Sandra (enterprise-architect): It's a quarter to nine, a sunny autumn morning without traffic jams, and I park my car in an almost empty parking garage of the hotel. I have been working here since last year as an enterprise-architect and I feel cheerful. I see my colleagues again! The unpleasant thought that our organization, like many others, is facing a heavy and sudden attack on its continuity due to the consequences of COVID-19. I worry about customer registration, security and AVG. How are we supposed to deal with this because of the COVID regulations? Digitisation is changing our society. This virus seems to be the antagonist speeding up digitisation: everything online. The virus hinders people in their current way of acting and the measures harm the economy. Hummingbird finds it very important, after all takeovers, to bring the organization under one architecture. The diversity of systems and processes was enormous in order to be able to deliver all services and products and to better respond to further digitization. The goal of the organization was to be able to provide fast, efficient services to customers who can expect high standards. The fact that this organization has locations spread across multiple countries makes it even more challenging. We want our customers to participate in the development of the Hummingbird concept. Subsequently, this is taken into account in the strategy of our organization and the related processes and information structure. Discussions about this are difficult. I am often blamed for the fact that my field of work with waterfall structures makes work too complicated models that hardly contribute to creating value for the customers. How many times have I been told that my field stands in the way of rapid change. I then explain that this is not the case. My role is to support change processes! Slightly less happy I enter the large meeting room with our director and the leader of the development teams.
Deborah (Director Netherlands): I run into the office. I still see a few clients and the people from the front-office, but I'm glad to see people from the back-office again! I enter the elevator at a quarter past eight to the meeting room on the third floor of the hotel. A quiet cup of coffee before the meeting starts. My assignment is clear, we have to ensure the continuity of our chain and quickly! It has gone faster than I thought. The business market has come to a virtual standstill because of COVID-19. Lockdowns, customers are reluctant to book. Turnover is falling dramatically. After a number of online brainstorming sessions with our marketing and sales department, customers and investors, we have come to the conclusion that we are going to use our locations to offer people a flexible, quiet workplace. To compensate for the lack of meeting rooms within large companies by offering spacious 'COVID proof' meeting rooms with multimedia facilities. For example, we have a few more ideas for additional services to limit our loss of turnover. I firmly believe in this direction of thinking. It hasn't all crystallised yet, but I expect that some ideas will remain. This should all be set up within a few weeks, including an adapted reservation system.
I now have to communicate this to the architect and development teams. Sandra will see problems again, conflicts with the principle of architecture. She always thinks long term, while now we have to make short term decisions. And can the development teams support this change of direction? I have concerns about security, how we deal with data and AVG/GDPR compliance. Complicated... don't think about it, we have to do this quickly! The teams need to start working on it right now.
Alex (leader of the development teams): I have to get ready for the daily stand up. I think our 'velocity' is good and we can report it. Our products are almost finished, I hope our architect Sandra won't resist again and start talking about architecture principles. I think the products meet what we agreed in the definition of done. I've only seen Deborah, the regional director, twice. I found it difficult to assess what she really gives priority to now. She doesn't dare to choose. Deborah always talks about a dot on the horizon and the strategy to get there, a vague story. I just want to know what it means for what we need to develop now. Let's not waste time.
Collision perspectives: The meeting has started and within 10 minutes they completely disagree on how the plans for the Covid proof workspaces and the other additional services, such as catering and delivery services, should be digitally implemented. Over and over again they sound "Yes but's" and "If so, then ...", They get irritated and don't listen to each other anymore. There are reproaches about old cows.
After an hour, Debora has had enough. That's not the way to go. She takes the floor: 'Marketing has already clearly defined the new services and will start an advertising campaign in two weeks' time.
So how are we gonna fix this? Make sure together you propose a solution, which will be up and running in two weeks. How do you think it continues .....
- The leader of the development teams and the architect will work together. Left or right, in two weeks it should be up and running.
- Deborah is convinced to have given a clear assignment, but the architect and the leader of the development team understand the assignment differently: their work is not going to fit together.
- The architect is outraged by the intervention, she feels professionally belittled and has no intention of abandoning her principles.
- The leader of the development teams thinks, we take the lead, the front is more important than the back, we think up the connections ourselves, we don't need any architecture.
- Deborah is not reassured that the architect and the leader of the development teams will perform and meet the deadlines and is considering taking the architect out of the assignment.
- ...
