Architecture Professionalism:
Standards, Certification and Education
Role Definitions
With the progressive maturation of the field of Enterprise Architecture1(EA) it is becoming evident that EA as a discipline is crucial to organisational functionality in general, not just to the development and delivery of effective ICT systems. Even though Gartner, for example, provides clear role descriptions and titles for positions in the field2, in practice there are not yet clear standardisations of role divisions and organisational reporting structures.
There is, however, a growing consensus amongst experts about the essential characteristics of each EA role and the knowledge and capabilities necessary to function as an Enterprise Architect. This paper summarises the thinking regarding the knowledge and capabilities Enterprise Architects need to develop, and the current state of their education and certification.
Types of Certification
There are three ‘types’ of certification relevant to Enterprise Architects:
- Technology certification — e.g. Java, SAP, Oracle, .Net etc.:
These will typically require following one or more training courses ending with an exam. The knowledge gained becomes part of the technical knowledge base of the IT professional. Most such courses are readily available in Australia. As the IT professional develops in the direction of Enterprise Architecture, such specialised knowledge becomes less important. An Enterprise Architect needs a broad knowledge of the available technologies, but is not expected to be proficient in any specific one.
- Framework or methodology certification — e.g. TOGAF, FEAC, Zachman, ITIL, etc.:
These will normally involve attending an extended workshop, and/or a combination of courses followed by one or more exams. FEAC certification is specific to US Federal Government; Zachman, ITIL and TOGAF courses and workshops are available in Australia. Modelling methodologies form the basis of the professional knowledge of an Enterprise Architect. Senior architects will often be proficient in more than one modelling language/framework. The manner in which professionals use their knowledge of modelling evolves with time, experience and professional development.
- EA Career/profession certification — e.g. Open Group ITAC, GEAO, IASA (in development), etc.:
This type of certification varies dramatically: requirements for an “Enterprise Architect” title range from an 8-hour online course, to completing a Masters degree. The profession has reacted to this unfortunate variety of ‘Certification’ options with a number of initiatives (see further below) aiming to produce a set of standardised and meaningful procedures for Enterprise Architecture certification.
Knowledge and Capabilities
Typically, standardised certification is based on an explicit model of knowledge and capabilities. Many models describing the required knowledge and capabilities for Enterprise Architects have been developed. Part of the confusion around EA certification stems from the variety of these models. Even though they cover roughly the same ground, they are practically incomparable and difficult to converge into a single standardised framework.
Companies such as IBM, Capgemini, Infosys and HP have their own models for career-path development for their Enterprise Architects, with their own capability models. To add to the confusion, each of the capability areas — such as IT knowledge, business skills and methods, leadership, human dynamics, etc. — has different content depending on domain specialisation (Infrastructure Architecture, Business Architecture, Solution Architecture ...). Furthermore, each of the models has its own terminology and its own definitions for proficiency levels, ranging from ‘junior architect’ to ‘senior architect’, ‘master architect’, ‘fellow architect’, etc.
With all the differences in models, terminology and contents, there is a general agreement around certainly 3, possibly 4 areas of knowledge and capabilities Enterprise Architects need to be able to demonstrate:
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Professional Knowledge — e.g. modelling methodologies, technology breadth, technology depth;
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Business Knowledge — e.g. organisational dynamics, understanding of strategy, financial understanding, understanding of industries and markets;
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Personal Capabilities — e.g. human dynamics, leadership, communication, emotional intelligence, some specific cognitive abilities;
Project Management — there is no general agreement as yet whether this area should be part of Enterprise Architects' capabilities. Gartner3, for example, proposes the placement of a professional Project Manager into Enterprise Architecture teams, rather than to expect these skills to be developed in the Enterprise Architect.
Enterprise Architects Certification
Excluding internal certification programs, whether corporate or Government (such as IBM or FEAC respectively), there are currently five major initiatives for the certification of Enterprise Architects:
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The Open Group ITAC (IT Architect Certification) program:
Open Group is a vendor and technology neutral consortium and the largest international certifying body. The basis for their certification program comes from IBM and HP. The Open Group is supported by a number of corporations and US Government bodies;
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GEAO (Global Enterprise Architecture Organisation) certification.
GEAO is a relatively small international organisation that started as a member organisation for Enterprise Architects and moved into certification on request of their members. The GEAO is supported by a number of corporations and high-end IT consultancies4;
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MCA (Microsoft Certified Architect) program.
Amongst its various certification programs, Microsoft offers a non-Microsoft specific Architects certification aiming to recognise the top industry experts in the field of Enterprise Architecture.
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EACOE (Enterprise Architects Center of Excellence) certification.
EACOE is an independent industry-wide practitioner-based organisation. Their source of funding is not divulged and the board of directors represents a wide range of industries.
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IASA (International Association of Software Architects) certification.
IASA is a grass-root movement of Architects (software and others) and is a not-for-profit international business association. The IASA has an in-principle certification model in place and is currently developing educational modules (some of which have been made available) and certification procedures.
Levels
The field of Enterprise Architecture generally recognises 3 levels of competence amongst its practitioners:
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A “Junior”5 Architect has some background in IT, understands principles of Architecture, models and tools and is capable of developing Architectures under supervision;
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A “Senior” Architect has an extensive background in IT, solid experience in Architecture development and delivery and is capable of leading the development and implementation of Architectures without supervision;
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A “Master” Architect has solid experience as a lead Architect and has impacted the field of Architecture through e.g. publications, mentoring, etc.
While hardly comparable in terminology and requirements, all certification programs but one offer progressive certification corresponding to these three levels.
Requirements
All 5 programs offer experience-based certification, acknowledging the fact that it takes a minimum number of years to develop the knowledge and capabilities necessary to effectively function in an Enterprise Architecture role6. During these years, Architects are expected to develop their professional knowledge, business knowledge and skills, and personal capabilities through exposure to different environments, professional coaching and mentoring, further education and self-study. The required experience varies between the different programs7.
Content-wise, all programs have requirements that include, besides IT & modelling knowledge, business understanding and skills, and personal capabilities. Some require project management skills as well.
Procedures
IASA procedures are still under development.
With the exception of Microsoft, all certification programs require membership of the certifying organisation. All certification programs require submitted documentation of experience.
The Open Group ITAC further requires a telephone interview for the “Junior” level certification and a panel interview for the “Senior” one.
The GEAO further requires a recognised degree in Enterprise Architecture and a peer-reviewed article for the GEAO journal for their “Junior” level. The procedures for progressing to advanced levels of certification are not publically available.
Microsoft does not recognise “Junior” levels in Enterprise Architecture. “Senior” certification requires preparation and delivery of a presentation and a two-phase interview with a panel of especially trained Microsoft Certified Architects (MCAs).
The EACOE requires endorsements by colleagues (some of which have to be EACOE members) for the submitted documentation.
Requirements Validation
The requirements for certification fall into the same areas of competence discussed in the section ‘Knowledge and Capabilities’ earlier.
Professional Knowledge
An evaluation method for professional knowledge which includes submission of extensive material on enterprise architecture experience, a thorough review of that material and an interview in which motivations, considerations and reasoning are examined is sufficient to validate the professed professional IT and Architecture knowledge and its appropriate application, provided a reference check is applied.
To be of value the review, interview and reference check must be carried out by experienced Enterprise Architecture professionals.Without such a probing interview and a thorough reference check, the appropriate application of professional knowledge is hard to confirm.
Business Knowledge
For the business knowledge required, the same evaluation method can be used effectively, provided some of the references checked are from the business domain rather than from the Enterprise Architecture domain. Without such references, mistaken understanding of the business domain can go unnoticed, because it will be rationalised into the architecture framework. For a meaningful assessment of a candidate's proficiency in this area solid business knowledge and experience is required of the reviewing and interviewing panel members.
Personal Capabilities
Most personal capabilities fall into one of two categories: cognitive capabilities (e.g. conceptualisation, abstraction, analysis, problem-solving) and behavioural capabilities (e.g. leadership, communication, facilitation, situational politics).Review and interview methods as described above are sufficient to infer and confirm a candidate's personal cognitive capabilities.
Review of submitted material can also confirm written communication capabilities.
Non-cognitive personal capabilities express themselves in consistent behaviours. The presence of a certain capability and the level to which it exists can be inferred through observing a person consistently demonstrating the behaviours related to that capability. Self reporting is unreliable in this area. Review of submitted material cannot confirm the consistency with which such behaviours are demonstrated in real-time. An interview can give some sense of a candidate's communication capabilities under those specific interview circumstances but, unless designed specifically for such an evaluation and analysed professionally, such an interview will not be a reliable enough source for assessing a candidate's personal capabilities.
Availability in Australia
All “Junior” level certifications are available in Australia.
The GEAO and EACOE “Senior” level certifications, which do not require an interview, can be done from Australia.
The panel interviews necessary for the Microsoft and Open Group “Senior” level certification are not (yet) carried out in Australia.
In conclusion, an appropriately validated, experience-based certification for Enterprise Architects capable of leading Architecture development and implementation is currently not available in Australia.
Education-based Certification
Some Australian Universities such as the RMIT in Victoria and the Griffith University in Queensland offer a dedicated Masters degree in Enterprise Architecture. As academic degrees, the certification confirms a high level of knowledge and understanding (including Architecture methodologies and frameworks, general IT, business principles, etc.) but not necessarily experience in practical application in the field.
Entry requirements for these degrees include a tertiary qualification in Computer Science, IT or Software Engineering and some level of practical experience, not necessarily at Enterprise Architecture level8.
Carnegie Mellon University's Institute for Software Research International (ISRI) and IBM's Teleologic recently announced the availability of their course-based Enterprise Architecture certification program for the Asia-Pacific. The program consists of three tiered courses (Fundamentals, Applied and Advanced). Certification is based on classroom participation and a concluding exam for each of the courses. No other qualifications and/or experience are required.
Education and Development
To deliver practical value, effective adult learning aims to turn theoretical knowledge into applied active knowledge and develop that into capabilities, as shown in the diagram below:
Professional — Technical Capabilities
Architects develop theoretical knowledge into active knowledge through supervised application of their knowledge in the field. The combination of professional coaching and mentoring with a longer-term exposure to all elements of architecture life-cycles in a variety of roles — possibly in a variety of industries — and being exposed to a wide range of technologies, enables the development of both technical credibility and Architecture capabilities. There is an abundance of sources for gaining technical knowledge, from short courses to degree level tertiary education. The professional field has recognised the importance of coaching and mentoring and as a result there is a growing number of mentoring frameworks and structures available for professionals, whether company-based or through membership of professional (certifying) organisations. To enhance learning from experience even further, peer feedback and exchange is encouraged through the establishment of peer groups, forums and communities of practice by industry bodies, companies and other organisations.
Business Capabilities
Normally, theoretical business knowledge develops into active knowledge through supervised application within the business. This creates a problem for Enterprise Architects, since they usually do not have a development path through the organisational managerial roles, yet they are expected to develop a sound understanding of organisational strategic and competitive thinking. A solution will be a combination of specialised experiential business education for architects (added to their generic theoretical business knowledge) and structured mentoring and coaching of architects by professionals from the business domain. Theoretical generic business knowledge is available through a variety of courses and higher education programs.
Part of the curriculum for the EA Masters degrees discussed above consists of business courses taken from the universities' MBA offerings. The EA programs endeavour to enhance active knowledge in this area through discussion and feedback provided for business related real-time assignments required of their students.
There are two areas of leading-edge business knowledge that have not (yet) become part of the curriculum of most business education programs but are becoming mainstream practice in executive circles:
- Complexity, System Dynamics and Systems Thinking;
- Strategic Collaboration.
These areas are important for creating effective architectures for knowledge-age organisations. Theoretical knowledge for both areas is available from a limited number of sources, partially as part of some exclusive MBA programs. Active knowledge in both areas is typically brought into organisations by specialised consultants, with active collaboration knowledge often taken over by practice experts within the organisation.
Personal Capabilities
Personal capabilities (both cognitive and non-cognitive) can only be developed through directed practice. Because they are so effective, executive coaching in this area and programs for personal development are widely embraced by the corporate world as a means of creating organisational bottom-line improvements. Some advanced MBA programs, for example, provide an extended leadership development and coaching program as part of their curriculum. Two organisations in Australia that offer such programs are the Australian Leadership Development Centre and the Integro Learning Company.
Bredemeyer (in the US) provides some leadership development, limited in scope, specifically for Enterprise Architects, in the form of a 4-day workshop.
Conclusions
There is a growing recognition that effective Enterprise Architecture is both a competitive advantage and a survival-level issue for organisations.
IT altogether, and especially Enterprise Architecture, is moving from the technical domain into the main corporate business domain. Gartner in a recent report published survey results showing that at least 36% of Chief Enterprise Architects report9 directly to CEOs, company directors, (vice-) presidents and other company leaders, whereas only 26% report to CIOs and IT Management. The Intelligence Unit of the Economist10 also reports a major shift of IT accountability into the top executive domain.
Led by research in the field11, the IT/Enterprise Architects community is increasingly aware of the crucial importance of personal capabilities in their profession. Extensive research in the corporate world12 attributes at least 80% of high-performance in leadership and in complicated technical professions to Emotional Intelligence competencies that form the base for most non-cognitive personal capabilities.
In light of the above, it can be concluded that the current absence of leading-edge active business knowledge and personal capabilities development forms a gap in Enterprise Architects' education that can become a critical issue for organisations.
Credits
We want to express our sincere gratitude to Keith Frampton for taking the time, and our appreciation for the comments, feedback and the totally up-to-date knowledge of the field he was kind enough to share with us.
Our thanks also go to Ian Gordon whose critical proof-reading, questions and comments brought about a major rewrite which we ended up being quite happy with.
The Griffith University requires a minimum of 1 year equivalent full-time work experience in a business environment.
The Griffith University requires a minimum of 1 year equivalent full-time work experience in a business environment.
