Enterprise Architecture Debts

Publications

Browse publications on enterprise architecture debt, architecture smells, and model quality. The list covers foundational concepts, methods for identifying and managing debt, and research on detecting and addressing smells.

  • Alexander, P., Hacks, S., Jung, J., Steffens, U., Uludağ, Ö., & Lichter, H. (2020). A Framework for Managing Enterprise Architecture Debts: Outline and Research Directions. Enterprise Modeling and Information Systems Architectures (EMISA 2020), CEUR Workshop Proceedings, 2628, 5-10. https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2628/paper1.pdf
  • Borquez, N. V., Holmgren, M., & Hacks, S. (2024). Optimizing Enterprise Architecture: Strategic Approaches to Managing Enterprise Architecture Debt. 2024 26th International Conference on Business Informatics (CBI), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1109/CBI62504.2024.00011
  • Bråtfors, R., Hacks, S., & Bork, D. (2022). Historization of Enterprise Architecture Models via Enterprise Architecture Knowledge Graphs. The Practice of Enterprise Modeling (PoEM 2022), Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, 456, 51-65. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-21488-2_4
  • Daoudi, S., Larsson, M., Hacks, S., & Jung, J. (2023). Discovering and Assessing Enterprise Architecture Debts. Complex Systems Informatics and Modeling Quarterly, (35), 1-29. https://doi.org/10.7250/csimq.2023-35.01
  • Fumagalli, M., Sales, T. P., Barcelos, P. P. F., Micale, G., Glaser, P.-L., Bork, D., Zaytsev, V., Calvanese, D., & Guizzardi, G. (2026). Mining Frequent Structures in Conceptual Models. Software and Systems Modeling, 25(2), 549-577. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10270-025-01295-0
  • Hacks, S., Höfert, H., Salentin, J., Yeong, Y. C., & Lichter, H. (2019). Towards the Definition of Enterprise Architecture Debts. 2019 IEEE 23rd International Enterprise Distributed Object Computing Workshop (EDOCW), 9-16. https://doi.org/10.1109/EDOCW.2019.00016
  • Hacks, S., & Jung, J. (2020). Enterprise Architecture Debts – A Concept to Manage EA Evolution? ICIS 2020 TREO Papers. https://aisel.aisnet.org/treos_icis2020/5/
  • Hacks, S., & Jung, J. (2023). A First Validation of the Enterprise Architecture Debts Concept. Enterprise, Business-Process and Information Systems Modeling (BPMDS 2023 and EMMSAD 2023), Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, 479, 217-226. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-34241-7_15
  • Hacks, S., & Slupczynski, A. (2025). Advancing Enterprise Architecture Debt: Insights from Work System Theory. Perspectives in Business Informatics Research (BIR 2025), Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, 562, 107-123. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-032-04375-7_7
  • Jung, J., Hacks, S., de Gooijer, T., Kinnunen, M., & Rehring, K. (2021). Revealing Common Enterprise Architecture Debts: Conceptualization and Critical Reflection on a Workshop Format Industry Experience Report. 2021 IEEE 25th International Enterprise Distributed Object Computing Workshop (EDOCW), 271-278. https://doi.org/10.1109/EDOCW52865.2021.00058
  • Jung, J., & Hacks, S. (2026). Design and Evaluation of a Taxonomy for Enterprise Architecture Debts. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.7193810
  • Jung, J., & Hacks, S. (2026). Towards a Taxonomy for Enterprise Architecture Debts. Enterprise Design, Operations, and Computing (EDOC 2025), Revised Selected Papers, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 16213, 3-22. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-032-15140-7_1
  • Lehmann, B.-D., Alexander, P., Lichter, H., & Hacks, S. (2020). Towards the Identification of Process Anti-Patterns in Enterprise Architecture Models. 8th International Workshop on Quantitative Approaches to Software Quality (QuASoQ 2020), CEUR Workshop Proceedings, 2767, 47-54. https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2767/06-QuASoQ-2020.pdf
  • Liß, L., Kämmerling, H., Alexander, P., & Lichter, H. (2021). Towards a Catalog of Refactoring Solutions for Enterprise Architecture Smells. SEED 2021 and QuASoQ 2021: Joint Proceedings, CEUR Workshop Proceedings, 3062, 60-69. https://doi.org/10.18154/RWTH-CONV-246890
  • Pagels, C., Hacks, S., & Bemthuis, R. (2026). Large Language Models for Analyzing Enterprise Architecture Debt in Unstructured Documentation. Proceedings of the 41st ACM SIGAPP Symposium on Applied Computing, 814-822. https://doi.org/10.1145/3748522.3779725
  • Salentin, J., & Hacks, S. (2020). Towards a Catalog of Enterprise Architecture Smells. Entwicklungen, Chancen Und Herausforderungen Der Digitalisierung: Proceedings Der 15. Internationalen Tagung Wirtschaftsinformatik (WI 2020), Community Tracks, 276-290. https://doi.org/10.30844/wi_2020_y1-salentin
  • Slupczynski, A., Alexander, P., & Lichter, H. (2023). A Process for Evaluating the Prudence of Enterprise Architecture Debts. Proceedings of the 25th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems (ICEIS 2023), 2, 623-630. https://doi.org/10.5220/0011971400003467
  • Slupczynski, A. M., Alexander, P., & Lichter, H. (2024). Defining and Evaluating Prudence and Recklessness of Enterprise Architecture Debt. Enterprise Information Systems (ICEIS 2023), Revised Selected Papers, Part II, Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, 519, 237–261. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-64755-0_12
  • Slupczynski, A., & Hacks, S. (2024). Towards a Knowledge Base of Terms on Enterprise Architecture Debt. Enterprise Design, Operations, and Computing. EDOC 2023 Workshops, Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, 498, 194-210. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-54712-6_12
  • Slupczynski, A., Krauze, B., & Hacks, S. (2026). Advancing Enterprise Architecture Debt: A Work System Theory Perspective on Modernization and Resilience. Complex Systems Informatics and Modeling Quarterly, (46), 67-96. https://doi.org/10.7250/csimq.2026-46.04
  • Smajevic, M., Hacks, S., & Bork, D. (2021). Using Knowledge Graphs to Detect Enterprise Architecture Smells. The Practice of Enterprise Modeling (PoEM 2021), Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, 432, 48-63. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-91279-6_4
  • Tieu, B., & Hacks, S. (2021). Determining Enterprise Architecture Smells from Software Architecture Smells. 2021 IEEE 23rd Conference on Business Informatics (CBI), 134-142. https://doi.org/10.1109/CBI52690.2021.10064
  • Yeong, Y. C., Hacks, S., & Lichter, H. (2019). Prioritization of EA Debts Facilitating Portfolio Theory. 7th International Workshop on Quantitative Approaches to Software Quality (QuASoQ 2019), CEUR Workshop Proceedings, 2511, 45-52. https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2511/QuASoQ-06.pdf