09.15.11
Under the Rug and in the Cloud
[Cartoon]
Remember being awed by technology when touring a datacenter? Seeing the well-organized arrangement of equipment all cabled together on a raised floor was impressive. Lights blinking and consoles displaying performance data would overwhelmingly induce a feeling of confidence in the IT organization. Nothing appeared to be swept under the rug. Everything was where it could be seen.
For years, the IT organization has used the datacenter as the only real visual of the services they provide. Some would go so far as to put application labels on the equipment in the datacenter. This identification made the applications more real. One could almost see the flow of information on the cables and envision the processing. Even the importance of an application was obviously signified by its number of boxes and cables.
So how do you tour a cloud computing datacenter? How can IT show their management that they are competent, well-organized, and current in technology? How will IT inspire confidence with their management?
The answer to these questions comes from the visualization of the Enterprise Architecture. The EA visualization is similar to a datacenter tour since it shows all of the boxes and cables with application labels. As with a datacenter with everything in one physical location, the Enterprise Architecture has a single view of the entire information processing ecosystem.
This visualization is even better than a physical tour. The actual flow and process activity can be seen by linking the visualization directly to actual events. The boxes and flows can be viewed hierarchically to get higher-level and lower-level views. Dependencies can be shown. Enhancements can be simulated.
The physical datacenter has acted as a good indicator of the size and importance of IT. As cloud computing sweeps the datacenter under the rug, a replacement visualization is needed.
Enterprise Architecture can provide that visualization. In full 3D with animation, the ecosystem of information processing can be toured. Rather than being swept under the rug by cloud computing, there can be even more opportunity for IT to show their competence.
Enterprise Architects are well-aware of the continuing evolution of technology. They creatively look for technology convergence that can provide breakthroughs in thinking. We are at one of those convergent junctions today. What is about to happen will give non-professional information technologists control of their use of automation in their business. No longer will they simply peer through windows and see only what applications let them see. They will be able to go inside, see how things work, and control their automation. – Enterprise Architects Masters of the Unseen City
Closing the Business / IT gap.
