When we say "enterprise architecture" to a client for the first time, the reaction is often that it sounds like something only a large multinational needs. In practice, the earlier a growing business thinks about it, the less expensive it is to get right.
At its simplest, enterprise architecture is the discipline of making sure your systems, your people, and your processes are pointed at the same business goal — and that a decision made in one area does not quietly undermine another.
A solutions architecture review typically surfaces the same handful of issues: duplicated data entry across systems that were never designed to talk to each other, unclear ownership of key processes, and documentation that exists only in one person's head.
None of these are dramatic problems on their own. Left unaddressed through a period of growth, they compound quickly.