Although supporting service-oriented architecture (SOA) as one of the most effective approaches to solving the common problem of integrating heterogeneous systems, Sun Microsystems delivered a cautionary tale at yesterday's SunForum in Kyalami.
"SOA is not purely about IT, but rather about business and business people being able to put software components together to meet business needs," Tony Willis, Sun engagement architect and SOA specialist, told forum attendees.
He emphasised that although cost savings of up to 60% have been recorded by implementing an SOA, the most significant impact of implementation was usually in terms of transforming the processes and systems within organisations.
Willis said failure to understand the true nature of the approach had resulted in SOA entering the trough of disillusionment in the Gartner research group hype cycle, as organisations begin to experience the pain of ill-conceived implementations.
"Recognising that not all IT organisations are equal in terms of implementing SOA and taking common pitfalls into consideration, a pragmatic and phased approach needs to be adopted," explained Willis.
According to Willis, successful SOAs need to be standards-based and process-centric. "Sun realises that SOA will not be implemented through any single organisation and therefore the use of open standards to ensure interoperability of components and platforms is crucial.
"Within a matter of weeks, organisations can analyse resources and assess the business benefits of implementing an SOA as well as identifying what needs to change within the organisation to enable it to make the transition," said Willis.
The final two phases of Sun's approach to SOA are the longest. The implementation phase typically takes between two and six months and the final phase of developing renewable skills and resources can take up to two years.
Willis concluded by saying the key to leading SOA out of the trough of disillusionment and up the slope of enlightenment was understanding what services are meaningful for business and ensuring IT delivers the mechanisms required to make those services available throughout the organisation.
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