Case Study: Enterprise Architecture Maturity Framework for Business Process Outsourcing Success


In an increasingly outsourced world, success hinges on numerous factors. This comprehensive study unveils the correlation between enterprise architecture maturity and business process outsourcing success, offering insightful guidance for strategic planning and decision-making. Empower your BPO initiatives with an understanding of how enterprise architecture maturity can shape outcomes.


This master thesis presents an enterprise architecture maturity framework and uses it to establish a connection between enterprise architecture maturity and business process outsourcing success.

Executive Summary

"Business process outsourcing, the main subject of this thesis, is considered to be the dominating form of outsourcing for the coming years and is received with large enthusiasm in the business scene. Despite this enthusiasm there still exist enough cases of disappointments and failures. Previous research proved that the matter of success or failure of a business process outsourcing (BPO) trajectory depends on a number of factors. One of the most important factors is enterprise architecture. While preceding researchers acknowledge the link between BPO and enterprise architecture, no actual studies or best practices can be found regarding the influence of the maturity (i.e. matter of establishment) of an organization’s enterprise architecture on the success or failure of a BPO trajectory. Our research acts upon this and takes it one step further by revealing the relationship between enterprise architecture maturity and BPO success, after examining several relevant cases within the Dutch financial market. Results from our research eventually proved that there indeed exists a relationship between the business process outsourcing outcomes of an organization and the enterprise architecture maturity; however some important annotations have to be considered, which we will come back to shortly. Another substantial result which came along with our research was the construct and validation of a research based enterprise architecture maturity framework. Organizations recognize the importance of enterprise architecture and in response architecture developments and establishments are stimulated. In order to continue architecture improvements it is likely for organizations to find out where they stand (as-is) and where they are heading to (to-be). A popular way of doing so is by classifying the different architecture aspects of the organization in terms of maturity. This has yielded interesting enterprise architecture maturity models that can help an organization assess the current state of its enterprise architecture establishments and focus on possible improvements. These models however appear to insufficiently cover all enterprise architecture aspects as defined in this thesis (based on literature). Besides, the topic enterprise architecture maturity mainly lives within the commercial scene and there exist little ‘serious’ literature regarding frameworks and best practices; a perfect opportunity to contribute to enterprise architecture maturity on a more academic base. Next to the tool for exposing enterprise architecture maturity, another tool was needed for this research; a measurement tool for the success of business process outsourcing. For this purpose we adopted and slightly adjusted an existing framework that was proposed in previous research. Being fully equipped with proper measurement tools we acceded to the practical field for the benefit of the main research goal. Some large Dutch business process outsourcing cases from the past 5 years were examined and compared.  We have mentioned that next to the revealed relationship between the business process outsourcing outcomes of an organization and the enterprise architecture maturity, based on the cross case comparisons the case studies, some annotations must be considered. Namely, the relationship strongly depends on the type of business process outsourcing and the way it is executed. The role of enterprise architecture maturity in outsourcing outcomes for simple business processes (e.g. billing services) distinctively differs from the one for complex business processes (e.g. entire back-office). Enterprise architecture establishments demand more mature standards for outsourcing complex business processes while simple processes can achieve a relatively high success rate with low architecture maturity. However throughout the different case studies, we consented to the same conclusion: given the definition of enterprise architecture within this thesis, a more mature enterprise architecture would have resulted in better outcomes for the concerning business process outsourcing trajectories in terms of costs and on time delivery. This was again confirmed by the results from the used frameworks. Discussion of the conclusions drawn from our research shows that enterprise architecture must receive sufficient attention before going through a business process outsourcing trajectory, where higher maturity (from both customer and outsourcing supplier) can determine outsourcing outcomes in terms of success. The discussion also invites future research on a larger scale (e.g. a larger set of interviewees for similar research, involvement of other markets or different types of business process outsourcing). The obtained results came to an end thanks to a composed maturity framework for enterprise architecture. Constructing a particular framework has not been one of our initial objectives. Still it played an important role within our research. While this framework is more adequate and versatile than most current available maturity frameworks and we made quite an effort for proper construct, still some refinements can be recommended, for example more extensive validation. We believe that an enhanced version of our framework can be of significant value within the business and advisory scene for establishing best practices regarding enterprise architecture improvements under guidance of maturity.

This comprehensive document sheds light on a pivotal, yet often overlooked, determinant of successful business process outsourcing (BPO) - the maturity of an organization's enterprise architecture.

In the current business environment, BPO is perceived as a significant trend, embraced enthusiastically by many organizations. Yet, this enthusiasm is tempered by numerous instances of unfulfilled expectations and outright failures. The performance of a BPO initiative hinges on several factors, among which enterprise architecture stands out as crucial.

In the backdrop of such a scenario, this master thesis introduces an enterprise architecture maturity framework that explores the relationship between the maturity level of an organization's enterprise architecture and the success rate of its BPO initiatives. The thesis bridges a critical gap in existing research which acknowledges the link between BPO and enterprise architecture but lacks substantive studies or best practices on how the maturity of an organization's enterprise architecture influences BPO outcomes.

The researchers carefully scrutinize several cases within a prominent industry, concluding that a tangible correlation exists between enterprise architecture maturity and BPO success. However, this relationship depends heavily on the type and execution of the BPO. The impact of enterprise architecture maturity varies for simple and complex business processes, demanding higher maturity levels for outsourcing intricate processes, while simpler processes can achieve success with lower architecture maturity.

An important byproduct of the research is a robust and academically sound enterprise architecture maturity framework. This framework helps organizations assess their current architecture's maturity and direct improvements strategically. It outperforms many existing models, which often fall short of covering all aspects of enterprise architecture.

In conclusion, this document suggests that organizations should accord adequate attention to their enterprise architecture before embarking on a BPO journey. A higher degree of maturity in enterprise architecture can potentially determine the success of outsourcing efforts. Furthermore, the researchers encourage further studies on a larger scale or across diverse markets to refine and expand the insights offered in this study.

This document provides valuable insights for CIOs and IT leaders who are considering or already engaged in business process outsourcing (BPO) initiatives. Identifying and understanding the role of enterprise architecture maturity in BPO success can directly influence decision-making and strategic planning in real-world scenarios. Here's how CIOs can leverage this document to address the challenges they face:

  1. Informed Decision Making: The study's findings can help CIOs make more informed decisions about outsourcing a business process. If their organization's enterprise architecture is less mature, they might reconsider outsourcing complex processes, as the study shows a higher likelihood of success with more mature enterprise architecture.
  2. Strategic BPO Planning: The document can help CIOs plan their BPO initiatives strategically. Understanding that the success of BPO is correlated with the maturity of their enterprise architecture allows CIOs to align their BPO strategies accordingly. They can prioritize enhancing their enterprise architecture maturity before undertaking significant BPO initiatives, especially those involving complex business processes.
  3. Enterprise Architecture Development: The enterprise architecture maturity framework presented in the study provides a practical tool for CIOs to evaluate their current architecture maturity level. This can serve as a basis for identifying areas of improvement and directing efforts to advance their organization's enterprise architecture.
  4. Risk Mitigation: By considering enterprise architecture maturity as a determinant of BPO success, CIOs can better anticipate potential risks associated with outsourcing. They can proactively implement measures to mitigate these risks, such as investing in enterprise architecture development or choosing BPO providers who can support their architecture maturity level.
  5. Promoting Best Practices: Finally, the findings of the study can be used to establish and promote best practices within the organization. By educating their teams about the influence of enterprise architecture maturity on BPO success, CIOs can foster a more informed, strategic approach to BPO across the organization.



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