Digital transformation was a universal theme in 2022. As we track changes in the enterprise architecture landscape, we observe trends that we believe will shape EA in 2023. Here are our predictions for the coming year:
The role of the enterprise architect will change
Enterprise architects will become essential members of the organization. Companies embrace business transformation because they want to become digital natives, therefore application landscapes are becoming more complicated.
Additionally, the number of transformation projects and digital initiatives is growing, and enterprise architects are needed to keep track of the current infrastructure, design future-state solutions, and manage transformation projects. Without an Enterprise Architect in place to oversee these initiatives, transformation projects risk running over time and budget without producing any benefits to the organization.
Technology ambassadors will drive agile maturity
Agile maturity is an essential component of digital transformation. Our 2022 Agile Business Transformation Benchmarking Report showed that the greater the agile maturity of a company, the more effective the business transformation projects across the entire operation. However, agile maturity needs to span the whole company. Every department needs to improve its agile maturity to keep pace with market changes, opportunities, and threats, which is why technology ambassadors within the organization are becoming crucial.
The technology ambassador or business technologist will become a pivotal role in the company. Technology ambassadors work outside the IT department but do technology work to drive new business capabilities. For example, analytics architects support the marketing department. These technology ambassadors will drive agile maturity within their departments, making their departments more adaptable to change.
Transformation is everyone's concern
Transformation tools will be part of every aspect of the business. Three factors are driving the spread of digital transformation tools:
1. The move toward digitally native operations.
2. The increase in the need for business technologists outside of IT.
3. The need for more digital transformation initiatives.
In 2023 you can expect to see more collaboration and data democratization. Siloed enterprise architecture initiatives are a thing of the past. Every new digital project will have a company-wide impact. Having a transformation tool that allows all parts of the business to collaborate and have visibility into the future state is a must going into the new year.
