Abstract
This dissertation is aimed at exploring the benefit derived from the implementation of Enterprise Architecture (EA) in the context of the South African Government. The South African Government established an e-government policy which placed into the mainstream the use of EA to facilitate the integration of disparate systems to ensure government services reaches the citizen faster and more efficient. However, there is a general scarcity of literature that assess the implementation of EA in the South African government, or the benefit derived from its implementation. As such, the Integrated Justice System (IJS) was chosen as a case study for assessing EA implementation and benefit realisation in the South African context. The IJS is the singular body charged with promoting the collaboration and integration of various departments within the Criminal Justice System (CJS). The dissertation starts off with creating a general understanding of the key concepts and benefits of EA as a discipline, and more especially the benefits to be derived from its implementation. This theoretical understanding is compared against the expected outcomes of the South African Government e-government policy, contrasted against the perceived benefit realised from the IJS implementation of EA. The main findings of the dissertation include the fact that the IJS managed to successfully develop its own data model, and managed to successfully replicate it across the various departments in the cluster. This implementation brought about both direct and strategic benefits to the cluster as well as on individual member departments. The dissertation concluded that the derived benefit of the EA effort seems to be localised to the IJS cluster, and an opportunity exist to replicate the model and processes to other departments and clusters within the sphere of government.
M.Com. (Business Management)