Architecture
Wait, hold it, no. We don't tell you how
to reconfigure your servers.
For us, "architecture" means "application architecture, the complete collection of all the systems you have (including legacy systems) and how they function in the business.
Try an exercise. On a (big) piece of paper, put a circle down for every business application you're running. (Don't count the desktops or operating systems.)If the application is big, make the circle big; use small circles for small apps. For ease of visualization, group the circles by functional area.
Now connect the circles with arrows; if data is (or should be) passed between two applications, put in an arrow, or if one application depends on another, put in an arrow.
We call the result the "spaghetti chart," for obvious reasons.
It's usually a good idea for
IT organizations to simplify their spaghetti chart.
Fewer circles, bigger ones, arrows that express real functional dependence =
lower costs, greater simplicity, fewer integrations, greater business effectiveness.
Not always, of course. Sometimes that little circle in
the corner hides a huge money-maker, something you would
never want to get rid of.
To simplify the chart, therefore, you really need
to know what commercial applications are out there
that can be
effective replacements for the apps you have now.
Isn't that what analyst firms do? Well, not really.
Most analyst firms don't go deep enough. Yes, they
can tell you the leaders--though you need, in Mike
Hogan's words, to "take what they say with a truckload
of salt." But they don't have the time (or often, the knowledge)
to go deeply enough into your requirements and into the
application's capabilities.
Because our economic model is different, we can
use our research to figure out architectures, and
we can and do help companies simplify their
spaghetti charts.
If you are interested in talking more to us
about work in IT architecture,
please
contact us.
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