SAP Mobility has taken a leap forward with the acquisition of Sybase by SAP. CompriseIT are a leader in this area and this webinar is designed to share some of our learnings from our projects.
This free webinar from CompriseIT will cover :-
Introduction to SAP Mobile Architecture and Strategy - How does it all fit together
5 Key Lessons Learned from the CompriseIT investment in mobile applications
Live Demo of an applications including technical details and audience participation !
After this webinar you will have learned :-
Understand the options for mobilising SAP
Recognise the relative benefits of different approaches
After describing how to build an IT architecture roadmap I focus on the building blocks of an IT architecture roadmap in this blog and a series of subsequent blogs.
Below you find an overview of the building blocks of an IT architecture roadmap
The colouring indicates that there are four types of building blocks
Readiness
Preparation
Core
Execution
IT architecture readiness
There is only one building block in the IT architecture readiness area. It is an assessment on how mature your organization is in regards of IT architecture in comparison to where you would like it to be. For each assessed perspective of IT architecture the result looks similar to the one below
The perspectives usually assessed are
Business
IT-Skills
IT-Technology
IT-Processes
IT architecture preparation
There are two building blocks in the IT architecture preparation area
IT architecture vision
IT architecture strategy
They are separated from the core IT architecture building blocks because they are on a higher level in the IT architecture pyramid and often a given to the IT architecture roadmap project. If not provided they are derived from the respective business vision and strategy.
IT architecture core
The core building blocks of any IT architecture roadmap are
The logical IT architecture is about business and technology solutions in comparison to the physical IT architecture that is about systems. To start with this building block the logical as-is IT architecture is assessed and gap-fit analysed. Building on the IT architecture principles and IT architecture patterns the to-be logical IT architecture is then designed.
Physical IT architecture
The physical IT architecture building block turns the logical architecture into a system landscape. Typically evaluations help decisions on instance distribution, EIM hierarchies and physical integration.
IT architecture timeline
This last core building block combines the physical to-be IT architecture with on-going projects and other constraints, defines IT initiatives and places them on a timeline.
IT architecture execution
This IT architecture area with only one building block is separated from the core building blocks because IT architecture plays only a supporting role within it. IT architecture execution happens within the projects that implement the IT initiatives defined in the IT architecture timeline building block. There IT architects ensure that the IT architecture principles are understood and applied as well as the IT architecture patterns. Most important however is the IT architecture exception process that allows for deviations from the IT architecture principles and IT architecture patterns and thereby indicates necessary improvements of the IT architecture roadmap.
In my blog about the business case for IT architecture I did not describe in detail how to build such a roadmap. Therefore this is the topic of this blog. As you can see from the flow chart below, building an IT architecture could be a laborious task if you had to start from scratch
Fortunately some of the yellow deliverables are usually already present so not all of the red roadmap process steps would necessarily have to be performed.
The necessary starting point of an IT architecture roadmap according to the IT architecture pyramid below are your company’s business and IT vision
More often than not these have been developed prior to the IT architecture roadmap endeavour and therefore serve as the starting point. If not or if they needed updating both visions would have to be formulated for which there is no easy or straightforward process since they lay the foundation for your company’s future success.
From the business and IT vision you will then develop your IT strategy if it does not exist yet or needs updating. A best practise way to come up with a sound IT strategy is a strategy workshop with the IT leadership team. You could do that on your own or with the help of an external moderator.
To support your IT strategy you would then formulate your IT architecture principles. Those will be derived from your IT strategy and should cover the following areas according to TOGAF Version 9
Business Principles
Data Principles
Application Principles
Technology Principles
From there you develop your IT architecture patterns which are designed to help your organization adhering to the IT architecture principles in that they give guidance what to do in a certain situation, i.e. when a certain pattern occurs.
With these guard rails in place you start the development of your logical IT architecture. Good starting points for this are heat maps that map your existing logical applications to the businesses processes they support. That will give you insight into white spots and areas of possible consolidation leading to your to-be logical IT architecture applying your IT architecture patterns and therefore in accordance with your IT architecture principles.
From there you are able to create your physical IT architecture taking into account non-functional requirements and technical considerations as well.
Placing all the changes that need implementation from your to-be physical IT architecture onto a time line while considering all possible dependencies leads to your final IT architecture roadmap which you can then start executing on.
At TechEd 2010 SAP announced many new application and technology capabilities. It also unveiled a new architecture vision “On3” - on premise, on demand and on device.
At CompriseIT we pride ourselves on really understanding where all this new stuff could fit within an organization to add value and we would like to help you understand this for your organization.
This free webinar from CompriseIT will cover :-
What is enterprise architecture?
Why should you have a SAP roadmap?
Why should you update your SAP roadmap?
Your way towards a SAP roadmap
Following this webinar you will have learned :-
What is new from SAP
Where this new stuff impacts a typical SAP landscape
How you can take a structured approach to identifying where it might help you
The key drives for the benefit case for architecture in your organisation
In the UK we have a TV show called Grand Designs which is all about people who have big plans for either renovating or building unique houses to live in.
Following all the announcements at TechEd 2010 about the technology innovations with us or in the pipeline it occurred to me that the options and opportunities available to Enterprise Architects and Business Process Experts is increasing exponentially. This is very exciting in that the solutions that can be delivered should (finally) amaze/delight the business but it does come with the danger that this flexibility means that it will be easier to make costly mistakes.
This is why it is so important that you have a robust Enterprise Architecture to point the way and a good Business Process Experts (BPX) that are able to interpret these architectures.
So what things need to be rolled into the Enterprise Architecture Roadmap ? The list below gives a view of the areas that are/will be impacted by new Technology from SAP.
Portal and Role Based Content
Business Process and Rules Management
Composite Application Development Tools / User Interface Tools
Master Data Management
Integration Broker / Enterprise Service Bus
Bulk Data Movement and Cleansing
Business to Business Gateway
Mobile Platform / Device Management
Lean Consumption of Enterprise Systems
In-memory Database Technology
Cloud Based Development Tools
….
So what choices do you have ?
I see three patterns appearing in the SAP install base.
Leverage Classic SAP choosing to not deploy any new technology above
Evolve from Classic SAP to Composite SAP by introduction some of the above technology
Replace existing SAP with a clean implementation with Composite SAP rolled in from the start
Which of these is the right path for you ? This can be answered by your Enterprise Architecture and implemented by the Business Process Experts (BPX).
At its simplest level this means linking the things your business want to do with the IT capabilities that are available, or put another way can any of the “new” capabilities above help IT to help the business to do something faster, cheaper or “better”. If the answer to this question is no then Leverage is probably the right path, if the answer is yes then Evolve or Replace is probably to the right path depending upon the “quality” of your current classic SAP landscape.
My main recommendation is not that you should use any of the above technology, but you should have an active Enterprise Architecture that shows either why you are using them or not. Only in this way can you ensure that your IT investments are aligned with where the money is made in the business.
Today CompriseIT became a partner of Sybase, an SAP Company, adding Mobility to our portfolio of SAP and Microsoft tools that we use to create state of the art Composite Applications (Co-Apps) on top of SAP and non-SAP systems.
This means that we now have the ability to add mobility to business processes (BPM, PI), Master Data (MDM, DS, CAF) and User Interfaces (HTML, Ajax, Flash, Silverlight, PDF).
You can now take your Composite Applications on the road knowing that they are built on a secure platform backed by SAP.
CompriseIT takes a different approach from others in the areas of “re-skinning” SAP in the following ways :-
We ensure that we are not reproducing SAP standard functions before we develop a Composite Application.
We ensure that a business case exists for any Composite Application and that they adhere to any Enterprise Architecture principles that are in place.
When building a Composite Application we seek to utilise SAP delivered tools before using 3rd party tools so any investment in SAP is utilised to the maximum possible.
When using 3rd party tools we link to SAP using industry standards to ensure upgradeability.
We develop applications using true Agile Methods to ensure that the application has the right features to support the business case
We provide training in the tools used to ensure that new and developed applications can be supported internally.
We provide 3rd line support to customers for our Composite Applications as required.
Adding Mobility to this existing approach means we can now take your Composite Applications to a new level. Come and speak to us at The Mobile Enterprise 2010 event in Amsterdam on the 2nd November 2010.
NetWeaver 7.30 is a synchronised release for the following SAP Products :-
- SAP Composition Environment - CE
- SAP Process Integration - PI (Java only version)
- SAP Portal - EP
- SAP BI Java (Not covered today)
This webinar will show you how this synchronised release offers the possibility of both increased innovation and simplification of your SAP landscape.
The agenda is as follows :-
- What is new in NetWeaver 7.30
- Motivations to move to 7.30
- How 7.30 can simplify your landscape
- Benefits of Joining the Ramp Up for 7.30
Learn how you can get ahead of the pack by early adoption of NetWeaver 7.30.
SAP have announced that SAP NetWeaver Composition Environment (CE) 7.20 is now generally available.
CompriseIT played a key role in the ramp up of this product with several of our customers taking part. You will be able to see it in action at our Webinar with SAP on the 26th May, you can register here
The press release includes a quote from Owen Pettiford our Co-CEO, which has been reproduced below.
CompriseIT - SAP Press Release Quote
CompriseIT specializes in the design development and deployment of composite applications exploiting SAP NetWeaver Composition Environment”, said Owen Pettiford, co-CEO CompriseIT. “Our expertise in developing composite applications based on SAP NetWeaver BPM helps our customers achieve new levels of automation, flexibility and user adoption for business processes that run through their core SAP system. With the newest release of SAP NetWeaver BPM, the processes, rules, UI and services are all delivered within one platform with support from one vendor, helping businesses transition from talking about SOA and BPM to actually doing SOA and BPM - which is how our customers will release value.”
