Total Architecture:
The Enterprise is the System

The technologies of BPM and SOA provide many opportunities to architect robust and flexible information systems. However, those same technologies are just as often used to re-implement the rat’s nest of systems they are designed to replace. So just how should these technologies be applied to achieve their expected benefits? This workshop provides an he answer to this question.

The answer begins with the recognition that business processes and information systems have become so intertwined that it is no longer possible to design one without the other. Projects must address the total architecture: business processes, people, information, and systems. It is in this context that we explore the architectural opportunities provided by SOA and BPM.

Recognizing that a service provides no value until it becomes an operational part of a real business processes, we consider the role that services should play in the total architecture. We examine the architectural evolution of the service concept, the emergence of service mediation, and the need for federated service busses in the enterprise. We look at how service component architecture (SCA) provides increasing flexibility in both design and deployment of services. We look at how complex event processing (CEP) and master data management (MDM) fit into the total architecture.

We look at the conduct of projects and consider an efficient approach to designing business processes and systems concurrently rather than sequentially (as is traditionally done). We see how a perspective of enterprise architecture as a dialog between business processes improves our understanding of the true scope of each project.

Finally, we examine some of the organizational issues involved in conducting projects whose scope encompasses two or more systems or organizations. We identify the coordination that is required at both the project and enterprise level to realize the expected SOA and BPM benefits. We conclude with some suggestions as to how this coordination can be achieved in practice.

Logistic:

Duration: 2 hours

Workshop is free for conference participants, registration required.