Aggregated enterprise architecture wisdom
What is the role of the business architect? Interest in business architecture is growing dramatically. Though there is a great deal of discussion, there is little consensus about what business architecture is, how it should be pursued, and what value it delivers. There is also little consensus on who business architects are and what they do. […]
What does Excellent look like? I have been doing performance appraisals over the past few weeks for my IT team at the American University of Sharjah. In the past, there was no guidance or standards for how to evaluate our team members’ performance consistently. Previous appraisals were done more to make people feel […]
The post What does Excellent look like? Improving Performance Appraisals appeared first on Enterprise Architecture in Higher Education.
“If you do what you have always done, you’ll get what you have always gotten.” This quote is variously attributed to the self-improvement guru, Tony Robbins, Albert Einstein, Henry Ford, Mark Twain, and perhaps others. The fact that it is so often quoted points not to its truth but to its implication – we struggle […]
When I was a relatively new manager, I would occasionally get into disagreements with my peers. My CIO would call me into his office and tell me I should go fix the relationship. Being the good employee, I saluted and said, “Yes sir.” The third time this happened I pushed back. “Why are you always […]
Booze&Co recently published an interesting article as part of their strategy+business series. The title of the article is Six Secrets to Doing Less, written by Matthew May. It is an excerpt from his new book: The Laws of Subtraction: 6 Simple Rules for Winning in the Age of Excess Everything. I haven’t read the book […]
Each of us is born with a set of DNA that determines a good amount of our basic physical, intellectual, and emotional makeup. We also get a set of parents, extended family, and friends that shape us into who we become. That’s the life we are given. If we are truly fortunate, the life we […]
Well this is timely – December 12 , 2012, my 200th blog post and my 50th birthday. I still can’t believe it because when I look in the mirror or at the mental image of myself, I feel like I am 35 years old with so much to learn. Yet everyday I go to work, […]
The post A Personal Thank You for My Half Century appeared first on Enterprise Architecture in Higher Education.
An overly large focus on the way things “should be” is one of the biggest inhibitors to innovation and productive action. A focus on what should be rather than what can be inhibits new ideas and siphons off a tremendous amount of energy. Though this is a problem throughout most organizations, it seems to be […]
We are now well into the fourth era of information technology evolution. Along the way IT professionals have been challenged to evolve their skills to keep pace with advancing technology as well as evolving business expectations. Here is my skills view of the architect’s transformation: Mastery – For the first 25 years of business computing, […]
Five years ago today, I moved from being a senior staff member (Enterprise Architect) to the Manager, Business Application Services and Enterprise Architecture at BCIT. Over the past few weeks, I met with many colleagues and friends that I work with for a farewell coffee or lunch. (See my earlier post: My New Adventure) […]
The post Reflecting on Management appeared first on Enterprise Architecture in Higher Education.
Today, I celebrate 20 years of service at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. When I joined BCIT on August 31, 1992, I was in my late 20′s. I had been married for 4 years and we had a baby girl who was just over a year old. I started as…
Last week, I accepted a 2 year contract as the Director of Information Technology at the American University of Sharjah in the Emirate of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. Sharjah is one of seven emirates that are federated together to form th…