Scandalous: In 2025, EA = IT Tools? And They Still Call It Enterprise Architecture?

Enterprise Architecture (EA) was supposed to be the foundation for how businesses function—aligning strategy, processes, systems, components, and operations into a cohesive, structured model.

The IT-dominated panel continues presenting IT tools as EA, while the audience of IT engineers cheers. Meanwhile, a lone executive in the back holds a sign asking, "Where is Enterprise Strategy?"

But in 2025, we still see Enterprise Architects defining EA as nothing more than IT programming tools.

Who are these people really serving? Because one thing is clear—they’re helping IT companies, not end users.

The IT-Centric Hijacking of EA

Is it just a coincidence that many of these so-called EA experts are still deeply linked to project delivery software and IT systems? Or that the very groups claiming to be shaping the future of EA are often funded by large IT vendors?

Think about it:

1. Enterprise Architecture Conferences—sponsored by software firms selling "EA or IT tools."

2. EA Certifications—designed to promote frameworks that prioritize IT implementations over business strategy.

3. Discussions—dominated by tech topics rather than real enterprise-wide problem-solving.

Meanwhile, who is thinking about the architecture of the enterprise itself?

Who is discussing the enterprise anatomy of telecom businesses, banks, or healthcare organizations—not just their IT infrastructure, but their real operational models, challenges, and strategic alignment?

The truth is, many so-called EA thought leaders are still pushing tools over enterprise design—because it benefits IT service firms, not the enterprises that need real transformation.

If EA = IT Tools, Then Who Is Designing the Business?

Let’s be clear: Real Enterprise Architecture is about how an enterprise functions—not just what technology it uses.

Yet, because IT vendors and tool providers dominate the conversation, EA is increasingly

If EA = IT Tools, Where is the Enterprise?”

being reduced to an IT-centric exercise, ignoring the very business structures, processes, and models that enterprises need to thrive.

The danger? If this misrepresentation continues, EA will remain a vendor-driven cycle—prioritizing software over strategy, tools over transformation, and technology over true enterprise success.

That’s why it’s time to call this out.

If we continue allowing IT vendors to define EA, then real enterprise transformation will always be an afterthought—while businesses struggle with fragmented, disconnected solutions that fail to solve their actual business challenges.

Enterprise Architecture Summit 2025, where every speaker and attendee is from IT, cheering for EA = IT Tools, while a lone executive wonders, "Where is the enterprise?"

Imagine during Enterprise Architecture Summit 2025, where the entire room is filled with IT professionals eagerly discussing programming tools, while a lone executive in the back looks around, puzzled, and asks, "Wait… where is the discussion about the enterprise?"

Did you realize that EA has been hijacked by IT discussions???

Who Else Has Noticed This?

1. Do you see EA being reduced to IT tools in your industry?

2. Who is actually discussing EA beyond IT?

3. What does real enterprise architecture look like in practice?

Is it time to reclaim Enterprise Architecture?