Building a Recession-
Proof SOA Strategy
Michael Coté, RedMonk
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 1

Save Yourself (First)
• Make sure IT is safe & secure
• often
Prove your worth to the business
• Use IT to make the company
money
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 2

You still need to deliver
• “Customers” expect to notice what you “sell”
them
• “What have you done for me lately”
• You can’t let yourself become a “utility”
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 3

What’s different?
• Less slack...
• ...for longer projects & cycles
• ...for speculative projects
• ...for doing the same thing over-and-over
• To survive, being useful is the best strategy
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 4

Cost, Profit, & Strategy
• “The Business” speaks in terms of money
• IT can help make money and enable strategies
• IT needs controls, knowledge, & governance
• Lean enterprise architecture
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 5

Washing up SOA
• The original goals of SOA fit these needs
well
• Enterprise software takes time to get right
• “SOA” is now old
While it’s not the time to be a test run,
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 6

A Brief History of SOA
• From the web
• WS-* → WS-Deathstar
• REST
• ESBs
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 7

Where we are now
1. Open source is mature and “normal” - use it
& use it tactically
2. SOA to open up opaque silos - doing more
with the same
3. Simplicity means less overhead to deal with in
the IT service life-cycle
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 8

Waiting for the gravy train
• This simplicity gives you the strategic space to
hold out until good times return
• Build room to explore quick and easy projects
• Take advantage of a more connected world
• PCI
Examples: Amazon AWS,Tesco API, retro-fitting
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 9

While you’re waiting
• Re-evaluate your priorities & projects with
the new demand for lower cost
• Show your worth and the right to get funding
• simplified; should they stay complex?
Find top areas of complexity; can they be
• Remember the goals of SOA - don’t throw
out the baby
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 10

3 Things To Do Right Now
1. Portfolio analysis for what you need vs. what
you desire
2. Determine if you know what you have, and
start building a repository if you don’t
3. How can you do more with the same?
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 11

Thank you!
License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/
Contact
Michael Coté
cote@redmonk.com
www.PeopleOverProcess.com
512.795.4307
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 12

Credits & Co.
• Building: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brook/2944163398/
• Slack: http://www.flickr.com/photos/clango/2205261045/
• Red Card Wash: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fortyseven/2795192714/
• WS-Deathstar Book: http://www.flickr.com/photos/psd/2217422218/
• WS-Deathstar: http://www.flickr.com/photos/psd/1428661128/
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metcalfe%27s_Law
• Road with leaves: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brook/2943301423/
• Car on road: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brook/2774172616/
• Slavic whiteboard: http://www.flickr.com/photos/quinnanya/132018687/
• Cages & Jersey Walls: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brook/2950988955/
Tuesday, December 9, 2008 13