Challenges Facing Enterprise Architects: A South African Perspective

The relationship between enterprise architecture and its service delivery process in an organizational context suggests an interesting view on the role of the enterprise architect. Literature reveals that many of the challenges that enterprise architects encounter, are largely non-technical in nature. This points to the need for a non-technical perspective on the role of an enterprise architect in the overall enterprise architecting process but also in the social, organizational context. Interviews were conducted with enterprise architects in South Africa to understand the challenges currently facing them. This study explores the fundamental understanding of the role of the enterprise architect particularly in the South African organizational context which is characterized by complex cultural and other differences. It suggests that for any enterprise architect - but particularly in South Africa - should strongly consider the non-technical perspectives in order to effectively architect the enterprise.