Enterprise Initiatives

I have been blogging about our SOA project for over a year now. We are closing in on our first year of development and are ready to deliver eight different projects over the next two months. A few months ago we started our second process reengineering effort in another line of business. In this initiative we were able to access the process from pre-sales through contracts/proposals all the way through delivery. In the pre-sales area there is plenty of data mining and data discovery processes that take place so the sales team can go after the best opportunities. The pre-sales process is a business problem that is perfectly suited for our business intelligence (BI) tools. Historically, our BI tools were delivered as stand alone solutions. Now we have a need to allow the users to drill into data, select one to many result sets, and pass the information onto the next business process. In short, this means that we need to connect our BI results to our BPM tool.

In our current implementation, our SOA stack looks like this...



Our BI architecture (we use Microstrategy) looks like this...



But if treat our BI architecture as just another abstracted presentation layer, we get this...



In the previous picture, you can see that our SOA stack does not need to understand or even interface with the complexities of the BI platform. Instead, the selected result set that the user chooses from the BI user interface can trigger a web service to pass the results as an XML message to the SOA stack where the BPM engine takes over and moves the data into the next step of the process. Below is a example of a BI interface that I "borrowed" from the Microstrategy's web site.



Imagine drilling into the subcategory of computers to find an opportunity to sell a loyalty campaign to a customer based on certain performance metrics and demographics. Once the sales person selects a potential opportunity and hits the submit button, the data can be fed into the proposal process and much of the order entry data can be prepopulated to improve quality and save time.

So why does this matter? The point is that when we leverage architectures that abstract the presentation, data, business processes, and business rules, it becomes really simple to integrate applications whether they are home grown or commercially built. Because of the abstraction layers in both our SOA and Microstrategy's architecture, both solutions can treat the other as a black box and simply communicate via services. What makes this even more attractive is if our customers or partners have their own BI tools that we want to integrate with our systems we can simply provide them with an XSD so they know how to format the XML message (of course this assumes that the proper security is in place).

Another benefit of leveraging our BI tools as an abstracted presentation layer is that we can take advantage of many out-of-the-box features from the BI platform. Features like subscription services, alerts, flash enabled emails, mobile support, scorecards, and dashboards are just a few of the many rich features that you do not have to build from scratch. But the big bang is that your CIO will be happy to see you leverage the company's large investments in both BI and SOA while wowing your customers at the same time.

Here are this week's jobs that are posted on my IT Job Board.

1. Lawson contractor in Tampa
2. CEO needed in NYC
3. Temp to perm Java developer
4. PHP developer needed in Philly
5. Business Analyst needed in PA

Each week I pass along job opportunities that come across my desk via email, phone, LinkedIn, etc. I pass these opportunities along to my network in hope that somebody can benefit from these opportunities. If you are a recruiter, I am happy to pass along your job openings. If you are looking for work, I hope these opportunities are helpful.

Until next week, keep fighting the good fight!

Email me if you are interested

I was poking around on Slideshare today and stumbled across a few good presentations about Twitter. If you run into any folks that still don't understand Twitter, show them the following content.

Here is the Video that the presentation referred to:



The next presentation is a long one but discusses how Twitter can be used in business.

I wrote a post called Adobe Flex beats Silverlight every time in September of 2007. My key point was that Flex runs on Flash which is installed on over 99% of all PCs and laptops in the world. On top of that, Flex has released Air which allows you to deploy your application on the desktop independent of the operating system. This enables you to interact with data both online and offline and can sync up when the user connects back online. Salesforce.com is all over this already.

Today I read O'Reilly's post called What's Keeping Adobe Up at Night? Probably not Silverlight. Looking at the chart below you can see that Silverlight has gained no market share on Flex. I do not believe that this has much to do with the features of Silverlight, but more with the fact that the Silverlight plugin is on very few PCs and laptops across the world and is not getting adopted at a rapid pace.


Both Silverlight and Flex allow you to build breathtaking RIAs (Rich Internet Applications). Major vendors are leveraging Flex because of their requirements to provide a zero footprint application that runs on any browser and any operating system. Although Flash is not exactly zero footprint, the fact that it is on almost every single PC and laptop makes it acceptable for corporations to use. Look how Microstrategy, a leader in business intelligence, is leveraging Flash. If you click through these demos you will see a very rich user experience that can be fully integrated into your portal or sent as an email. SAP, Google, HP, and many other large companies are also leveraging Flex to create richer user experiences with their products. You can see many more examples of Flex in action here.

Check out Nokia, Wii, and Minicooper for some outstanding eCommerce sites that use Flex. And here's one for the guys (sorry ladies, it's about the technology, really).

RIA is changing the way consumers use the Internet. eCommerce companies who do not invest in this type of technology will fall far behind. In a few years rich interfaces like these will be expected. Adobe is in a great place to continue to dominate this market place. Microsoft has the money, the name, the power, and the product to succeed in this space, but I don't know how they will overcome Adobe's lock on having 99% of the PC market with Flash installed.

I guess we will just wait and see how this race plays out. In the mean time, I will continue to standardize on Flex in my enterprise.

Here is a presentation on Slideshare: 10 reasons to use Flex

Here is a slide show for those who need to explain to upper management the risks involved trying to implement SOA and the importance of SOA governance. This must be sold early on and the necessary resources must be brought in. Trying to implement governance after implementation is risky, expensive, and hard to do. Like SOA, governance should be implemented one step at a time and will take years to evolve to a high level of maturity. Make sure your SOA governance maturity level matches your SOA maturity level. Don't try to implement all of your governance up front because you will never have any time left to implement any SOA projects, hence you will not deliver value to the business. I hope the slides help. Enjoy!

Web 2.0 social software and collaboration tools have drastically changed the way I work and learn. Whether it is social networking tools like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter or information sharing tools like blogs and wikis, access to information and lessons learned have never been easier to find. I have worked at the same place for 13 years and had a very limited network until I started using these tools. Now I am collaborating with smart people all over the world. I recently was contacted via Twitter to participate at the Gartner & SOA Consortium “User Panel: Measuring the Value of SOA”. This opportunity never would have occurred if I had not taken advantage of Web 2.0 technologies.

What I am discovering is that these technologies are still very foreign to many people in the industry. Others are aware of the technologies but have written them off as child's play and see no value in them. Meanwhile, the world is changing and the way people communicate is radically different due to these technologies. So I have been wondering out loud why so many people are in the dark? Here are the conclusions that I came up with.

1. Some people see work as a 9-5 necessary evil and are not motivated to learn new skills and keep current with technology.
   
2. Some people (especially us old timers) are resistant to change. They insist on using the methods that have worked for them for the last 20 years.
3. Some people fear change. These people are comfortable with the way things are and fear becoming obsolete if their daily routine changes.

All of these things are concerning to me if I am putting a team together to implement a new technology or to change the current way we deliver. To combat this I added a series of questions to my interview process. I wanted to find out if and how the candidates research trends in technology, if they are familiar with the tools that the younger generations are using, and how adaptable they are.

Whether I am interviewing existing employees to build a new team or potential new hires from outside the company, I now try to see how aware they are of how the web is changing the way information is shared. Here are some of the things I might ask:

• How do you keep current with technology?
• What tools do you use to collaborate?
• How would you go about researching how to implement SOA?
• What was the topic of the last technology article you read?
• What is one of the most exciting new tools on the web today?

There are many more questions that could be asked. If their answers are I use email and trade magazines then they probably are not keeping themselves current. If they are unfamiliar with blogs and wikis then they are definitely old school and further questioning is needed to make sure they don't resist change.

I remember when I first stumbled across Twitter a year ago. I just couldn't understand the value. As time went by I noticed more people in my network were becoming excited about it. I could have dug my heals in and said, "I have managed to survive all of these years without it" and just ignored it. Instead, I created an account and started using it. At first it seemed like a waste of time but as I started following the right people my eyes opened to a whole new world of communicating. Now I can't live without it.

So my point to all of this is if you are in a position to put together a new team or hire new people, do you want people who aren't ready and/or willing to change the way they work or do you want people who are comfortable adapting to new ways of thinking? A quick way to gain insight into which side of the fence these people sit on is to test their Web 2.0 knowledge. If they can tell you more about their favorite reality show then they can about Web 2.0, move on to the next candidate!

In response to the recent surge of bad publicity that SOA has received, I have been screaming from my soapbox that SOA is the real deal, it's just the people who keep screwing it up. I offered my recipe for success and my ideas about change management. As I look back at my SOA journey, I identified one new role that I would add if I ever get an opportunity to lead another SOA initiative. That role is an Organization Change Management (OCM) specialist.

What is the OCM Role?
The OCM role is critical to the success of any large scale culture changing initiative. This person is responsible for accessing the readiness of the organization to change and then creating a change management strategy to help the organization transition from its current state to the desired future state. Developing a communication plan is also a key deliverable. People at all levels of the organization need to receive frequent communications of the impact of change, when the change is coming, what it means to them, how their jobs will be impacted, what the deliverables are, what training they will receive, and when will it be delivered. To make matters more challenging, each layer within the organization will need this information in a way that makes sense to them. For example, developers will want the low level detail, the business will want it in business terms, the financial people want it in dollars and cents, and senior management want an executive summary. There is no one communication fits all.

Then there is the skills assessment. What skills do we need? What can we address with training and what do we need to go outside for? Do we need to change our incentives and rewards programs, our recruiting process, our software development life cycle process, etc.? Does our existing job titles and pay scales make sense for the skills we need?

You can see that from this list of questions the scope of this role is more public relations (PR) and human resources (HR) then it is architecture.

Who fills this role?
There are a few options. This can be filled internally by an executive sponsor, an HR generalist, or even a project manager. However, only fill this internally if the person has clout and is near 100% dedicated to the project. If they have another day job then don't bother. External resources are also an option. This has many benefits. First, you can get someone who lives and breaths change management and has been through many of these types of initiatives before. Why reinvent the wheel and learn this from scratch when there are experts in the field. Second, the hours needed each week may fluctuate. You may need 40 hours one week and 20 the next. With an external resource you can pay only for the hours you need. Third, it is advantageous to have a fresh perspective from an outsider who is not tied to existing processes and cultural barriers. Fourth, this person can give candid feedback to the higher ups without worrying about getting fired. For example, let's say a senior executive is not pulling his or her weight in one area of the project. The consultant can confront that person and in extreme cases go above that person to provide feedback without worrying about their next pay check.

What are the benefits?
Investing time and money in change management can make or break a project. In my case, several of us took on various tasks in this area, but collectively we did not have sufficient time to communicate at the level we needed to. Some areas we didn't even get a chance to address. Leveraging an OCM specialist greatly improves communication, addresses project risks, helps people adjust to change, and greatly reduces resistance. You can survive without this role, but it will be much harder, cost more, and take longer due to resistance to change and communication gaps. Take it from someone who has spent the last two years fighting the good fight, change is good, but dedicated change management specialists are better.

Last week I tried an experiment which was to share some of the IT job leads that come across my desk via email or phone. I received a few responses so I figured I'd share this week's job leads with my network. So I created a new blog called Madgreek's IT Job Board where I will put detailed descriptions of jobs as they come to me, and once a week on this blog I will highlight some key jobs with links to the job board where you can see the details. I actually had a few recruiters contact me on LinkedIn and asked if I would share their job leads on my blog. Here are this week's opportunities:

1. Look what's cooking at Hershey!
2. Are you a Microsoft CRM pro?
3. Leadership needed for a social networking startup.

That's it for this week. If you know of any recruiters who want an opportunity to showcase their jobs for free on my site, please have them contact me at mkavis@yahoo.com.