The Simple Enterprise Architecture Framework: Giving Alignment to IT Decisions

© 2018, Springer Nature Switzerland AG. Context: Enterprise Architecture seeks to align organizational objectives with decisions associated to people, processes, information and technology. Different frameworks have been proposed for designing an enterprise architecture, such as TOGAF or Zachman. However, defining an enterprise architecture following these frameworks is not an easy task since it requires the alignment of organizational needs with technological decisions. Goal: This paper presents a methodological framework, called Simple Enterprise Architecture (SEA), that eases the definition of an enterprise architecture and provides concrete proof of the alignment between IT decisions and organizational needs. Method: The SEA framework has been developed by integrating components from existing ones in order to generate a concrete process that guides analysts in the correct definition of an enterprise architecture. Results: This framework has been used in teaching system architecture master courses for 5 years with positive results.