Ugh!  That was my reaction when I first read about "SOA 2.0".  As Mark Little wrote "Giving an architectural approach a version number is crazy: it makes no sense at all!"

And please, do we need any more confusion on the relationship between SOA and EDA?  I think not.  And I'm not alone.  Neil Dutton-Ward at Macehiter Ward-Dutton has created an online petition to "Stop the Madness".  The petition reads as follows:

We've created this online petition because we're dumbfounded at the attempt by certain parts of the IT industry to create and give weight to the term "SOA 2.0".

We and others have blogged about this already: Joe McKendrick, Mark Little, and Duane Nickull to name but three.

As Duane said recently: "Normally, when someone comes out with a new buzzword that doesn't really have any substance, most people merely complain quietly and go about their business."

We would dearly love, just this once, for things to be different. Industry does not, at this point, need more confusion around SOA. SOA has real value, but industry at large is only just coming to terms with what it means and what it can do. Inventing terms like "SOA 2.0" might help some analysts and vendors make money, but overall, in the long run it damages us all.

In part, this petition is an experiment. Many people have discussed the power of the Web to aggregate and demonstrate the power of individuals: but it would be good to see if, through this simple web page, we could pressure the protagonists into backtracking on SOA 2.0.

I encourage practitioners who are sick of the hype, and looking for  real information/ammunition to introduce/extend SOA in your business to click through this link, and sign the petition.  (Just don't double submit as I mistakenly did).

Posted by brendamichelson in EDA • SOA • architecture strategies | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm at the Global Integration Summit in Boston, and I finally have wifi in the conference rooms.  The session I'm in right now is a pre-announcement of the launch of a SOA Alliance organization. This organization will be part of the Integration Consortium. 

The exciting news is the SOA Alliance is "founded, driven and measured by a practitioner community".  While no names were shared - there are 20 "house hold name" end-user companies signed up.  The group wants to quash the SOA hype, and work together to derive business and IT value.

Some of the group's goals are:

1. Get agreement on terminology for discussing SOA.
2. Influence and deliver requirements to Standards Organizations and Vendors
3. Provide education and rich understanding:

• Articulate & Promote Business Value
• Capture & Disseminate Success Stories, Best/Worst Practices
• Offer templates, tool and methodology to ensure investment success

I'm really glad to see this.  In my Observations from the Field: SOA report I published with PSG at the beginning of May, I not only wrote about The hard part of SOA, but also The SOA Hype.  Here's that excerpt:

The SOA Hype

It’s no surprise that enterprises are tired of the SOA hype. Enterprises want real numbers on SOA adoption. No one cares how many enterprises have a Web service or two in their portfolios. What people want to know is what percentage of an enterprise’s portfolio is service-oriented? Of that percentage, how much is composed of services, and how much is service enabled (exposed for consumption as a service)? With that, people want to know how much of the enterprise’s portfolio is planned to be service-oriented? All of it? Or a portion?

Enterprises are also keenly interested in case studies. The case studies should include the business problem being solved, the solution, and metrics on investment, return, quality, and productivity.

What is surprising, to us anyway, is that vendors are also tired of the SOA hype. More than one vendor has mentioned to us recently, they look forward to the hype dying down, and real work being undertaken.

SHARE STORIES.  So, here’s our suggestion. If you are an enterprise considering or pursuing SOA, share your numbers and stories in peer communities. If you are a vendor, feature real customer stories, connect prospects with practitioners, and clear a path for real communication. As for our part, we will continue to report information from the field, and would be happy to relate an enterprise’s SOA story.

Posted by brendamichelson in SOA • integration | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

• InformationWeek on Blog-Based Analysts Shaking up IT Research
  While rightly so, the article speaks heavily to my friends at RedMonk, thanks to James McGovern I get a little mention :)
  (tags: blogging analysis michelson redmonk)
• InfoQ - Tracking change and innovation in the enterprise software development community
  Interesting new community. Co-founder also started theserverside. "...source for keeping up with change and innovation in the enterprise software development community, specifically serving the Java, .NET, Ruby, SOA, and Agile communities."
  (tags: soa ruby agile news java community)

Posted by brendamichelson in links | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

One of the great things about blogging, is the abundance of tools, services and widgets available to try out.  For the most part, these things are free, and easy to incorporate. 

A feature you'll see soon is a my deli.cio.us integration into my business-driven architect feed.  I make good use of the deli.cio.us' "do not share" feature - so I won't inundate readers with links.

I'll also be adding sidebar content, such as a bookshelf, and of course, blogrolls.  This gets me to my first "call for reader participation". 

I want to create/publish a blogroll of practitioners in business-driven architect type positions. Here's a sampling of names and links I've collected so far: Richard Akerman, MarkG, Mike Herrick,  Sandy, Sam Lowe, Scott Mark, Doug McClure, James, and JT.

What I'd like from readers are submissions of other practitioner blogs you read or write.  Either leave me a comment, or send an email to bda at elementallinks dot com.

Thanks! 

Posted by brendamichelson in blogging • business driven architecture | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (1)

Getting through the first post on a new blog can be a daunting task for both the author and reader. So, to save us all some pain, I've chosen a question-driven format, augmented by links to my previous writings. Here goes:

Who am I?

I'm an architect/consultant/analyst/writer/blogger. My background is in corporate IT. My current day jobs are architect-in-residence for the Patricia Seybold Group and principal of Elemental Links. My bio is here.

I'm also (the all too quiet) voice of business-driven architecture. Too quiet until now, that is.

What is Business-Driven Architecture?

Business-Driven Architecture is my view of architecture, developed on the premise that architecture is not an end, but a means, and the business must drive architecture composition.

I believe the most viable, agile architectures will be comprised of a blend of architecture strategies, including (but not limited to) service-oriented architecture, event-driven architecture, process-based architecture, federated information, enterprise integration and open source adoption. How you blend, depends on your business.

In Business-Driven Architecture, enterprise architects are not only responsible for articulating the architecture, but also for actualizing the architecture, and introducing the architecture into IT business projects.

Business-Driven Architecture has a strong bias to action, business opportunity, and project and portfolio advancement.

Who is a Business-Driven Architect?

Enterprise architects who drive the foundational strategies (as mentioned above) that make sense for their businesses, while actively consulting with, and contributing to, business growth initiatives.

The business-driven enterprise architect's responsibilities go well beyond the whiteboard. They need to deliver the architecture (tools, practices, services, and infrastructure), and roll it out to project teams.

Over the lifecycle of an architecture initiative, an enterprise architect might play a variety of roles, including strategist, evangelist, architect, project leader, developer, mentor, and enforcer.

Does that sound familiar? Then you are a business-driven architect!

For more on the Business-Driven Architect, please see my IT Linchpin post at elemental links.

For more of my writings on the architecture strategies: SOA Definitions, Event Driven Architecture Overview, Open Source Considerations, BPEL Primer, and Solving Classic Problems with SOA.

Does this blog replace elemental links?

No! This blog (BDA) and my original blog (elemental links) are complements.

This blog will contain insights, opinions, and references to items of interest to business-driven architects. Expect to see posts on architectural strategies, technology trends, business and relevance.

Elemental links remains the home for my architecture and research projects. As such, that’s the place for long form posts and related heavy lifting.

Why ebizQ?

1. Community - ebizQ's readers and contributors are practitioners, doing real work.

2. Reach – ebizQ has good traction, with the right people. (See #1).

3. Good Company - I know many of the ebizQ bloggers. BethGB and I have known each other for years. Ronan and I have chatted about SOA and semantics over coffee. I read and trade email and/or comments with Sandy, DaveL and James.

What else?

I welcome (encourage) reader interaction! I will (eventually) respond to reader comments and email.

Posted by brendamichelson in blogging • business driven architecture | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (4)