What Should an Enterprise Architect Do in the Summer? ☀️
Summer in enterprise architecture (EA) can feel... ambiguous. People are on vacation, projects are on pause, and your inbox (hopefully) stays quiet. So what should an enterprise architect actually do?
Some say: catch up on that strategy deck, clean up the capability model, or finally update the current-state documentation. Others suggest the opposite: unplug completely, slow down, and forget about architecture for a while.
Honestly? I think the sweet spot is somewhere in between.
Summer is the perfect time for a different kind of EA work—the kind that doesn't always fit into the typical project rhythm but ends up making a real difference in the long run.
Here’s what I believe summer is especially good for.
A little bonus post to keep things warm over the holidays.
What Summer Is Actually Good For (When You’re an Enterprise Architect)
Reconnect with Reality
In the middle of major initiatives, it’s easy to get caught up in frameworks and future visions—and forget how things actually work today. Summer is a great time to go back to the basics.
Map out how data really flows between applications. Check if the application portfolio still reflects what’s in use. Talk to someone who’s maintaining that ancient integration that was “supposed to be temporary.” You might be surprised by what you find, and how valuable it is later.
Zoom Out and Reflect
With less day-to-day pressure, you can think more clearly. What’s truly working in your EA approach? What feels heavy or irrelevant? What did you start doing just because a framework told you to?
This is the perfect time to ask:
What’s worth continuing?
What should be stopped?
What no longer makes sense?
Sometimes the best strategy updates don’t come from pushing harder, but from stepping back.
Read and Scribble
Summer is the perfect time to let ideas simmer. Read a book you wouldn’t normally reach for. Sketch on paper instead of a modeling tool. Jot down thoughts that have nothing to do with this quarter’s targets. And if you really can’t let go of EA—there are some great architecture books out there too.
Not every insight needs to be formalized. Some of the best thinking starts out messy, offline, and unstructured. Often, it’s the quiet moments that connect dots you didn’t even know were related.
Talk to People (the Human Kind of Talking)
Fewer meetings can mean more real conversations. Use the slower pace to check in informally with people you don’t usually have time for: a product owner, a tech lead, or someone working on the frontline of operations.
Ask what’s frustrating. Ask what they wish architecture would help with. Then just listen. No frameworks, no models—just insight.
Zoom Out to See the System
Use the slower pace of summer to step back and look beyond individual components. Pick one service, capability, or process and trace how it connects across applications, roles, and organizations. Sketch a high-level view—not to capture every detail, but to understand the whole.
Ask yourself: What is this all trying to achieve? Where’s the friction? Does the structure support the outcome—or get in the way?
Seeing the system helps you design better parts.
Get Inspired by Construction Architecture
Step into buildings, explore spaces, and notice how form supports function and beauty. Physical architecture balances structure, purpose, flow, and user experience in ways that closely mirror what we aim for in enterprise design.
What makes a space work? What makes it timeless? Or confusing, fragile, and hard to navigate? These same questions apply to digital and organizational systems. There’s a lot enterprise architects can learn by looking up from diagrams and into the built world.
(Actually) Do Nothing for a While
This might be the most productive thing of all. Let your mind wander. Step away from the tools, the plans, the Slack threads. Go outside. Be bored for 20 minutes.
Some of the most useful architectural thinking doesn’t happen in structured time. It comes when you’re not trying. And the clarity that follows often shapes what you do in the months to come.
How I’m Spending My Summer
This summer, I’ll be doing a bit of all of the above—plus spending time with family, doing some writing, and enjoying a little recreational flying.
I hope this post inspires you to make the most of the space summer offers. Not just to rest, but to reconnect with what really matters in your work.
Wishing you a great summer.
See you in August!
Eetu