Notice and Invitation
Oral Defense of Doctoral Dissertation
The Volgenau School of Engineering, George Mason University

J. Michael Harrell
Bachelor of Science, University of Oklahoma, 1974
Master of Science, Old Dominion University, 1986

Developing Enterprise Architectures to Address the Enterprise Dilemma of Deciding What Should Be Sustained Versus What Should Be Changed

Monday, December 5, 2011, 10:00am – 12:00pm
Engineering Bldg., Room 4201
All are invited to attend.

Committee
Andrew P. Sage, Chair
Alexander H. Levis
Larry Kerschberg
Kuo-Chu Chang

Abstract

Enterprise architecture is a relatively new concept that arose in the latter half of the twentieth century as a means of managing the information technology resources within the enterprise.  The goal of this research has been to discover strategies that can attenuate the difficulties that result from wicked problems, complexity, and the enterprise learning curve and also improve the likelihood of developing an enterprise architecture that delivers a positive return on investment for the enterprise.  Towards this goal, this research establishes: the focus and scope of enterprise architecture by defining the bounds of what enterprise architecture should address; develops a core set of enterprise business questions from which to begin enterprise architecture development; develops an enterprise architecture metamodel that supports enterprise architecture metamodel development; and develops a methodology that aids the enterprise architect in focusing the development effort on obtaining significant value while reducing the risk of expending resources developing architectural artifacts of little or no value.

A copy of this doctoral dissertation is on reserve at the Johnson Center Library.