I thought that this post by Scott Draeger, EDP, Senior Product Manager, Exstream Software, was a pretty good description of the good, bad, and ugly of SOA. He lists the benefits as: "Easily integrates existing systems with new technologies, business partners, and legacy systems Saves time and reduces the cost of integrating with new vendor packages Reduces the amount of redundant data spread across multiple syst I thought that this post by Scott Draeger, EDP, Senior Product Manager, Exstream Software, was a pretty good description of the good, bad, and ugly of SOA. He lists the benefits as: “Easily integrates existing systems with new technologies, business partners, and legacy systems Saves time and reduces the cost of integrating with new vendor packages Reduces the amount of redundant data spread across multiple systems Increases data sharing between systems across the enterprise Eliminates duplication of integration work Shortens development and testing periods Improves data access for end users Lowers implementation costs Ensures a quicker, more cost-effective response to changing market conditions Leverages resources for other strategic investments and new system developments” Of course the core benefit is agility. Also, Scott suggests that we “Proceed with Caution” “In spite of all the benefits it delivers, SOA is not something to rush into. Many IT professionals became very excited about the process improvements a service oriented architecture could deliver and quickly implemented SOA, only to struggle to achieve positive results. Let’s take a closer look at some common mistakes and possible pitfalls:” Such as: “The belief that SOA is the be-all and end-all… ” We know it’s not. It’s a mere architectural pattern, an approach. What you do with it is most important. “SOA is as simple as taking a box off the shelf… Unfortunately, there is no ready-made SOA solution.” Nope, there is no ready-made solution, sorry to say. It’s something you do, not buy. “SOA must be embraced as an enterprise-wide endeavor and will therefore require the support and involvement of all your company’s stakeholders.” You can’t do SOA without sponsors, and business involvement. What’s important about this post is that I’m seeing more and more industry insiders that are more realistic about SOA. They are no longer painting SOA as something that’s “one stop shopping” or “solves all IT issues.” There is a rising amount of commonsense out there, and that’s a great thing. You can’ fix something unless you’re realistic about the work that’s needed, as well as the outcome. Software Development