Harmonizing business and digital enterprise strategy using SOA middle-out and service-based approach

Abstract

The organization's agility represents its ability to respond fast to changes by the transformation and/or optimization of business processes. In the conditions of the ever-increasing use of digital technologies, the agility of organization can be compromised if the digital strategy and IT resources are not flexible enough to adequately respond to changed business conditions. Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) promotes better alignment of business goals and IT resources to faster respond to changes. However, given the challenges of the digital era, especially when it comes to distribution, complexity, scalability, and delivery speed, the success of the SOA initiatives increasingly depends on the choice of delivery strategy and implementation approach. The SOA middle-out delivery strategy is guided by business strategy, strategic vision and goals, with reuse of existing IT resources and focus on urgent requirements, tactical and operational goals. On the other hand, SOA evolves towards increasing agility and a simpler, service-based implementation approach that supports fast delivery. This paper, in general, discusses the ways of more efficient alignment of business and digital enterprise strategy, based on the implementation of SOA initiatives for the development of business software systems. Within the framework of the research, the significant challenges and best practices have been identified and clearly distinguished, as well as the advantages and disadvantages, which are related to the key architectural and methodological aspects of the SOA implementation using the middle-out delivery strategy and service-based approach.