Course Title: Enterprise Architecture

Part A: Course Overview

Course Title: Enterprise Architecture

Credit Points: 12

Course Coordinator: Dr. Margaret Hamilton

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 9925 2939

Course Coordinator Email:margaret.hamilton@rmit.edu.au

Course Coordinator Location: 14.10.02

Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

You may not enrol in this course unless it is explicitly listed in your enrolment program summary, and you have confirmed with your program coordinator that it is an appropriate choice for your study plan.

You will be expected to understand the key processes, knowledge and usage of software requirements engineering acquired in Software Requirements Engineering. In addition the capabilities being acquired in this course will be complemented by those acquired in the courses Systems Architecture and  IT Governance and Change Management.

Course Description

This course presents the key components and processes involved in the effective creation and governance of enterprise architectures. An enterprise architecture is an overall framework and strategic objective for the usage of technology over time across an organization; it provides a plan and objectives that align business goals with ICT strategy, to enable the organization to make the most effective use of ICT to support and build the business. Students will acquire knowledge about all of these aspects of enterprise architectures, learn what the choices are and how to make them for enterprise architectures, and be able to explain and present their decisions.

Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

[Enabling knowledge and skills] Enterprise architecture principles and purpose; modelling approaches for enterprise architecture definition and communication; key enterprise architecture approaches, standards, and frameworks; best practice processes of development of enterprise architecture, including key success factors; analysis of alternative models for enterprise architectures components of enterprise architecture processes and the implications of inadequate implementation; best practice approaches and models for documenting enterprise architectures; appropriate interaction with stakeholders when developing and communicating enterprise architectures; team formulation, dynamics & diagnostics.

[Critical analysis] Evaluate alternative enterprise architecture approaches; identify and evaluate gaps and opportunities in different enterprise architecture models and processes; and identify critical success factors for common enterprise architect approaches.

[Problem solving] Apply skills to develop appropriate enterprise architecture principles, models of different aspects of the enterprise architecture processes and artefacts, and architectures at different levels, including conceptual and technical.

[Responsibility] Apply skills to define appropriate enterprise architecture approaches and processes for different organizations.

[Communication] Apply skills to produce suitable written documentation and models, and to produce and deliver presentation material for formal and informal oral presentations relating to enterprise architectures, for all appropriate audiences.

[Teamwork] Recognise stakeholders in a computing environment when developing and communicating enterprise architectures, and apply skills to develop appropriate interaction strategy; form, manage, and successfully produce outcomes from diverse teams.

Overview of Learning Activities

• Face-to-face lectures, where the lecturer presents some of the topics in the course material

• Tutorial exercises, where students explore team dynamics, diagnostics, and management

• Seminar-style discussions, where students present additional topics in the course material, and apply their knowledge of earlier topics to recognize underlying principles and potential applications of new topics

• Group presentations to classmates, teaching staff, and industry people of outcomes from assessment activities

• Guest lectures from industry experts on key topics

Attendance:
While a minimum attendance standard is not compulsory, non-attendance may seriously jeopardise the chances of success in this course. Clearly, non-attendance at an assessment will result in failure of that assessment. Where visa conditions apply, attendance is compulsory.

Overview of Learning Resources

This is a new discipline so there is no single textbook that covers all the material for this course. However, a reading list of relevant books will be provided. You are also expected to read other material including documents, articles, and reference publications that will either be provided during the lecture, seminars, tutorials, or through references during learning activities or through other course communication mechanisms. Lecture notes will be available from the RMIT Bookshop and/or the course Web site.

Overview of Assessment

• Assignments in which students will use appropriate communication approaches for enterprise architecture development, adoption, and understanding.
• A written examination, which asks students to describe different aspects, components, and communication considerations when developing an enterprise architecture, and describe how to approach them.
• Group presentations to classmates and teaching staff of outcomes from assessment activities

For standard assessment details, including deadlines, weightings, and hurdle requirements relating to Computer Science and IT courses see: http://www.rmit.edu.au/compsci/cgi