Conference and response

See attached

Read: 

       

 Practical Guide, section 4.1-4.4: Define Architecture Process and Approach

         Practical Guide, appendix D: Example Architecture Products

         Real-life examples of EA websites: 

http://www.vita.virginia.gov/oversight/default.aspx?id=349

 http://enterprisearchitecture.nih.gov/ 

1. Answer these questions:

Who is responsible for architecture policies?
How does a project manager or application architect ensure alignment to the EA when proposing a new project?
What are the legislative drivers and mandates for using an EA?

2. Write a POSITIVE response to A and B:

A:

Who is responsible for architecture policies? – The CIO in conjunction with the Organization’s chief, develops a policy based upon the organization’s architecture principles. So, no single person is responsible for architecture policies. While the lion’s share of the workload is in the CIO’s lane, this individual must have approval from his/her superiors and all must make sure any policy is aligned with the organization’s overarching goals and objectives. The Enterprise Architecture Review board is responsible for assuring that the EA is aligned to and is compliant with the organization’s EA as well.

How does a project manager or application architect ensure alignment to the EA when proposing a new project? – Since the Chief Architecture, or Project manager, has a high level of expertise in strategic and technical planning, policy development, capitol planning and investment control, change management, systems engineering and architectural design, business process reengineering, and large-scale program management. In addition to all of these skills, the Chief Architect becomes completely familiar with the organization’s business and IT environment, this individual is the most qualified to ensure alignment when proposing a new project. He uses all of these skills combined with his years of experience to prepare a proposal, often including a white paper, to convince upper management of the need and value of any new proposal.

A Practical Guide to Federal Enterprise Architecture/ Version 1.0 Feb 2001

What are the legislative drivers and mandates for using an EA? The Clinger-Cohen Act and the E- Government Act are the legislative mandates for using an EA and have been used since 2002. They are the primary legislative tool used to guide evolving federal IT management practices and to promote initiatives to make government information and services available online. The law contains a variety of provisions related to federal government IT management, information security, and the provision of services and information electronically.

CRS Report of the week: Reauthorization of the E-Government Act June 2008 https://www.cdt.org/category/blogtags

B:

1.     Who is responsible for architecture policies?

The CIO, in collaboration with the Agency Head, develops a policy based on the Agency’s architecture principles that governs the development, implementation, and maintenance of the EA. The EA policy should be approved by the Agency Head before getting implemented.

 

2.     How does a project manager or application architect ensure alignment to the EA when proposing a new project?

Using the EA to implement new projects provides a positive impact on the enterprise. Unsuccessfully EA can bring down the entire development effort. The EA is managed as a program that facilitates systematic agency change by continuously aligning technology investments and projects with agency mission needs. The EA is updated continuously to reflect changes in operational and investment priorities that may arise due to legislation, budget constraints, or other business drivers. It is a primary tool for baseline control of complex, interdependent enterprise decisions and communication of those decisions to agency stakeholders. New projects are identified and sponsored based on the domain owner’s interpretation of the sequencing plan. Information flow serves as a guide through the cycle of proposal preparation, aligning the proposed project with the EA, and making the decision to fund the effort. A project proposal by domain owners and program/project leaders presents the business case for the project and defines a business solution using information from the EA as well as other sources. This proposal includes advice from the Chief Architect and the architecture team. The chief architecture and the team assess the project proposal. The initial assessment includes defining and selecting a project, the emphasis is on the business alignment, business case solution, sequencing plan, and to a limited degree, technical compliance. The architecture team can provide periodic assessments with iterative EA reviews, like Business alignment, Business case solution, sequencing plan, and technical compliance. Upon assessing the project’s alignment to the EA, the architects may make recommendations and provide support to bring non-compliant proposals into compliance.

 

3.     What are the legislative drivers and mandates for using an EA?

Within the Federal government, numerous rules and regulations govern the development and execution of IT policy. These guidelines have been established to better manage strategic plans, enhance IT acquisition practices, justify IT expenditures, measure IT performance, report results to Congress, integrate new technologies, and manage information resources. The Clinger-Cohen Act holds each Agency CIO responsible for developing, maintaining, and facilitating the implementation of an information technical architecture. Executive Order 13011, Federal Information Technology, established the Federal CIO Council as the principal interagency forum for improving practices in the design, modernization, employment, sharing, and performance of Agency information resources. The guide highlights OMB guidance directed to the Federal community, which extended IT reform beyond the Clinger-Cohen Act. The Federal CIO Council began developing the Federal Enterprise Architecture Framework in April 1998 in accordance with the priorities enunciated in Clinger-Cohen and issued it in 1999.

 

Federal Enterprise Architecture. (2001, February). Retrieved January 2013, from http://www.cio.gov.