Values and Risks in Enterprise Architecture (EA) Program

Chapter Three
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Question One
The values involved with establishing and employing an enterprise architecture (EA) program include better alignment, greater efficiency, better visibility, and greater security. An EA program can assist in identifying and coordinating IT investments with corporate goals. It is useful in locating redundant systems and procedures, which can help to cut down on waste and increase productivity. Regarding better visibility, the EA program can assist in facilitating visibility into the current IT environment. This enables IT workers to comprehend better how the IT landscape is constructed. Ideally, the program is handy in locating risky places and ensuring that security procedures are followed.
The risks involved with establishing and employing an enterprise architecture (EA) program include the high cost of setting up and putting in place an EA program, which is expensive and time-consuming (Safari et al., 2016). Complexity is another issue. The reason is that establishing and maintaining an EA program can be difficult. There is also the need for adoption. It can be challenging to secure buy-in and adoption without leadership and other stakeholders' strong commitment to the EA program. The last risk concerns outdated information, whereby data becomes obsolete if an EA program is not updated frequently.
Question Two
There are multiple strategies for mitigating the risks involved with establishing and employing an enterprise architecture (EA) program. One of them entails creating strong governance structures. The foundation of any EA program is creating and maintaining effective governance mechanisms (Ahlemann et al., 2012). This approach involves protocols for examining and approving design modifications and having clear roles and responsibilities for stakeholders. The second approach entails ensuring thorough and current documentation. Maintaining comprehensive and current architectural documentation is essential. Doing so helps ensure that all parties involved in the EA program agree. There is also a need to update the architecture. Doing so regularly to ensure it still meets the company's needs is crucial for risk mitigation....