Solving the Mystery of Service Orientation

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By Lou DiToro

Service Oriented Enterprises isn't the next DaVinci Code. It doesn't keep you guessing until the book's final chapter. Nor does it reveal any deep dark, tightly guarded secrets. But it does unlock the mystery of service orientation (SO) and its relationship with business process management (BPM) as well as the secrets of becoming a service-orientated enterprise (SOE).

Written by Setrag Khoshafian, Service Oriented Enterprises (Aurbach Publications, $79.95) is a primer on SO. Geared for business users and IT professionals, it decodes the basics of this standards-based integration paradigm so that even the most IT-challenged person (like me) understands the material. Written in a highly readable style, this 411-page book contains definitions, concepts, methodologies, diagrams, and graphics -- everything you need to gain a basic understanding of service orientation -- in seven informative chapters.

Service Oriented Enterprises also decodes the relationship between service oriented architecture and BPM, while championing the benefits of this technological marriage. BPM, according to many, is the heart of a service-oriented enterprise -- the engine that drives the train. And even if you don't agree with everything the book says about the value of this union, you'll learn a great deal about how they foster better business processes and more agile companies.

More than Just Technology

In addition to a wealth of technical information, the book highlights three key insights about SO. First, SO is about more than just technology. It's about a new way of thinking about applications, partnerships and outsourcing, a new way of solving process problems and a new way of building enterprises that are extended, virtual, real-time, and resilient. In other words, service orientation is about a culture and a mindset.

Second, SO is a powerful technological tool. Service orientation enables three IT layers -- enterprise performance, BPM, and an underlying SOA infrastructure. As an enabling technology, SO builds on both the success of the Internet and a more thorough understanding of how policies and processes are accommodated in today's business world. Ultimately, service orientation instills both corporate agility and a customer focus that benefits everyone.

Third, BPM is critical to a service-oriented enterprise. With help from specialized software, BPM models business procedures, business policies and key information. These models result in automated or digitized business processes and business rules. Taken together, SO and BPM create real change in an organization. Beneficiaries of this change include back-end systems, front-end systems and trading partners as well as customers, employees and other organizations.

Embedded in these insights is the idea that BPM is a common vernacular through which business and IT can communicate. Business users and IT people are already beginning to realize the benefits of better communication, as more and more enterprises install BPM solutions. In bridging the gap between business and IT, BPM helps enterprises reduce costs, such as eliminating the need for business users to contact an IT person every time they need to create or modify a business process. It also enhances collaboration.

None of these are revelations. Others have pointed them out as well. But the book doesn't just present the technical underpinnings of SO and BPM. It reminds us that they're not panaceas, but tools to create something. Using these tools, business analysts and IT professionals can transform their firms into a new breed of organization, one that's focused on providing superior customer service, not generating profits. That's the real value of Khoshafian's book.

Stop Me If You've Heard This...

If this hoopla sounds familiar, you may be recalling object orientation, which burst onto the scene with the same kind of hype just a few years ago. But SO is different, as the book points out. While SO's introduction is similar to that of object orientation, service orientation is a more significant contribution. It focuses on serving people's needs, whoever they are -- employees, customers or other organizations. It's that focus that helps transform a company into in a service-oriented enterprise.

We probably shouldn't be surprised that the book champions SO and BPM. After all, its author is an industry pioneer and a recognized expert on the topic, as well as a strategic technology and thought leader at Pegasystems, a major BPM company with its own solution. But we shouldn't let our skepticism blind us to the advantages of service orientation and BPM (or the benefits of this book) either.

Of course, Service Oriented Enterprises isn't perfect. There are times when it reads as dry as a textbook. It also doesn't get deeply into BPM's disadvantages. For example, if all processes in your company are built around a BPM suite and your services continually refer back to this suite's engine for instructions, the engine can become a major bottleneck if there's a problem with it.

But if the book has faults, it makes up for it with the in-depth technical information and comprehensive discussion on SO and BPM. The chapters on the relationship between BPM and SO and the composition of a service-oriented enterprise stand out, as does the final chapter on service oriented enterprises. They are concise, comprehensive, and clear. The result: You'll learn a great deal about both.

Unraveling the Secrets of SO

Service Oriented Enterprises unravels the secrets of service orientation. It deciphers the subject matter for the uninitiated without getting too technical or confusing, and though occasionally dry, holds interest. You'll not only learn the basics of SO and BPM and how they work together to generate a competitive advantage for a company, but you'll come to understand how they can help build agile enterprises that are extended, virtual, real-time, and resilient. Service Oriented Enterprises isn't the next DaVinci Code, but it's a productive read.

Useful Links:

Buy Service Oriented Enterprises by Setrag Khoshafian
http://www.bpmenterprise.com/aft

About the Author:

Lou DiToro is a freelance writer who specializes in writing about business processes and competitive strategy. He welcomes feedback on his articles for BPMEnterprise.com. Contact Lou DiToro at louditoro (at) hotmail.com.

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