Architecture Review/Current State Assessment

The Problem:

Whether due to acquisition, revised mission, or rapid growth, there are many ways in which an architecture can be become out-dated, or ill fitted for the current or planned purposes. The pendulum has swung from the era of “another silver bullet” to “use what we have for all purposes”, each with its own set of challenges and opportunities. Using something new is not just a technology acquisition decision, but also impacts fit with existing components, customization, integration, training, and administration.

Most organizations do not have a full appreciation for how flexible there current architecture is. Nor, do they have the experience to know how their current architecture will scale or support a new direction. Without a firm understanding of an architecture’s capabilities, remaining capacity, and limitations, it is difficult to make realistic business decisions. With limited resources and pressures


The Panoscopix Solution:

Panoscopix provides this service on-site, because the current state assessment is highly contextual. We use the same scenario-based approach as on the system-level Independent Architecture and Design Reviews (IADR), to analyze the Enterprise Architecture. Hence, it is not a shallow result of the architecture being good, or not so flexible, but rather good for what purpose or needing improvement for what necessary outcomes or transformations. This scenario-based approach not only makes the current state assessment more insightful, but leads naturally into making a transformational roadmap.

Ultimately, the Current State Assessment spans how systems are envisioned and how systems are built. This produces insight into the effectiveness of the systems development processes, and the value of introducing Agile Methods, such as SCRUM. Additionaly, this produces insight into the effectiveness of the overall Enterprise Architecture program, and the value of introducing Agile EA to better connect the enterprise issues with system development realities.

The analysis provides an understanding of both the physical and logical architectures in the areas of data, application design, integration, security, operations, and technology. Gaps to business expectations and industry practices are identified and rectified through actionable recommendations in both the near- and long-term.


Deliverables:

Examples of the deliverables provided in this service:

• Comprehensive, scenario-based assessment of the physical and logical architectures for data, application design, integration, security, operations, and technology.
• Gap analysis with actionable recommendations in both the near- and long-term.
• Early adopter project selection and jump-start, by establishing CoE project for technology innovation.
• Mentoring development team members on architectural capabilities.
• Readiness assessment to guide the organizations adoption of Agile Methods.
• SCRUM training (formal or informal).
• Agile EA training (formal or informal).
• Early adopter project selection and jump-start, by joining the development team as Scrum Master, Developer, or Customer coach.
• Establishing development-friendly governance and integration testing infastructure.