Architecture Tools and Techniques
Determine and select the tools and techniques required to ensure consistent and repeatable delivery of architecture across the organization.
Improvement Planning
Practices-Outcomes-Metrics (POM)
Representative POMs are described for Architecture Tools and Techniques at each level of maturity.
- 2Basic
- Practice
- Match a toolset to the architecture approach and frameworks selected by the organization.
- Outcome
- An architecture framework is better integrated and easier to implement.
- Metrics
- Survey results that identify where organization support and resistance to architecture projects lie.
- Satisfaction ratings for the architecture function.
- Basic counters and trends for architecture artefacts creation and usage.
- Budgets, costs, and resource usage.
- Aggregated project portfolio, programme, and project metrics for dash boards, and project phase and task metrics for diagnosis.
- Practice
- In budget planning, acquire funds for the acquisition and deployment of the toolset, associated training, process and procedure creation or updates, and the ongoing maintenance and provision of the toolset.
- Outcome
- A budget is available for an architecture toolset.
- Metrics
- Survey results that identify where organization support and resistance to architecture projects lie.
- Satisfaction ratings for the architecture function.
- Basic counters and trends for architecture artefacts creation and usage.
- Budgets, costs, and resource usage.
- Aggregated project portfolio, programme, and project metrics for dash boards, and project phase and task metrics for diagnosis.
- Practice
- Select training providers for enterprise architecture toolsets.
- Outcome
- The use of approved training and education providers ensures standards and consistency.
- Metrics
- Survey results that identify where organization support and resistance to architecture projects lie.
- Satisfaction ratings for the architecture function.
- Basic counters and trends for architecture artefacts creation and usage.
- Budgets, costs, and resource usage.
- Aggregated project portfolio, programme, and project metrics for dash boards, and project phase and task metrics for diagnosis.
- Practice
- Procure and make training on toolsets available.
- Outcome
- Staff have access to enterprise architecture toolset training.
- Metrics
- Survey results that identify where organization support and resistance to architecture projects lie.
- Satisfaction ratings for the architecture function.
- Basic counters and trends for architecture artefacts creation and usage.
- Budgets, costs, and resource usage.
- Aggregated project portfolio, programme, and project metrics for dash boards, and project phase and task metrics for diagnosis.
- 3Intermediate
- Practice
- Ensure that staff assigned to architecture roles are trained and certified as necessary in the use of the enterprise architecture toolset.
- Outcome
- Staff are capable of delivering a competent professional architecture service.
- Metrics
- Counts, averages, variances, and associated trends of errors and rework.
- Variance from targets and mean.
- Issue counts and trends (by severity and urgency).
- Open to close metrics (e.g. time, total cost of fix).
- Metadata enabled aggregate metrics by department, function, business unit, geospatial region, product, service, and so forth.
- Surveys on awareness of, usability, and use of architecture artefacts and guidance.
- Project portfolio, programme, and project life-cycle metrics.
- Ratio of technology debt reduction budget to technology debt size.
- Practice
- Begin identifying advanced toolset features that the organization should use and sources of training for these.
- Outcome
- Training on advanced toolset features is identified in advance of the need.
- Metrics
- Counts, averages, variances, and associated trends of errors and rework.
- Variance from targets and mean.
- Issue counts and trends (by severity and urgency).
- Open to close metrics (e.g. time, total cost of fix).
- Metadata enabled aggregate metrics by department, function, business unit, geospatial region, product, service, and so forth.
- Surveys on awareness of, usability, and use of architecture artefacts and guidance.
- Project portfolio, programme, and project life-cycle metrics.
- Ratio of technology debt reduction budget to technology debt size.
- 4Advanced
- Practice
- Provide training on advanced features of the enterprise architecture toolset.
- Outcome
- Staff are capable of effectively using advanced toolset features for enterprise architecture.
- Metrics
- Counts and trends of governance compliance and governance exceptions.
- Elapsed time and trends for governance steps such as approvals cycles.
- Counts and trends for first time fixed and count issues re-opened.
- Pareto of missing information types that cause delays in decision-making.
- Frequency and time in use of tool features.
- Cost, cycle-time, and resource utilization impact of automation and architecture driven process changes.
- Baseline measurements of business (unit) operations before an architecturally significant change implementation so that its impact can subsequently be determined more accurately.
- Comprehensive project portfolio, programme, and project metrics.
- Stakeholder surveys on communications, architecture engagement, and architecture artefact utility.
- Practice
- Mandate the use of advanced toolset features on some projects.
- Outcome
- The organization gains the benefit of advanced toolset features on appropriate projects.
- Metrics
- Counts and trends of governance compliance and governance exceptions.
- Elapsed time and trends for governance steps such as approvals cycles.
- Counts and trends for first time fixed and count issues re-opened.
- Pareto of missing information types that cause delays in decision-making.
- Frequency and time in use of tool features.
- Cost, cycle-time, and resource utilization impact of automation and architecture driven process changes.
- Baseline measurements of business (unit) operations before an architecturally significant change implementation so that its impact can subsequently be determined more accurately.
- Comprehensive project portfolio, programme, and project metrics.
- Stakeholder surveys on communications, architecture engagement, and architecture artefact utility.
- Practice
- Automate where appropriate.
- Outcome
- Cost and quality improvements are evident.
- Metrics
- Counts and trends of governance compliance and governance exceptions.
- Elapsed time and trends for governance steps such as approvals cycles.
- Counts and trends for first time fixed and count issues re-opened.
- Pareto of missing information types that cause delays in decision-making.
- Frequency and time in use of tool features.
- Cost, cycle-time, and resource utilization impact of automation and architecture driven process changes.
- Baseline measurements of business (unit) operations before an architecturally significant change implementation so that its impact can subsequently be determined more accurately.
- Comprehensive project portfolio, programme, and project metrics.
- Stakeholder surveys on communications, architecture engagement, and architecture artefact utility.
- 5Optimized
- Practice
- Develop and sustain a programme of continuous improvement for enterprise architecture tools provisioning based on emerging research ideas, vendor advocacy, and stakeholder feedback.
- Outcome
- The organization has available an excellent enterprise architecture toolset that it can proficiently utilize.
- Metrics
- Pareto of architecture guidance principles explicitly used in decision-making.
- Count of decisions adjusted by enterprise architecture governance committee.
- % of decisions getting enterprise architecture approval without modification.
- Cost to projects of technology debt.
- Complexity metrics (e.g. # of decisions in process, divergent process path counts, count of tasks requiring experts/consultant level staff).
- Satisfaction rating surveys that are value focused (i.e. how valuable is the enterprise architecture function to the stakeholders).
- Benefits realization metrics from project portfolios, programmes, and the benefits realization function.