Chapter 4
SOA Quick Start: Entry Points for Starting the SOA Journey
In This Chapter
Charting your business structure
Setting some SOA sights
Getting folks ready for the move
Partnerships make the SOA world go ’round
Making sure you don’t go it alone
If you made your way through the self-assessment test in Chapter 2 and are secure in the knowledge that you’re a lovable person and that your organization is ready for SOA, it’s time to plan your journey. We have two strong caveats about what you shouldn’t do:
Don’t try to boil the ocean. Don’t attempt to do everything at once.
If you’re business management, don’t turn SOA over to the IT organization and wash your hands of it. If you are IT management, partner with business management. For SOA to be effective, it must be done from the top down. In other words, if you really want your SOA plan to succeed, business management and IT must work together.
So, how should you approach SOA? You need a SOA plan that combines a business perspective, a technology road map, and an organizational initiative. Instead of giving you a deep, philosophical discussion on these (and other) matters, however, here are some practical guidelines for getting started with SOA.
Mapping Your Organization’s Business Structure
One of the biggest differences between planning for SOA and planning for any other technology initiative is that SOA planning forces you to think differently about your company, industry, and ability to innovate as well as the value of ...
