Architecture and Mental Models
Value Wizard just had a great post, with the jargon-think title of “Socio-techno information processing” (ugh). Difficult title, good insight.
What really caught my eye was the recommendation that:
The CIO and enterprise architect must have a set of high level mental models which can be used to filter, categorize and contextualize information supply into meaningful mental constructs for business users
Right on! I really like the use of the term mental model to describe the relationship between high-level architecture and its users. According to Wikipedia, a mental model is:
… an explanation in someone’s thought process for how something works in the real world.
Maybe a simpler way to word all this is that if techies are actually IT brokers then they have to be able to think like their customers. At the organizational level there isn’t any shortage of good people, strategies, or solutions. From my experience, most IT groups don’t lack in intelligence, competence, drive, or a desire to succeed. However, many seem to lack in vision, discipline, and empathy. Developing mental models requires each of these characteristics and I think this is a good way to approach the job.
To some die-hards this may sound like marketing. But let’s face it, you are a marketer, even if you don’t want to be.
June 27th, 2006 at 10:41 am
I like the idea of a mental model. It kind of makes you think about using the mind. A couple of thoughts from your post.
I agree on your attributes and have been dissappointed in the past about what I have seen on-site at clients. But I think that it isn’t that these folks don’t have the vision, but often they do not have either:
- the time to take there jobs past the getting things that I have in front of me mode - 7 Habits of Highly Effective People can help with that.
- the tools to be able to bring these things in play.
Often people talk about the use of models (I use reference models or architecture), but do not talk about how to go about building them. The real power when working with clients is to empower them with the tools to do this on there own, develop confidence building projects for proof of ability and then an environment that allows people to do these things without being shot when they make mistakes.
Sorry for the long comment, but Mental Models, Reference Architecture and other tools are the framework for a better mutual understanding and there just aren’t enough good people helping others to get comfortable with it.
Great post, keep it up, loving the blog a daily stop.