by Leonard Fehskens

Contents

Introduction
The Open Group Architecture Framework
A New IT Architect Certification
Accredited Certification Programs
Board Review Certification Process
Requirements
Recertification
Benefits of Certification
More Information

Introduction

How do you know if someone is really an architect? This hasbecome an increasingly important question as the context and nature ofinformation systems have evolved into their present forms. Information systemshave become mission-critical resources, essential to the routine functions ofmodern society, and IT projects need to "get it right the first time." "Do morewith less" is a recurring mandate, while the requirements grow broader and morecomplex. At the same time, the fabric of information systems has changed; thelong-term trends of commoditization and consolidation have pushed opportunitiesfor competitive differentiation—and the necessary skills to take advantage ofthem—to higher levels of abstraction.

Many people have come to believe that the discipline ofarchitecture is a powerful tool to address this daunting challenge.

The Open Group Architecture Framework

The Open Group, a consortium of IT vendors and users, wasformed in 1996 by the merger of X/Open and the Open Software Foundation (OSF).Multiple forums allow members to contribute to open standards in a variety oftechnology domains. One of the most active forums is the Architecture Forum,with 176 members from all over the world and representing a wide variety ofindustry sectors. In 1994, the membership decided that a standard enterprisearchitecture framework was needed. This decision led to the development of TheOpen Group Architecture Framework (TOGAF) and a TOGAF certification program.

The certification of IT architects benefits threeconstituencies:

• Individual practicing IT architects, and, thus, the profession as a whole
• The employers of IT architects, both as in-house architects and as professional services architectural consultants
• The consumers of IT architects' services and work products

Based on its extensive experience certifying UNIXimplementations, The Open Group believed that the certification process neededto be demonstrably objective—that is, the same results would be achieved,regardless of who executed the process. So, in addition to the publication ofthe TOGAF framework, The Open Group membership defined a policy for certifyingTOGAF products (specifically tools and training), services (consulting), andindividuals (practitioners). The requirements for certifying TOGAF tools,training courses, professional services, and individual architects are definedby four TOGAF product standards. TOGAF-certified training courses andTOGAF-certified professional services must be delivered by TOGAF-certifiedarchitects.

There are two ways an architect can become TOGAF certified:by taking TOGAF certified training, or by passing a TOGAF-certifiedexamination. The training must address, and the examination will test,knowledge and awareness of TOGAF, and a thorough and complete knowledge of theelements of TOGAF listed in the TOGAF 8 Core Definition. This includes thephases and deliverables of the TOGAF Architecture Development Method (ADM); theTOGAF Technical Reference Model (TRM), which defines the substance of theframework; the resources available to a TOGAF practitioner (the StandardsInformation Base, or SIB); the Enterprise Continuum (a model for organizing andrelating reusable architecture and solution building blocks); and finally, therelationship of TOGAF to other architectures and architecture frameworks.

A New IT Architect Certification

As TOGAF went through several successive revisions, membersof the Architecture Forum asked the question posed earlier—How do you know ifsomeone is really an architect?—in practice, not just in theory, and consideredthe problem of IT Architect Certification (ITAC) independent of TOGAF. Severalof the Forum's members operated architecture profession programs, and certificationwas often part of the professional development and career path of professionmembers. These programs had comparable criteria and processes, but differed inmany details and were essentially proprietary. The Architecture Forumrecognized the value of industry-wide, vendor-independent standardcertification criteria, and asked that The Open Group initiate a project todefine such a standard.

In early 2004, IBM and HP began collaborating on a detailedproposal to The Open Group. The proposal was approved in October 2004, and aworking group comprising volunteers from Capgemini, CLARS, EDS, HP, and IBMdeveloped IT architect certification requirements and policies over the nextyear. These were approved by The Open Group membership and the program went publicin July 2005.

The goal that certified individuals beactually, not merely potentially, successful practitioners led to therealization that IT architect certification did not lend itself well totraditional certification methods such as examinations. As a result, boardreview of demonstrated skills and experience by certified peers was agreed uponas the evaluation method.

From its inception, the program was envisioned as offeringthree levels of certification: Certified, Master, andDistinguished, as shown in Table 1.

Table1. ITAC certificationlevels

The initial focus was on level 2, as that was themembership's primary need. The working group also felt that it would bestraightforward, after establishing level 2, to relax and strengthen thecertification requirements, respectively, to address levels 1 and 3. Usingboard review instead of examination to decide certification made therequirement for a demonstrably objective process particularly challenging,especially considering the additional requirement that the process be scalableto many hundreds of certifications per year and thousands of certifications intotal.

Accredited Certification Programs

Because many member companies already had largearchitectural practices and internal certification programs, an obviousstrategy was to leverage these existing programs. This led to the idea of"indirect" certification by an Accredited Certification Program (ACP), by whicha company could certify its own architects using an internal process that hadbeen accredited to conform to The Open Group standard for IT architectcertification, and that was periodically audited by The Open Group forcontinued conformance and quality control. In addition, The Open Group woulddirectly certify architects whose employers, for whatever reason, chose not toset up an ACP.

The certification process is depicted in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Direct andindirect certification process

Board Review Certification Process

Candidates for certification prepare a submission packagecomprising a document of no more than 50 pages, based on a template provided byThe Open Group, and letters of reference. If the package is judged complete andthe references are confirmed, it is passed on to a three-member review board,and a board interview with the candidate is scheduled. The board members arethemselves certified architects. The review board examines the package indetail, to confirm that the evidence the candidate has provided adequatelydemonstrates the skills and experience specified in the IT ArchitectCertification Conformance Requirements. The board's interview (three separateone-hour interviews with each board member) serves two purposes: to resolve anyuncertainties about the evidence provided in the submission package and toconfirm the candidate's ability to authoritatively discuss the work theevidence is derived from.

The three board members then meet to discuss theirconclusions based on the review of the submission package and the candidateinterview. While the goal is for a board to reach a unanimous agreement toapprove or reject a candidate, a two out of three vote is required. Each boardmember's conclusions about the candidate's satisfaction of certification requirementsare captured and preserved by an online candidate assessment tool. For eachcertification requirement judged not satisfied, the board member must provide aspecific explanation for why the evidence provided fails to demonstrate theskill or experience required, and this feedback is provided to the candidate.Candidates approved for certification are also provided with career developmentsuggestions from the board members.

Board interviews for direct certification are held inconjunction with The Open Group's quarterly Enterprise ArchitecturePractitioners Conference, and additional boards are scheduled at The OpenGroup's offices or elsewhere as needed. If a company has more than a fewcandidates for certification, it may be more economical for the board to travelto a company site at the company's expense.

Requirements

The Certification Conformance Requirements require that, foreach of the following skills, the candidate cite three examples that demonstratemastery of the skill to the degree that is appropriate for the certification level(certified, master, distinguished) for which application is being made:

• Apply communication skills.
• Lead individuals and teams.
• Perform conflict resolution.
• Manage architectural elements of an IT project plan.
• Understand business aspects.
• Develop IT architecture.
• Use modeling techniques.
• Perform technical solution assessments.
• Apply IT standards.
• Establish technical vision.
• Use of techniques.
• Apply methods.
• Define solution to functional and nonfunctional requirements.
• Manage stakeholder requirements
• Establish architectural decisions.
• Validate conformance of the solution to the architecture.
• Perform as technology advisor.

Similarly, the candidate is asked to provide three examplesdemonstrating:

• Experience producing architectures.
• Breadth of architectural experience.
• Experience with different types of technologies and architectures.
• Application of methods.
• Full life-cycle involvement.
• Industry knowledge.
• Knowledge of IT trends.

In addition, the certification candidate is required toprovide three experience profiles, each of which provides an overview of anarchitectural engagement the candidate participated in. The candidate may citethese profiles as providing the evidence asked for in the skills and experiencesections above. Each profile specifies:

• Experience with strategy/design/implementation aspects of solution.
• Key decisions made.
• Demonstrated architectural capability.
• Broad technical experience.
• Application of tools and methods.
• Demonstrated success.
• Performance as a lead IT architect.

Finally the candidate is asked to provide evidence ofprofessional development and community activities:

• Training in the design and engineering of IT architectures
• Knowledge of the technology, trends, and techniques in the IT industry
• Vertical industry knowledge (telecoms, financial, and so forth)
• Skills and knowledge in IT architecture
• Contributions to the IT architecture profession
• Contribution to the IT architecture community

Recertification

Certifications are valid for three years, after whichrecertification is required. Recertification entails a simplified applicationand interview process intended to validate that the architect has continued topractice and has continued with professional development and community contributionactivities.

Benefits of Certification

The total number of certified IT architects to date is 2112.Three companies (IBM, EDS, and CA) are currently operating AccreditedCertification Programs. Certified architects come from companies as diverse asAccenture, Adnovate BV, Allstate Insurance, Armstrong Process Group, ASC,BearingPoint, BK Larsson Consulting LTD, Capgemini, Carlson Companies, CiscoSystems, Codecentric GmbH, Credit Suisse, Computer Sciences Corporation,Datamail, Deutsche Post AG, EDS, First Canadian Title, Fortis, Ganz, GTECHCorporation, Gulf Business Machines, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, IntegrityOnePartners, Intel, ISM Canada, ITA Consulting, ITSC Bonn, Microsoft, QR SystemsInc., Rapier Solutions Consulting Ltd., Riosoft Consulting, and Rogers.

TOGAF or ITAC certification entitles one to membership inthe Association of Open Group Enterprise Architects (AOGEA).

The Open Group's TOGAF and ITAC certifications providemultiple benefits to the IT architecture community:

• Standards developed via an open, multinational process represent a consensus as to the industry's best practices.
• Internationally recognized standards for IT architect certification promote the development and recognition of the IT Architect profession and, thereby, raise the bar for qualifications across the entire industry.
• Certification provides professionals with a portable vendor-independent credential verifying their experience and competence, a credential which, by acknowledging their value and contributions, can aid in career advancement.
• Internationally recognized standards of architectural competence provide employers with a useful filter for potential hires, and supplementary criteria for selecting the most qualified individuals for critical roles and responsibilities, as well as provide a clear career path for employees.
• To assure quality of service, clients can require staffing by certified IT architects in requests for project proposals, procurement specifications, and service-level agreements.
• Solutions providers deploying certified IT architects through their service organizations will hold a competitive advantage as procurements increasingly specify certified practitioners as a requirement. This is happening to the project management profession and can be expected to happen to the IT architecture profession as well.
• All parties benefit from the ease with which the credential can readily be verified via The Open Group Certification Directory.
• Organizations with Accredited Certification Programs gain credibility and increased stature with clients, partners, and employees.

More Information

More information on The Open Group's architecture-relatedactivities and its certification programs can be found at The Open Group's Website: http://www.opengroup.org.

Information about the Association of Open Group EnterpriseArchitects can be found at the AOGEA's Web site: http://www.aogea.org.

About the author

Len Fehskens is the VP, Skills and Capabilities forThe Open Group. Len joined The Open Group in September 2007 after 23years with Digital Equipment Corporation, Compaq Computer Company andHewlett-Packard, where he led the worldwide Architecture Profession Office forHP Services. Len majored in computer science at MIT, and has over 40 years ofexperience in the IT business as both an individual contributor and a manager,within both product engineering and services business units. He is the leadinventor for six software patents on the object-oriented management ofdistributed systems.

This articlewas published in the Architecture Journal, a print and online publicationproduced by Microsoft. For more articles from this publication, please visitthe Architecture Journal Web site.