An instrument for the development of the enterprise architecture practice

In this paper we introduce an architecture maturity model for the domain of enterprise architecture. The model differs from other existing models in that it departs from the standard 5-level approach. It distinguishes 18 factors, called key areas, which are relevant to developing an architectural practice. Each key area has its own maturity development path that is balanced against the maturity development paths of the other key areas. Two real-life case studies are presented to illustrate the use of the model. Usage of the model in these cases shows that the model delivers recognizable results, that the results can be traced back to the basic approach to architecture taken by the organizations investigated and that the key areas chosen bear relevance to the architectural practice of the organizations.