Showing papers on "SOA governance published in 2009"

SOA Test Governance: Enabling Service Integration Testing across Organization and Technology Borders

Abstract: The Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) is the emerging paradigm in information technology. More than a true "architecture", SOA provides a general reference model for the development, deployment and management of distributed dynamic systems. Companies are progressively adopting service-oriented technology, because of its many (real or idealized) foreseen benefits, among which notably loose coupling and dynamic interoperability. Such benefits, however, can only be achieved through discipline and standardization: in this respect, SOA Governance qualifies a framework of policies, procedures, design rules and documentation standards to be enforced for ensuring that different services and components can successfully cooperate towards a shared business goal. What about testing of such composite SOA applications? Little attention has been devoted so far by researchers to SOA testing, but awareness is raising that existing techniques and tools are not adequate. Our position in this paper is that the establishment of a test governance framework is a key issue for enabling SOA testing at integration and system levels. We discuss the inter-relation between technical and "social" aspects of SOA application testing, and attempt a first abstract definition of a SOA Test Governance notion. We provide examples of proposed SOA testing approaches that, more or less explicitly, rely on a cross-organization agreed test process.

A Conceptual Framework for the Governance of Service-Oriented Architectures

Abstract: With the widespread adoption of service-oriented architecture (SOA) as the leading paradigm for the development of business applications, the need for adequate governance mechanisms to keep control of the increasing complexity inherently introduced by SOA arises. However, current approaches to SOA governance are often limited to either design time or runtime aspects of SOA governance, despite the need for adequate governance mechanisms covering the complete SOA lifecycle. Furthermore, no common understanding of SOA governance exists today, as many solution vendors misleadingly label SOA management products as solutions for SOA governance. This work presents a reference model for SOA governance that is based on the OASIS Reference Model for Service Oriented Architecture. It aims at establishing a common understanding of SOA governance and is intended to serve as a basis for comparing and developing concrete SOA governance solutions.

Service identification in SOA Governance literature review and implications for a new method

Abstract: Business-driven identification of services is a precondition for a successful implementation of service-oriented architectures and their subsequent governance. This article compares existing identification methods retrieved from related work and discusses the shortcomings. In particular, a lack of economic and governance aspects constitutes a problem and leaves space for improvements. Finally, the paper proposes a process-oriented method of service identification. This approach incorporates the business point of view, strategic and economic aspects as well as technical feasibility. By considering these aspects, it supports the governance of SOAs.

Challenges of governance approaches for service-oriented architectures

Abstract: IT Systems in companies nowadays are confronted with constantly changing market conditions, new competitive threats and an increasing number of legal regulations. The service-oriented architecture (SOA) paradigm provides a promising way to address these challenges at the level of the company's IT infrastructure. These challenges and the management of the introduced complexity and heterogeneity are targeted by SOA Governance approaches. Hereby, the basic structure of IT Governance frameworks is applicable to SOA; however, they lack applicability concerning some SOA-specific challenges. In this paper, we discuss deficiencies and provide insights of what regulation challenges a SOA Governance approach is actually required to be capable of, in particular in the area of service lifecycles and service marketplaces.

A Governance Model for SOA

Abstract: Currently, business requirements for rapid operational efficiency, customer responsiveness as well as rapid adaptability are driving the need for ever increasing communication and integration capabilities of the software assets. Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) is generally acknowledged as being a potential solution to expose finely grained pieces of software components on a network that are reusable and composable. Provisioning of business services for different business purposes may require the rapid assembly of their core functionality with different infrastructure capabilities and policies in different contexts. In this paper, the authors propose a SOA based governance model that permits to handle non functional requirements in a dynamic way.

SOA governance

Abstract: Many companies are moving from a goods-centric way to a service-centric way of conducting business. In this service-oriented world, we perform everyday tasks, such as communication, banking, or shopping, without human-to-human interaction from the comfort of our living rooms. This apparently seamless integration of services and computing power has put enormous demands on its underlying information technology (IT) infrastructure. As a result, familiar value chains are morphing into dynamic value sets where the participation of service providers is changing dynamically based on who is in the best position to perform a given task at a given time. The orchestration and governance of value set participation, which is conducted by the organization that delivers the end product, constitutes real value. With the rapid growth of web services and socio-technical ecosystems, the governance and management complexity of these modern, decentralized, distributed computing systems presents significant challenges for businesses.

A Three Level Model of SOA Maturity: Toward Achieving Sense and Respond

Abstract: Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) has been proposed as both a technical and managerial solution in making firms more agile in addressing ever changing business needs. This conceptual paper identifies 3 levels of SOA implementation maturity: 1. Stability, 2. Flexibility, 3. Sense and Respond. A process and governance strategy on how to achieve each level is theorized and supported by case examples. The highest level conceptualized, Level 3, holds promise whereby SOA intelligence informates business activities and decisions. A case illustration concerning the use of a Customer Priority Index (CPI), derived from Level 3 SOA, outlines how a customer focused Sense and Respond capability might be achieved.

Conceptualisation and facilitation of SOA governance

Abstract: As organisations strive to improve their capabilities in the areas of Service Management and Service-oriented Architectures (SOA), SOA Governance is becoming an increasingly important success factor. However, the concept of SOA Governance is complex and not well-understood, and the adoption of an adequate SOA Governance approach in an organisation can be difficult. Tools that support SOA Governance mostly have a technical bias and rarely address organisational aspects. In this paper, we contribute to the field by specifying a conceptual meta model for SOA Governance that integrates the structure of major IT and SOA Governance frameworks into one consolidated view. By presenting this conceptualisation and a corresponding prototypical implementation of a tool that supports SOA Governance maturity assessment, reference framework exploration and company-specific tailoring of SOA Governance, we provide insights into the first step of a Design Science research project, i.e. the development of an important IT artefact.

The Implementation of Service-Oriented Architectures in the German Banking Industry - A Case Study

Abstract: The concept of Service-oriented Architecture (SOA) is becoming increasingly important not only in research, but also in practice. SOA has emerged as a major topic, especially in regards to the banking industry as it is one of the cutting-edge industries concerning service-orientation. SOA implementation in the German banking industry varies, with some still in the adoption phase and others already in the SOA operations phase. This has specific implications concerning the SOA Readiness as well as the SOA Maturity of German banks. This paper details the research objective, design, and conduction of a case study in the Germany banking industry investigating the SOA Readiness and SOA Maturity of German banks. Different phases such as SOA adoption and SOA operations and the consequences of SOA during Merger & Acquisition (M&A) conduction are analyzed and evaluated. Finally, the preliminary findings are exhibited.

A Scenario-Based Technique for Developing SOA Technical Governance

Abstract: : A well-known problem within the service-oriented architecture (SOA) community is the need to establish effective SOA governance procedures to enable an organization-wide SOA initiative. A number of organizations and vendors address this problem through SOA governance frameworks that provide models, procedures, and tools for SOA governance. Many of these SOA frameworks are general purpose because they are intended to be useful for a diverse customer base. However, while designed for a wide customer base, vendor SOA frameworks tend to be narrowly focused to work with the specific tools of the vendor. A critical problem for an organization when implementing SOA governance is to customize vendors' offerings to its specific technological and management context. In this technical note, a lightweight and extensible technique is proposed, one that employs scenarios to tailor existing SOA governance frameworks to the specific needs of an organization.

A Service Lifecycle and Information Model for Service-Oriented Architectures

Abstract: Service-Oriented Architectures (SOA) are a promising approach for structuring business information systems.Advantages are interoperability through standardization and adaptability of IT infrastructure to changes in business processes. Successful maintenance of a SOA does not only need technical but also organizational measures. In this paper, we present a process model and an information model for supporting the service lifecycle in a SOA. The process model describes phases and organizational roles of a service lifecycle. It has been designed to particularlysupport service reuse and service evolution. The informationmodel provides the basis for service management andgovernance – it can be seen as the heart of the SOA of a given company. The presented models have been developed for a company in the financial sector, but can be used in anycompany with similar organizational constraints.

Towards an operationalisation of governance and strategy for service identification and design

Abstract: Service orientation is a promising paradigm for business architectures. Implementing a service-oriented architecture (SOA) promises increasing flexibility as well as agility and decreasing development and maintenance costs of IT landscapes. Simultaneously with these advantages, the implementation of an SOA entails some inherent challenges. The flexible orchestration of services increases the complexity of the whole system significantly and can even result in decreasing performance [1]. A holistic management of technology and business processes is therefore necessary [2]. We believe that the essential SOA management tasks include topics such as strategy, governance, processes as well as infrastructure. These management topics can be addressed on different levels of granularity, e.g. at an SOA governance level or a single service level. This article focuses on individual services and shows how to support their identification and design. Therefore, we present specific deduced dimensions of the generic topics governance and strategy. In addition, we present roles and techniques in order to consider these topics already during the early phases of an SOA implementation, i.e. in the identification and design process.

STraS: A framework for semantic traceability in enterprise-wide SOA life-cycle management

Abstract: In recent years, service-oriented architecture (SOA) has been widely adopted for enterprise application integration. A SOA not only promotes interoperable, loosely coupled enterprise applications; it also reduces the conceptual gap between business and IT. For SOA life-cycle management it is desirable that business processes can be traced to services and vice versa. However, this is usually not the case because many stakeholders and often more than one organization are involved in the SOA ecosystem. In addition, the various stakeholders employ their own vocabularies and formats. In this paper, we therefore recognize semantic traceability as the missing link between the two worlds and promote an integrated view on the various entities in the SOA life-cycle. First, we describe a SOA life-cycle model. Second, we propose the STraS traceability framework for end-to-end semantic traceability. Finally, we show how our approach contributes to the management of a SOA in business networks.

Governance of a Service-Oriented Architecture for Environmental and Public Security

Abstract: Research for the application of technical support in environmental projects has grown rapidly due to the progress of sensor network systems and the large, scalable IT infrastructures that can unify and expand them. There are numerous attempts to make use of new technologies in order to serve environmental purposes. The research presented in this paper focuses on critical aspects of the core infrastructure of a project that aims to serve these purposes as well. The nature of the actions that must be taken against environmental disasters, which are our target use cases, dictate that extended, cross-organizational information and communication systems are engaged. In order to integrate information from different sources and process heterogeneous services, the IT infrastructure is based on the paradigm of Service-Oriented Architectures (SOA). However, the distributed and often very large nature of an SOA leads to a need for governance mechanisms. We present an SOA governance approach targeted to serve the purposes of large-scale distributed IT landscapes for environmental and public security.

Factors Affecting Success in Migration of Legacy Systems to Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) - Shared Experiences from Five Case Companies

Abstract: Background: The term ‘legacy systems’ refers to existing Information Systems that have been deployed in the past and have been running critical business processes within an enterprise in its current IT architecture. Based on their important role, legacy systems are considered the heart of a company’s operating enterprise system and therefore are of significant business value to the company. Therefore IT architects have not neglected the value these existing assets can bring to the adoption of service-oriented architecture and have been studying different methods and factors to migrate the legacy investments into the new architecture and take advantage of their business value. However, not in all cases has the process of migrating legacy systems into SOA been successful. In fact, the level of success in adapting the legacy systems in a company with the new service-oriented architecture is dependant on some factors which vary from one legacy infrastructure and series of business processes to another. There is no quick fix to transforming the existing legacy assets which highlights the fact that considering the right factors to reach legacy system migration success in a specific company is of key value. Therefore, we hereby studied the factors influencing success of migrating these legacy investments into SOA in five different companies which include a Large European Bank, SAS, a Large globally-known Company in Sweden, Sandvik AB and a large UK Bank. Purpose: To identify factors affecting successful migration of legacy systems into SOA in five companies. Method: The main adopted research method in this study has been interviews for different case studies. Through separate interviews, critical success factors of migrating legacy systems into SOA have been collected and identified in each case. Finally collected results are analyzed and presented as the recognized factors affecting successful migration of legacy assets into SOA in five different enterprises with their own Information System infrastructures. Conclusion: The success factors identified include potential of legacy systems for being migrated, strategy of migration, SOA governance, the business process of the company, budgeting and resources, legacy architecture, close monitoring, dependence on commercial products, information architecture, testing and technical skills of the personnel. Out of all these factors, only three factors have been applied and mentioned by all the case companies in this study, which are the potential of legacy systems for being migrated into SOA, strategy of migration and SOA Governance.

Capability and maturity-based soa governance

Abstract: Each of a plurality of governance dimension attributes of a service-oriented architecture governance model are calibrated and mapped to each of a plurality of governance evolution element attributes. A maturity and capability assessment is performed for the service-oriented architecture as a function of the mapping, and a maturity-based and capability-based governance model is generated for the service-oriented architecture as a function of the maturity and capability assessment.

Deducing Service Ownerships in Financial Networks

Abstract: Mit Service-orientierter Architektur (SOA) wird ermoglicht, die Einschrankungen von traditionellen monolithischen Applikationsarchitekturen, zu uberwinden und sich so effizient sich andernden Geschaftsbedingungen anzupassen. Dieses Paper entwickelt bereits existierende Ansatze, welche hauptsachlich die Rollen und Geschaftsaktivitaten auf einem generischen Level umfassen, weiter. Es wird eine Vorgehensweise zur Identifikation und Allokation von Service Ownerships aus einer Geschaftsperspektive vorgeschlagen, welche sich in der Bankenindustrie erfolgreich durchgesetzt hat.

Using SOA Provenance to Implement Norm Enforcement in e-Institutions

Abstract: In the last 10 years several approaches and technologies other than MAS (such as Web services and Grid computing) have emerged, with the support of the industry, providing their own solutions to distributed computation. As both Web services and Grid computing are based in the concept of service orientation, where all computation is split in independent, decoupled services, there is an opportunity for MAS researchers to test and extend their mechanisms and techniques in these emerging technologies. In this paper we describe a way to adapt the Harmon IA framework to be applied in highly regulated Web services and Grid computing scenarios. To do so we include a provenance mechanism as part of our norm enforcement mechanisms, which can be integrated into a SOA Governance workflow. We will show with an example how provenance allows the observation of both service interactions and (optionally) extra information about meaningful events in the system that cannot be observed in the interaction messages.

Managing events in a configuration of SOA governance components

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention are associated with a configuration comprising multiple integrated SOA governance components, and are generally concerned with monitoring and managing events that can or are likely to impact on different components of the configuration. One embodiment of the invention, directed to a method, comprises the steps of detecting a particular event that occurs at a particular SOA governance component of the configuration, and routing information pertaining to the detected event to a pre-specified storage location. The method further comprises operating a monitoring mechanism to selectively monitor the information routed to the location, and to determine from the monitored information that the particular event has occurred at the particular component of the configuration. Responsive to determining that the particular event has occurred at the particular component, the monitoring mechanism is further operated to query each of the remaining SOA governance components, in order to identify each of the remaining components in which the particular event does not exist.

When standards is not enough to secure interoperability and competitiveness for European exporters

Abstract: Beimborn, Daniel, University of Bamberg, Feldkirchenstrase 21, 96052 Bamberg, Germany, beimborn@is-bamberg.de Joachim, Nils, University of Bamberg, Feldkirchenstrase 21, 96052 Bamberg, Germany, joachim@is-bamberg.de Muenstermann, Bjoern, University of Bamberg, Feldkirchenstrase 21, 96052 Bamberg, Germany, muenstermann@is-bamberg.de What is the impact of a Service-oriented Architecture (SOA) on the efficiency and effectiveness of business process standardization (BPS)? The contribution of this paper is the development of a research model around the impact of SOA on BPS in terms of achieving fundamental efficiency and flexibility potentials while covering both the business layer and the IT layer of the firm. Drawing on an accepted and widespread enterprise architecture model, we derive propositions that explain why and how SOA’s characteristics help to standardize business processes and how the interplay between SOA and BPS leads to an increased overall business value. Additional moderator arguments, such as the level of service granularity, the centrality of SOA governance, or Business IT alignment, are added to the research model as critical success factors of achieving business value of SOA.

FACTORS TO SUCCEED WITH SOA - Shared Experiences from Five Organizations moving towards a Service-Oriented Architecture

Abstract: INTRODUCTION: “By the end of 2007, Forrester expects to see 75% of Global 2000 firms implementing SOA” PROBLEM: “Implementing SOA” and “Broadly adopting SOA”, almost makes it sound as easy as pushing a button Perhaps “the long journey of gradually moving towards a SOA” would have been somewhat more suitable After all, as in any extensive change obstacles are likely to arise down the road Getting carried away, and go shopping your very own “SOA toolbox” may be tempting, bearing in mind the combination of SOA and web services are being marketed as the silver bullet companies have been looking for to magically solve all business issues of today But even though SOA is expected to provide potential benefits of reduced IT costs through reuse of services and greater business agility, many researchers remain sceptical, saying there are valid doubts about such claims By unfolding critical success factors in SOA implementations, involving both difficulties identified and lessons learned; SOA can devolve from a utopian buzzword to an earthly concept other companies can relate to, and above all – learn from PURPOSE: The purpose of this thesis is to share organizations’ experiences of having adopted SOA, to learn what factors were essential for succeeding with such an architectural approach In compliance with this, the aim of this thesis is to provide an answer to the following research question: What factors are essential to succeed with SOA? METHOD: The research has been founded on both secondary and primary data Case-studies have been used together with qualitative semi-structured interviews with SAS, Volvo IT, Sandvik, Skatteverket, Sandvik and SEB to build up a descriptive profile of each organization as well as identifying critical success factors CONCLUSIONS: According to SAS, Volvo IT, Skatteverket, Sandvik and SEB – the overall most critical factor to succeed with SOA is Strong Governance Nonetheless, the ability to establish a coherent structure making sure several pieces are managed in symbiosis is in truth the real “key” factor to succeed with SOA Other closely related critical factors are: establishing a central governance function, defining principles, standards, contracts, and guidelines, adopting appropriate financial models, assigning ownership of services, communicating the SOA vision, and exercising strong leadership

System for managing events in a configuration of soa governance components

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention are associated with a configuration comprising multiple integrated SOA governance components, and are generally concerned with monitoring and managing events that can or are likely to impact on different components of the configuration. One embodiment of the invention, directed to a method, comprises the steps of detecting a particular event that occurs at a particular SOA governance component of the configuration, and routing information pertaining to the detected event to a pre-specified storage location. The method further comprises operating a monitoring mechanism to selectively monitor the information routed to the location, and to determine from the monitored information that the particular event has occurred at the particular component of the configuration. Responsive to determining that the particular event has occurred at the particular component, the monitoring mechanism is further operated to query each of the remaining SOA governance components, in order to identify each of the remaining components in which the particular event does not exist.

On Airlines Sustainable Innovation Driven by SOA Governance

Abstract: The characteristics of airlines IT architecture are summarized in this paper, also analyzed are the rigid challenges facing the IT and business in the profoundly changing business environment of the air industry. Upon the standpoint that the key of the IT value is to pursue business sustainable innovation and flexible agility with composite applications under flexible IT architecture, are designed the airlines SOA-based digital environment architecture and SOA governance model.

Soa governance optimizes the business and evolution of service oriented systems

Abstract: Contiene -- Need for SOA governance -- SOA vs. IT governance -- Characterizing SOA governance -- SOA governance pillars -- SOA governance mechanisms facilitate the optimization of business and evolution objectives of service-oriented systems -- Traditional evolution mechanisms -- Feedback loops -- Levels of indirection -- Research challenges

Semantic Web Technologies in Support of Service Oriented Architecture Governance

Abstract: As Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) deployments gradually mature they also grow in size and complexity. The number of service providers, services, and service consumers increases, and so do the dependencies among these entities and the various artefacts that describe how services operate, or how they are meant to operate under specific conditions. Appropriate governance over the various phases and activities associated with the service lifecycle is therefore indispensable in order to prevent a SOA deployment from dissolving into an unmanageable infrastructure. The employment of Semantic Web technologies for describing and reasoning about service properties and governance requirements has the potential to greatly enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of SOA Governance solutions by increasing the levels of automation in a wide-range of tasks relating to service lifecycle management. The goal of the proposed research work is to investigate the application of Semantic Web technologies in the context of service lifecycle management, and propose a concrete theoretical and technological approach for supporting SOA Governance through the realisation of semantically-enhanced registry and repository solutions.

The relationship among development skills, design quality, and centrality in open source projects

Abstract: The paradigm of the Internet of Services envisions trade on a global service-enabled internet Companies, which participate in this new world of services, face the challenges of changing market conditions, new competitive threats, and new legal regulations Service-oriented Architectures (SOA) provide a promising way to address some of these challenges at the level of the company’s IT infrastructure In order to guideline an enterprise’s organization and IT and ensure smooth operations, governance frameworks have been established More specifically, IT Governance and recently SOA Governance have been introduced The basic structure of IT Governance frameworks is applicable to an SOA However, they lack functionality or applicability concerning SOA-specific challenges Current approaches, which focus on mere SOA Governance, lack framework scope and are mostly driven by individual companies This issue aggravates taking into account the shift to an Internet of Services We identify key issues and provide initial insights on building blocks for a Service Governance Framework which enables operations for companies in a moderated service network We discuss service life cycle phases, stakeholder roles, and management processes taking into consideration existing frameworks such as ITIL and CObIT as well as industry-specific approaches from companies such as SAP, Oracle, and HP