"Enterprise Architecture – Making the Right Decisions"

1. Registration

Free. Space is limited. Registration is required.

2. Intended Audience

This seminar is designed for Senior and Mid-level Information Technology Managers and Business Managers, Information Architects, Technical IT Staff, or anyone else interested in finding out how Enterprise Architecture can guide effective decision-making. 

3. Abstract of Seminar Contents

Enterprise Architecture (EA) is a framework for decision-making. By developing Enterprise Architecture policies, principles, models, and standards, organizations can implement an informed, pragmatic approach to solving the business, information, and technology problems facing us every day.  In this seminar, we will examine the concepts of an Enterprise Architecture, how to develop one and apply it to decision-making in business and information technology. 

This is an opportunity to look into the emerging Enterprise Architecture Program for Washington State; how it is supporting Enterprise Wide decision-making and bringing state agencies together to solve common business and technology problems.  We will also focus on the relationships between statewide and agency Enterprise Architecture programs and how agencies have successfully used their EA framework to drive enterprise level decision-making. There will be specific examples from both agency and cross-agency EA initiatives.

You will be exposed to Enterprise Architecture concepts, terms/definitions, best practices, and strategies for building a successful EA framework. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to learn from the professionals and experts in this field.

4. Agenda

5. Presenters

Melissa Cook, President, M A Cook Corp.

Melissa Cook is President of M. A. Cook Corporation, a consulting firm specializing in enterprise architecture.  Her client list includes Fortune 100 companies and large public sector organizations.  She joined Hewlett Packard after receiving her B.S. in Computer Science from the University of Washington in 1979 and enjoyed twenty years with HP in technical and management positions during the development of the distributed computing industry.  She writes opinions for Computer World and is the author of a book entitled "Building Enterprise Information Architectures" published by Prentice-Hall.  It is a required or recommended textbook at many U.S. and international universities and is referenced in public domain publications from the U.S. Government. 

Greg Brant, Chief Enterprise Architect for Washington State, Department of Information Services

Greg Brant is the Chief Enterprise Architect for the State of Washington at the Department of Information Services. He has more than 20 years IT experience in both the public and private sector. Prior to his current role he was the Chief Technology Architect for The Regence Group – a four-state Blue Cross, Blue Shield Health Insurance Company.

Greg has specialized in helping both public and private sector organizations apply new technologies to meet business needs, and his experience includes both application and infrastructure development. He is a former Certified Public Accountant, and former Novell Certified Netware Engineer. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from University of Arizona.

Rick Cook, Interim CIO, Department of Social and Health Services

Rick Cook is currently the interim CIO for the Department of Social and Health Services.  Rick has worked in IT for the past 28 years.  He worked for Labor and Industries for 16 years and DSHS the last 12.  During the last two years, Rick has helped lead an effort to implement an Enterprise Architecture program at DSHS, which is actively being used in the decision making process.

Jeff Holm, Senior IT Policy Analyst, Department of Information Services

Jeff Holm, senior policy analyst with the Department of Information Services is the agency's advisor in the area of geographic information technology and serves as coordinator for the ISB Geographic Information Technology Committee and the Washington State Geographic Information Council.  Jeff has worked in information technology field for the past 34 years. During that time he has served in a variety of IT management capacities including application development, strategic planning, policy development, and most recently GIT enterprise architecture development. Prior to joining DIS in 1988, Jeff was IT and financial services manager for several small private sector firms, and worked at Control Data Corporation.  Jeff obtained an undergraduate degree (Business & Marine Science) from The Evergreen State College and an MBA (Finance & MIS) from Washington State University.

Allen Schmidt, Enterprise Architect, Office of Financial Management

Allen Schmidt, enterprise architect with the Office of Financial Management, has been involved in State government information technology since 1978. He is currently responsible for the OFM enterprise architecture program. In this capacity, he provides architecture support for statewide financial systems projects and manages an application development team within OFM. Previous to this Allen was the project manager for the OFM Budget and Allotment Support System (BASS) project. Prior to OFM, Allen graduated from Central Washington University and worked at the State Library and the Department of Natural Resources.

For More Information . . .

. . . Contact Allen Schmidt
IPMA Professional Development Committee Co-Chair