One Page EA

One of the most useful reviews of my EA book was Paul Harmon's of BPTrends. He suggested, among others that, while I mentioned that an EA picture is worth a thousand words, I haven’t really supplied it. Instead, I provided only a general framework. True, stakeholders show little interest in the complexity and subtleties of an EA framework. The framework is for the EA architects to construct and use. (The critique was taken in consideration: blueprint design and samples provided in the 3rd edition, now available). 

Most stakeholders are in fact after a single picture showing only their own concerns mapped over a single page Enterprise blueprint that describes the basic structure of the Enterprise. The picture provides a common set of objects for all designs, the common EA vocabulary. 

How would this EA blueprint look like though? 

Let me begin by saying that an EA not only should look like but should represent the map of an Enterprise: "A map is a visual representation of an area, a symbolic depiction highlighting relationships between elements of that space such as objects, regions..." (Wikipedia). 

Simplifying even further, which map do we typically use to represent an area? given the fact that there are so many types of maps. Wikipedia saves us again: "road maps are perhaps the most widely used maps today, and form a subset of navigational maps...". 

From an Enterprise Architecture perspective, how would this road map look like? 

A Single Page EA blueprint would like a road map depicting the key connections and objects of the EA. Ideally, we should be able to zoom and navigate electronically with a tool. 

The single page EA blueprint is one of the most important deliveries of an EA effort since it will be used by all stakeholders alike. An EA picture is not going to replace the EA though but should evolve and synch with all other EA views. The key stakeholders can map and add their information to create a view which should be added to the EA set. 

The single page EA blueprint should be aligned with the business architecture based on the Value Chains of the Enterprise.