterprise architecture teams those

enterprise standards instead of making

the decisions for you are now giving you

the ability to make some choices and

sometimes those

maybe incorrect also there are higher

overall costs associated with this

particular strategy the more options we

provide from a centralized governance

body and the higher the costs are going

to be and this incurs these costs are

incurred because of a couple of things

everybody it's it's generally licensing

fees associated with for example

supporting both Oracle databases and db2

databases and and so on and so

forth the other costs come out because

there's increased design time in other

words each business unit each team may

end up doing some POCs or some analysis

to determine which of the approved

standards would be best for us and so

costs do tend to be a little bit higher

than they do for the prescriptive

approach and what we're going to do in

the next lesson is actually take a look

at the decentralized models or

strategies of enterprise architecture

but for more information you can go all

the way back to lesson 60 to the

enterprise architecture strategies

really to kind of get a grounding of all

of these and then review lesson 63 on

the prescriptive approach to kind of see

the differences between these two

strategies of enterprise architecture

all these lessons are on my website

under software architecture Monday and

also I do private training classes and

these are in areas of the software

architecture micro services and also

analyzing software architecture and so I

would encourage you to go to my website

to look at those training classes a lot

of those are online that I do teach or

publicly available I also speak a lot of

conferences and you can always go to the

upcoming events page of my website to

find out where those are and so this has

been lesson 64 the classic alternative

strategy of enterprise architecture

again my name is Mark Richards thank you

so much for listening and stay tuned for

the next lesson lesson 65 where we'll

take a look at the distributed strategy

of enterprise architecture