Just a few weeks ago you may have found yourself checking over the school supplies lists for the kids, making sure they were equipped for the next educationally enriching year (notebooks, pencil cases — and don’t forget the colored markers!). Or, if those days are past in your household, perhaps you indulged in some fond memories as you turned the calendar pages.

But have you taken the time to make sure you are prepared for what’s next in your future, too? Now’s a good time to think about the gaps you’d like to fill in your own continuing education so that you’re poised for ongoing success in your enterprise architecture (EA) career.

The list starts here:

• Hone your vertical industry expertise.

This tends to be a subject of some debate among enterprise architects. Some believe that what should matter most is knowing and understanding EA’s foundational concepts and principles and applying them successfully by way of methodology. These generalists believe that this is something that can be accomplished across industry sector boundaries and that leaning too heavily on specific industry knowledge may make an architect less likely to ask the questions and do the analysis that matters — not just to the vertical but to the individual company.

While these points have merit, the fact is that EA must increase the business capabilities of an organization. And to be successful at that, you’ve got to be deeply familiar with your business and the industry in which it operates, so that  you can bring that knowledge — along with an open mind —  to making assessments and gathering requirements. And since industries and enterprises are changing so rapidly these days, developing that familiarity isn’t a once-and-done thing. It has to be accomplished through ongoing engagement with subject matter experts at your company, by staying current with vertical journals and thought leaders, by attending industry-oriented conferences and seminars, and so on.

• Bulk up your soft skills.

At least half the job of being a successful enterprise architect is political. In addition to the harder skills regarding things like methodology, modeling and governance, you’ve got to be able to effectively communicate with key stakeholders. Can you sell your case to all enterprise actors — business as well as technical — so that it’s compelling and persuasive? Several consultants and coaches have offered this advice for CIOs, but it holds true for enterprise architects as well.

If you’ve spent any time at all rehearsing an oral book report with your young child, you’re probably pretty good at picking out the parts that cause listeners to tune out: the drone-on laundry lists (“This happened, then that, then that, and that and that and that …”); the lack of clarity on key points (“Oh, I forgot to say first that you need to know the secret message is under the dog’s water bowl if you’re going to understand everything I just said.”); the wandering off-topic (“The book’s about Halloween, but I wish it was about Christmas because I like that holiday better.”).

But are you as good at sharpening your own discussions and presentations to persuade others that they should buy into your vision for architecting a better business foundation? Perhaps it’s time to peruse the course offerings in this regard.

• Build finesse in financial management.

You may not directly control the purse strings that govern how the EA group at your company is funded, but increasing your understanding of business/IT finance should still make the list. A good reason, as some experts have explained, is that it’s important to understand financial concepts, such as depreciation and its role in technology investment decision making, to successfully translate future-state descriptions of a desired architecture into a business case for moving toward that direction.

If you want to know more about the methods businesses employ for funding their enterprise architecture operations, and perhaps influence them, have a look at The Many Faces of EA Funding: Which Is Right for You?.

• Tool around the job postings.

It doesn’t matter that you’re not in the market for a new job (yet). Taking some time every month or so to review these listings will help you stay in touch with marketable skills. Sure, this gives you a chance to check the usual stuff, such as how your own framework certifications may compare with what’s in demand. But even more valuable is getting a heads-up on less obvious requirements that companies may be starting to seek out. Such as marketing savvy. One posting I saw, for example, takes the communicator aspect of the job to the max, expecting applicants to develop and execute a formal communications plan to promote EA. The words “Big Data” also are starting to crop up in the required skills section, such as the one I saw requesting a hands-on engineering background and experience with Big Data engineering challenges.  (Visit here for insight into how big data proliferation requires big thinking.)

And to return to the first point about why you should hone your vertical expertise, don’t be surprised to see that some job requirements expect you to participate in industry workgroups.

This isn’t a list you can cover with a quick shopping trip to the local school-supply store, of course! Then again, once you’re out of grammar school, pretty much nothing’s simple anymore. Feel free to add your own items to the list — we look forward to your feedback about continuing ed strategies for the enterprise architect.