Domain 06 of six

Enterprise architecture

Most technology estates were accumulated rather than designed. This domain establishes what you have, how it connects, and what it should look like instead.

Request an assessment All six domains

Why it matters

The problem this addresses

Systems arrive one decision at a time, each sensible on the day. Some years later the same information is held in four places, two systems do substantially the same job, and one integration nobody documented is holding up a process the organisation depends on.

Without a current-state view, every technology decision is made without knowing what it touches. That is what makes change expensive and unpredictable.

Scope

What we examine

What systems exist, what each is for, and which are genuinely load-bearing
How data moves between them, including the routes that were never designed
Duplication, both of systems and of the information they hold
Single points of failure, technical and human
The gap between where the estate is and where your objectives require it to be

Assessed against: A five-level maturity scale, applied against recognised frameworks selected to suit the domain. Framework alignment is a statement of method, not a certification claim.
TOGAF: Architecture development, building blocks and the architecture repository.
ArchiMate: For modelling notation where a diagram has to be read by non-specialists.
COBIT 2019: For the governance that keeps a road map alive after it is written.

Assessment

Included in the Assessment

Fixed scope, agreed in writing before work begins. Findings your leadership can act on within ten working days of the final interview.

Maturity rating for this domain on the five-level scale
Current-state view, readable by your leadership rather than only by architects
Target-state architecture tied to your organisational objectives
Architecture blueprint and the principles behind it
Technology road map, sequenced with dependencies and effort estimates

Price: SCR 20,000 to 40,000 for this domain, VAT exclusive. Where it sits in that band depends on the size and scope of your organisation, not on which domain you choose. Fixed and agreed in writing before work begins. All six domains together are quoted on request, priced as six with a discount for taking the whole position at once.
What that price does not include: Building what the assessment recommends. That is a separate engagement, scoped and quoted against what you need, and it is where most of the work usually sits. See below.
Evidence gathered: Structured interviews across executive, finance, technology and one business function, plus document and systems review.
Turnaround: Ten working days from the final interview.

Implementation

Available as an Implementation Engagement

An assessment that ends at a report has done half the job. Most organisations know roughly what is wrong. What they lack is the time and the specialist capacity to fix it while also running the organisation.

In this domain that means

Build and maintain the architecture repository
Govern the road map through delivery rather than leaving it on a shelf
Establish architecture review, so new systems are assessed before they arrive

How it is priced: Quoted on request. Fixed scope and fixed fee, agreed in writing before work begins. We do not work on an open-ended basis.
Independence: Assessment and implementation are separately scoped engagements, quoted and agreed in writing before either begins. Keeping them separate is deliberate. It is what allows the assessment to stay independent, and it means you are never presented with findings that happen to recommend more of our own work. Where we have implemented something, any later re-assessment of that work says so plainly.

Where does this sit for you today?

If you are not sure whether this domain is a priority, the Quick Diagnosis takes about two minutes and gives you a position on the page. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Discuss a governance concern Try the Quick Diagnosis