Next-Generation IT Requires Next-Generation EA

What business wants from IT is changing, and that means IT has to change how it manages itself and the IT-business relationship. Building on current project delivery and operational management competencies, CIOs are adding new core management processes: demand, service, portfolio, and vendor management. These processes will work without enterprise architecture (EA) involvement — but they will work much better with EA-developed business capability models, target architectures, planning scenarios, and road maps. CIOs who support this involvement will find that their EA functions are transformed from an inward focus on projects and standards into a business focus on value management and demand/supply transparency — furthering the CIO agenda. EA leaders should help architect these new management processes and align their deliverables around what these processes require.