Enterprise Architecture's Ups and Downs Over Time: A Case of De- and Re-Institutionalization

This study contributes to the growing body of research on the assimilation and institutionalization of enterprise architecture (EA) within organizations. It adopts an institutional change lens to longitudinally analyze EA’s institutionalization, de-, and re-institutionalization processes in one of Norway's large public sector organizations. The study demonstrates a dynamic and cycle model of EA institutionalization in response to both internal and environmental pressures. It specifically emphasizes on regaining legitimacy for EA after getting de-institutionalized by revisiting its classical premise and by adapting to contemporary organizations’ agile mode of organizing.