11.30.10
Goodbye 9 to 5 – Hello 24/7
[Cartoon]
In the past, most retail stores closed at the end of the day, balanced all their registers, and prepared to open the next day. Some still operate in this manner, because they have not recognized that the culture has changed.
From a technology perspective, this change has shifted automated processes from batch to real-time. I have worked in banking, retail, and government for years and witnessed the slow acceptance of this reality. These organizations have accepted the need for a 24/7 internet service, but have been reluctant to keep their doors open for the convenience of their customers.
In most families, everybody works. Unless someone works the night shift or takes time off work, there is no one to do the daily chores to keep the family running. Simple things like buying groceries or making deposits at the bank become a major scheduling problem. It is no wonder that the retail stores that stay open 24/7 show a greater profit. It is not only because they are open longer. They are also open to meet all of the varying schedules of their customers.
Enterprise Architects know that all organizations will eventually switch to real-time processing. They know that working any project to maintain a current daily batch-cycle process should be scrutinized closely. The benefits of any of these projects should be short-term, since there are no long-term benefits.
Often, projects that would sustain the old applications are given the name “modernization”. Having been involved in these types of projects, I can assure you that the greatest gain from these projects goes to the vendors that provide the tools.
When modernization comes in the form of wrapping code around the old functionality, it is usually to make it look like business services. The best description of this type of project is like “putting lipstick on a pig”. Business functionality must be defined from the business model. It should not be determined according to the current application architecture. In this case, the “lipstick” is business services and the “pig” is the old batch application.
Many businesses already operate continuously. In transportation, the airplanes, buses, trains, and taxis are always moving. In healthcare, hospitals and emergency services are always operating. For those that protect us, the police, the military, the firemen, never sleep.
Moving to a 24/7 business requires a business architecture to support the new demands. Enterprise Architects are fully equipped to help put this architecture in place. They know that for most businesses this transition will eventually be required. The 9 to 5 business day will become the continuous, always available, business without interruptions.
[Cartoon]
In the past, most retail stores closed at the end of the day, balanced all their registers, and prepared to open the next day. Some still operate in this manner, because they have not recognized that the culture has changed.
From a technology perspective, this change has shifted automated processes from batch to real-time. I have worked in banking, retail, and government for years and witnessed the slow acceptance of this reality. These organizations have accepted the need for a 24/7 internet service, but have been reluctant to keep their doors open for the convenience of their customers.
In most families, everybody works. Unless someone works the night shift or takes time off work, there is no one to do the daily chores to keep the family running. Simple things like buying groceries or making deposits at the bank become a major scheduling problem. It is no wonder that the retail stores that stay open 24/7 show a greater profit. It is not only because they are open longer. They are also open to meet all of the varying schedules of their customers.
Enterprise Architects know that all organizations will eventually switch to real-time processing. They know that working any project to maintain a current daily batch-cycle process should be scrutinized closely. The benefits of any of these projects should be short-term, since there are no long-term benefits.
Often, projects that would sustain the old applications are given the name “modernization”. Having been involved in these types of projects, I can assure you that the greatest gain from these projects goes to the vendors that provide the tools.
When modernization comes in the form of wrapping code around the old functionality, it is usually to make it look like business services. The best description of this type of project is like “putting lipstick on a pig”. Business functionality must be defined from the business model. It should not be determined according to the current application architecture. In this case, the “lipstick” is business services and the “pig” is the old batch application.
Many businesses already operate continuously. In transportation, the airplanes, buses, trains, and taxis are always moving. In healthcare, hospitals and emergency services are always operating. For those that protect us, the police, the military, the firemen, never sleep.
Moving to a 24/7 business requires a business architecture to support the new demands. Enterprise Architects are fully equipped to help put this architecture in place. They know that for most businesses this transition will eventually be required. The 9 to 5 business day will become the continuous, always available, business without interruptions.
The Enterprise Architects can see what is coming and are already preparing. They know that this will be their time. Corporations will be able to completely focus on their business, and automation will be viewed as an agile enabler. Automation will finally become the self-service contributor that the Corporate Office has always wanted it to be. –Enterprise Architects Masters of the Unseen City
Closing the Business / IT gap.
