Abstract
The Enterprise Architecture (EA) brings together various business processes, technologies, standards, systems, and IT infrastructure of the organization. This chapter considers extending the EA with mobility so that it would facilitate easier implementation of applications that overcomes the boundaries of time and location. This extension of EA with mobility will result in a comprehensive Mobility Enterprise Architecture (M-EA) that will provide the business with advantages of real-time business processes, reduced costs, increased client satisfaction, and better control. This chapter outlines the M-EA framework, which is based on the literature review, initial modeling, and a case study carried out by the lead authors. Later, the framework is validated by another case study carried out at international software development organization. Further validation of the model is envisaged through action research in multinational organizations.
TopBackground To Research
Information Technology (IT) growth is substantiated by the large number of infrastructures and products have been showing up in the market with ever-increasing frequency (Ramakrishnan et. al., 2006). However, in order to increase the ability of the enterprise to serve its customers and deal with its business partners in today’s dynamic business environment, there is a need to integrate these products and services through a common EA (Linthicum, 2000). While EA has successfully managed to integrate these various technologies used by the enterprises (such as Internet-based application, reusable components, security and database components), enterprises are now seeking to capitalize on the MT. This has resulted in a need to further extend and integrate mobility into the EA. MT is a significant emerging technology that has the potential to influence various organizational applications (Unhelkar, 2005), in additional, impact EA as they are technologies without wires with the ability to communicate through a multiplicity of hand-held devices. The advantage of mobility comes from its ability to overcome “time and location” boundaries that would enable enterprises to operate effectively real-time respond to the ever-increasing changes on this competitive marketplace. The need, therefore, to have a comprehensive EA that would enable delivery of services to the “location independent” market has grown. Along with that need is the need to have a formal process to incorporate and extend the EA with mobility. This chapter outlines the process of enabling such extension and incorporation of mobility in EA.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Mobile Technologies (MT): Used to describe modern wireless connections such as those in cellular networks and wireless broadband Internet, also encompass communication that is achieved without land-based or wired mechanisms
Mobile Enterprise Architecture (M-EA): A structure of integrating business processes with Information Technology that are supported and integrated with MT. It integrates business Systems, Processes, People, and Data in an organization in a manner that enables easy incorporation of Mobile Technologies in its business processes.
Enterprise Architecture (EA): A structure of integrating business processes with IT supported, by providing a visualization enterprise solution of the relationships among the System, Process, People, and Data in an organization.
Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA): Using of services to support the business and user requirements, one kind of modern today enterprise architecture.