The Change Agents of Enterprise Architecture at NIH

In the world of Government change agents the role of what I term Functional Mavens is crucial to enacting transformational change. Mavens range from specialists in procurement to information technologists who bring an expertise to problem solving that can make or break the vision of Transformation Leaders.

Recently, my colleague, Masako Sho collaborated with Jack Jones, Acting Chief Information Officer and Helen Schmitz, Acting Chief IT Architect, both at the National Institutes of Health, to create a very innovative white paper on the topic of realizing the true value of EA.

The paper is a quick read with plenty of excellent visuals. If you are a change agent of any stripe, you must read this paper as all too often EA is considered a technical exercise when in fact it’s a business exercise with many user types.

The following is the executive summary of the paper: “How to Realize the True Value of Enterprise Architecture”

• Provide users’ perspective to EA: Cater to the needs of people on the ground who use EA and benefit from it
• Recognize the importance of learning before using: Remember that users need to get the overall picture before making use of EA. Make background information available, not just architecture standards
• Present users with justifications for decisions: Explain why and how standards are defined to build trust and confidence in users
• Show examples: Present how EA has been used and can be used to make it real for users
• Support and encourage sharing of experience: Enhance EA content as well as the community by involving users to share their experiences

To read the paper and see the web portal that is creating a lot of buzz in the Federal EA community, please go to http://enterprisearchitecture.nih.gov.

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