Navigating complexity - the enterprise architect's guide to real impact

Navigating Complexity – The Enterprise Architect’s Guide to Real Impact

The definitive reference for enterprise architects who want to create real, lasting impact

This book started with a simple intention: to further expand on Architecture in Action.
It became something far more ambitious. Navigating Complexity has evolved into a fully independent, comprehensive flagship work: a mature and practice-driven reference that stands on its own as a Body of Knowledge for Enterprise Architecture.

This is not a framework book. This is not a catalogue of models. This is the book you keep within reach when complexity rises and decisions matter.

What this book is:

• A deep, practical, and experience-based handbook for enterprise architects
• A guide to strategy execution, not just strategy definition
• A collection of proven approaches, patterns, decision tools, and real-world examples
• A bridge between strategy, governance, portfolios, teams, and technology
• A reference work you consult when facing real challenge

What this book deliberately is not:

• Not yet  another new EA framework

• Not a theoretical modelling exercise

• Not a dogmatic methodology

• Not architecture detached from organizational reality

Where this book truly adds value

This book does not describe how Enterprise Architecture should work in ideal conditions.

It addresses how organizations actually operate:

• with conflicting priorities

• under project pressure and political tension

• with unclear mandates and limited formal authority

• with fragmented initiatives and competing agendas

It shows how enterprise architects can:

• provide direction without control

• influence decisions without hierarchical power

• create coherence in environments that constantly change

What you will find inside:

• Clear positioning of Enterprise Architecture as a strategic capability

• Practical guidance on:

  • capability mapping

  • roadmapping and portfolio management

  • architecture in agile and project environments

  • documentation without bureaucracy

  • scenario thinking, impact analysis, and decision support

  • tooling and repositories in real-life contexts

• Numerous concrete examples from both public and private organizations

• Downloadable templates, canvases, and tools via QR codes

• Reflection questions for architects and leaders

• Strong attention to the human side of architecture: trust, positioning, communication, and credibility

Who this book is for:

• Enterprise Architects (junior to senior) who want to move beyond diagrams

• Lead and domain architects aiming to operate at a strategic level

• CIOs, CDOs, and executives who want to understand how architecture enables strategy

• Organizations that want to use EA as a structural leadership and decision-making capability

The book's core message

Architecture is not about control.
It is about connection.

Between strategy and execution. Between today and tomorrow. Between people, decisions, and systems.

Navigating Complexity makes that connection visible and actionable.

+/- 300 pages A5

IBSN: 9789083636917

Paperback

Will be shipped in March 2026