Based on the lesson, reflect on the need to develop a current and future state business architecture.
You cannot begin to create architecture without describing your current state, which can be incredibly multi-faceted in education. This year I helped to prepare the "Organization" category of my district's WASC report, and I couldn't believe how detailed we could get about our departments, roles and responsibilities, as well as relating that to our mission statement and goals. Business Architecture goes even deeper, even more detailed. This base information alone causes you to reflect on what is happening and how some things could be adjusted. Even though we live it every day, sometimes we just go through the motions. It was enlightening to have to describe what our organization was about, and once that is down on paper you have a starting point.
The future state is important because, to borrow from our EDL 610 class, it keeps the end in mind. Every successful person has goals, and so do organizations. Creating a future state allows organizations to plan for changes that they want to make, and ideal situations that may not be possible in the short term. Future states also set up systems that guide you toward your ideal state, and address potential changes or problems. There is no way to foresee every problem, but with input from various stakeholders you can at least catch some of the potential pitfalls, or potential changes that are on the horizon that you can prepare for. I can also see how it helps keep the overall vision consistent through administrative changes, which happen quite often for principals and superintendents. The state of the organization adheres closer to the mission and vision, rather than the whim of new management.
The future state is important because, to borrow from our EDL 610 class, it keeps the end in mind. Every successful person has goals, and so do organizations. Creating a future state allows organizations to plan for changes that they want to make, and ideal situations that may not be possible in the short term. Future states also set up systems that guide you toward your ideal state, and address potential changes or problems. There is no way to foresee every problem, but with input from various stakeholders you can at least catch some of the potential pitfalls, or potential changes that are on the horizon that you can prepare for. I can also see how it helps keep the overall vision consistent through administrative changes, which happen quite often for principals and superintendents. The state of the organization adheres closer to the mission and vision, rather than the whim of new management.