Within 3 years, the number of companies using Service-Oriented Architectures is expected to double
Nearly 20% of all organisations in the Netherlands are currently actively using a Service-Oriented Architecture. Since nearly all organisations which are familiar with the SOA concept are positive about this method, it is expected that in the next few years about the same number of organisations will take the first steps on the SOA path. Nearly 10 percent of the organisations even expect to initiate the first SOA actions within twelve months. Another 14 percent expects to do this within two to three years. This was revealed by the 'Service-Oriented Architectures in the Netherlands 2008' survey which MarketCap recently carried out in cooperation with Inter Access.
The most important advantages which companies expect to realise by introducing a service-oriented approach in the IT organisation are: (1) increasing flexibility of the IT environment and (2) better alignment of the IT environment with the specific business processes as they occur within the own organisation. Both advantages are listed among the three most important advantages of a SOA by nearly 40% of the organisations which are currently actively using SOA or which will start using it within two years. Other advantages which are mentioned relatively often are: better information access for clients/users, the possibility to reuse existing software (components) and the integral approach which is achieved using a SOA.
Han Dieperink, board member of Inter Access, says: "Even though there are currently only a limited number of projects, SOA is definitely a proven technology. Even so, many organisations think in terms of IT objectives, instead of business objectives. It is not about the flexibility of the IT environment as such, but about the flexibility and versatility of the organisation as a whole. IT has a supportive role in this. By using a SOA to build a bridge between IT and the business, the information supply can be used to the best advantage."
For now, financial service providers and business service providers (including the IT sector itself) are most familiar with Service-Oriented Architectures. It is exactly these segments where the use of SOA or the plans to start using it within 24 months are most common.
An important challenge is to familiarise general management with the SOA concept. Research shows that more than half of the general managers (financial managers, operations managers, etc.) who were interviewed, are not familiar yet with the SOA concept. A little over 25% indicate they are familiar with the term SOA. The remaining interviewees, over 15%, indicate they are familiar with the content/interpretation of SOA.
"The starting point of Service-Oriented Architectures is their outside-in nature. It is centred on the needs and wishes of the client, instead of on the IT capabilities. The implementation of the business processes is subsequently based on this. This means that management should be involved in thinking about future services, which makes SOA a subject which goes beyond the IT department. From experience, we know that the cooperation between general management and IT management is crucial in successful implementations," says Dieperink.