As technicians, we seldom look at the larger picture. The larger picture is understanding that IT is for Business and not the other way around.

Each organization has a mission & objective i.e. the purpose to exist beyond commercial gains(so to say :-)) .

As masters of a technical domain, we strive to stay up-to-date with  the latest changes & developments in technologies.

What gets us to the next level is,

• Understanding the reason for change
• The cause for an innovation
• How can it enable the business to perform better.

This in-turn helps us align with the “purpose” of the business

This was given shape by an open group that created a robust framework/methodology to build an Enterprise Architecture in the form standards & proven best practices.

The uniqueness lies in ensuring that the framework is vendor neutral.

Enterprise Architecture in this context is ‘‘The fundamental organization of a system, embodied in its components, their relationships to each other and the environment, and the principles governing its design and evolution”

The key concepts to build a successful Enterprise Architecture or optimize an existing EA(Business Transformation) are defined in a phased model and the heart of this model is the Architecture Development Method (ADM)

ADM spans over 8 phases( A-H) through an iterative cycle to ensure that business is aligned with the mission of the organization and help layout a transformational plan. Furthermore it introduces one to various tools/practices that have already been used by business that faced similar challenges.

I would personally recommend the course to anyone with over 7~8 years of IT experience to take up a TOGAF course, to help obtain a business sense to their day-to-day activities

Going through the course did a world of good to me, many things unfolded, many business decisions that seemed rather silly made sense. And there was light !!!

Enlightenment !!!

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