The interest in SOA seems to be returning, but in new directions Most out there think that SOA is dead. However, even those that declared SOA dead really don’t think it’s dead, just suffering from some major mistakes and reduced budgets. It’s funny how there is a huge herd mentality in the world of IT, and the recent issues around SOA are good instances of that. Truth be told, at least from my vantage point, SOA is actually picking up steam. While mostly strategy and small tactical projects, it’s still SOA nonetheless, and interest seems to be coming from the top these days. CIOs, CTOs, and even CEOs are looking for more efficient and effective ways to drive their investment in IT; they Googled, and SOA came up. Moreover, I see the types of projects as much more productive. SOA strategy tops the list, with a focus on efficiency and cost reduction. Next is SOA staff augmentation. They fired the guy who screwed up the last project and are looking for smarter people to take over. Finally, and not surprising, is SOA and cloud computing strategy and planning. There seems to be clouds forming, and they are looking for the SOA on-ramp. While current news is no guarantee around future trends, this seems like a much longer-term play to me. Perhaps all of the normalization around SOA projects in 2008 are emerging in a healthier and productive outlook for SOA. Software Development