Todd Biske posted a summary of a conversation he had with Mike Rollings,  Brenda Michelson, Chris Bird and others. They were discussing the future of Enterprise Architecture. A theme that emerged from their talks focused on whether your practice is defined by being an archivist (passive) or an activist (active).  Here is the conversation (from Todd’s post) that got the ball rolling:

Near the end of the conversation, Chris asked the question, “Are Enterprise Architects really Enterprise Archivists?” Brenda responded that we really need Enterprise Activists focused on action, delivery, ideation, and evangelism.

Building credibility in your organization by delivering on value will get you to the place where you can be the “enterprise activist”.   Those of us who had very limited budgets and very small teams are well aware that showing value by making a positive contribution to our organizations is the way to earn the right to be “activists”.

Again from Todd’s post, here are Brenda Michelson’s four attributes for an “enterprise activist”:

Action: The action is engagement. Talk to the people that have the ability to make change happen. Using the activism analogy, the EA is the lobbyist. Engage the stakeholders, and make your case.

Delivery: Deliver the strategic architecture, and then work with the project teams to make sure the architecture is realized properly. If you’re only cataloging what other people have done, you’re an archivist.

Ideation: Think about the future. James McGovern (@mcgoverntheory), a fellow EA, had posted once that EA’s need to have time to think. This is where the ideas come from, and then can get turned into the strategic architecture. They’re not the exclusive source of ideas, but EA’s are supposed to be your senior level thinkers, so innovative ideas should be expected of them.

Evangelism: How can you be an activist without being active? Make the cause known. If the cause isn’t heard, work to understand why, and tweak the message accordingly.

I like the broader range of attributes that Brenda presents as they provide guidance for any size, shape or structure of enterprise architecture practices in any organization.  I don’t think I am overstating things by saying these are “timeless” attributes.

I wrote a post in July 2007 titled, Enterprise Architecture Roles or ‘What do you do??.  In the post, I talked about the roles that we fulfill in our EA practice at BCIT.  Read more...

Since I completed both the UBC Sauder School of Business – Certificate in Management Excellence and the Carnegie Mellon Institute of Software Research International – Certified Enterprise Architect program, I have been looking to take the next step in my education.  Here is an older post where I asked “What Masters Program should I choose?“  I now have an answer to my question!

I applied for and received funding from my employer, BCIT to pursue a graduate level degree.  With the funding approved, I applied to the Masters of Science in Information Management Program at Syracuse University’s iSchool.  Last week, I received my formal letter of acceptance!  I will begin my program in September 2010.  It has been a very long time since I have been in a formal education program.  It should be an interesting ride.  I will be continuing my day job and will be taking most of the program online.  I am looking forward to a trip or two to Syracuse University and will now cheer for the Orange!!

Here is a video about the program:

I will regularly post my progress on this blog. Wish me luck!

I was fortunate to be asked to participate as a mentor to a Computer Systems student in our Bachelor of Technology program this fall. This is a real honour and something that I value having the opportunity to do.

I graduated from BCIT in 1987 and the skills taught me by my instructors and my classmates set the tone for my career. Thanks to the BCIT Alumni Association and the BCIT Student Association for this opportunity.

Below is an interview I gave in the student newspaper, The Link: