Datasheet

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alignment to the organization’s SOA strategy and goals. Only under
these conditions can SOA be governed and the value proposition of
SOA, achieved. Kumbaya governance does not work, period.
RIGHT-SIZED SOA GOVERNANCE: HOW MUCH
GOVERNANCE DO WE NEED?
Many organizations are anxious about governance, especially when it is
construed as adding layers of overhead and interfering in decision making
processes that are not broken. Weill and Ross observe that all organizations
have some form of governance or IT governance. Whether the current gov-
ernance is explicit or effective is a completely separate inquiry. While SOA
governance does have many moving parts and requires integrating many
perspectives and stakeholders in SOA decisions, SOA governance does not
have to add tremendous complexity. Yet SOA governance will add new
processes, extend current IT governance processes, and require more atten-
tion be paid to SOA-centric activities.
In order to keep things in perspective, we break out Henry David
Thoreau’s famous quote: ‘‘That government is best which governs least.’’
SOA governance is best implemented a little at a time, as much as is needed
to control key processes and decisions, and by implementing as much as nec-
essary to ensure SOA success. Any amount of SOA governance is more than
most organizations want, regardless of the nature of it. That said, SOA gov-
ernance is essential and therefore you must get it right. Enough to govern
critical SOA governance requirements, and yet not so much that innovation
and progress is stifled. A better SOA governance quote might be as follows:
That governance is best that governs best with the least.
You must always ask yourself if your SOA governance model is right-
sized for your organization, culture, and current SOA objectives.
SUMMARY
SOA governance does not have to be complicated, but it often can be,
owing to the many valid stakeholder viewpoints in a SOA initiative. In order
to make sense of SOA governance, there are a few dynamics to keep in mind.
&
All the stakeholders’ views are valid, yet all are not as critical early on
as they will be later.
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