POINT OF VIEW

SOA: The Key to Better Cross-Enterprise Business Integration

By Andrew Dent

Wikipedia defines SOA as "…the use of loosely coupled software services to support…business processes and software users. Resources on a network in an SOA environment are made available as independent services that can be accessed without knowledge of their underlying platform implementation." At its core, service-oriented architecture is all about transparency, re-usability and connectivity. The same services can be leveraged across the enterprise, and relevant systems need only tap into them.

Most companies that undertake SOA initiatives focus significant time and IT resources first on building a service layer that delivers functionality seamlessly "within the four walls." Though this implementation of SOA provides undeniable return on investment, we contend that SOA's greatest potential lies in its ability to help cement customer and partner relationships by integrating their business processes into a company's supply and demand chains.

The Strategic Advantage of IaaS

Companies that have already made progress toward implementing an SOA should consider differentiating themselves from competitors by making services available to trading partners through an Integration-as-a-Service model. Companies that have not yet ventured down the path to an SOA should consider IaaS as an easy-to-implement, cost-effective starting point.

What, Exactly, Is IaaS?

In a nutshell, it is rapid cross-enterprise integration on demand. IaaS delivers a single hub, or point of connection, that enables an enterprise to quickly connect with customers and/or suppliers. Essentially, IaaS sits atop an existing infrastructure, seamlessly delivering data and business services – such as facilitating order processing or satisfying responses to product availability requests – without requiring changes or disrupting trading partner business processes. IaaS also mediates the different formats in which data are exchanged and bridges differences in business processes. The vendor providing the service establishes and maintains real-time connectivity among trading partners, while tightly enforcing data and transaction security.

For organizations that agree with the premise that SOA-based integration with customers, suppliers and other business partners provides a strategic advantage, then IaaS offers an almost instant implementation of SOA.

Is IaaS the Right Decision?

To determine whether or not IaaS is a good fit for your organization, a company should ask itself the following questions:

To what degree does integration already exist?

Integrating with trading partners that account for 80 percent of sourcing volume or 80 percent of the revenue on the demand side delivers economies of scale. Beyond that, candidates should be evaluated on their strategic impact to the enterprise.

How long does it take to onboard or remove trading partners?

If an integration backlog exists, it's too long. IaaS reduces the time required to on-ramp or, conversely, to cut trading partners loose. An experienced IaaS vendor handles the process, freeing IT staff to concentrate on the core business needs.

How mature are integration capabilities?

Many organizations have only a few methods available to integrate with various trading partners and are staggering under the burden of keeping them technically current. A lack of capability prevents them from gaining critical mass within their trading community and often leads to missed business opportunities.

Is ROI meeting expectations?

Given the length of time many companies require to integrate a relatively small number of trading partners, ROI may well not be meeting objectives set at the beginning of an implementation.

Amplifying the Value Chain

IaaS enables companies to use SOAs to build services that meet the needs of various trading partners and deliver them regardless of the platforms and technologies involved. Going forward, enterprises will be able to build closer, more profitable relationships with all trading partners, suppliers and customers alike, while saving time and reducing the costs involved in deploying traditional business integration solutions. IaaS is a low-risk extension of SOA and delivers tangible business benefits that often elude emerging technology solutions.

About the Author: Andrew Dent is founder and chief technology officer of Hubspan, a provider of Integration-as-a-Service (IaaS) solutions for business-to-business integration. Dent is an expert in building transaction-intensive applications. More information at www.hubspan.com.