Software AG announced the availability of the SOA Value Assessment, a unique tool that helps CIOs identify the specific value of an SOA for their organization. Software AG commissioned Forrester Consulting to develop this innovative model so organizations can analyze where SOA can offer a substantial economic benefit. The model identifies which IT and business process areas are most likely to be improved by adopting an SOA. This strategic assessment helps organizations justify the cost of SOA with greater accuracy. In addition, the model highlights how governance can increase the value of an SOA. The availability of the SOA Value Assessment is another step in implementing Software AG's strategy to double revenue to 1 billion euro by 2011 through SOA technology and market leadership.

The SOA Value Assessment leverages Forrester's Total Economic Impact(TM) methodology, a comprehensive model for determining the value of IT to the enterprise. The assessment aims to give a true picture of what SOA means to an enterprise. It assists IT experts in expressing the value of SOA in business terms and provides insights on the most effective implementation of SOA for an organization before additional investments are made.

"SOA is clearly beyond pure technology hype," said Dr. Peter Kuerpick, member of the board at Software AG. "Many IT experts struggle to explain the benefits of SOA in business terms. Using this model, they can analyze and measure the business benefits of SOA. The model helps businesses understand if SOA is a sound investment for them."

The SOA Value Assessment offers a series of questionnaires and calculations in which business analysts and enterprise architects input specific data regarding their organization. Based on this input, they receive a customized report that highlights the potential business value of an SOA for their organization.

Key areas analyzed in the assessment are: -- User productivity -- Process efficiency -- Infrastructure enablement -- Business innovation

Based on customer inputs, the SOA Value Assessment automatically generates a high-level map that shows, at a glance, where organizations have the highest potential for getting the most value from SOA. Because proper governance is critical in realizing the business value of SOA, the SOA Value Assessment also assesses the impact of governance and also highlights areas that would benefit from governance improvement.

"To build the right SOA right from the start is the goal of IT and business decision-makers everywhere," Kuerpick said. "With the SOA Value Assessment, organizations now have a powerful way to analyze the potential benefits of an SOA, providing convincing arguments when budgeting for new initiatives."

The SOA Value Assessment gives organizations a quick start on building a business case for SOA. People can register for the assessment at http://www.soavalueassessment.com/. Software AG also will use the assessment as the foundation for workshops to guide organizations through the different aspects of SOA and their potential value.

Software AG / webMethods Session at SOA World Conference & Expo
There is much talk about Policy and Governance and in many organizations, Governance by fiat is the norm. Some end users refer to it as "management by showing the door," or "my way or the highway" management. As SOA expands beyond the scope of IT and into business federations, lifecycle groups and into business process, a profound shift in emphasis happens. Despite the need for "Control" asserted by central IT organizations, the nature of the "Service Delivery Contract" or enforceable agreement can be used as a template to drive bilateral or multi-party SOA. Learn how Federating Policy can be seen as the process of identifying, documenting, enforcing and auditing the value of integrity of agreements and relationships. This less coercive model of Governance not only accelerates adoption, but decreases the risk of resistance and infighting that dooms many SOA projects.

Speaker Bio: Miko Matsumura is Vice President, SOA Products at webMethods and chair of the OASIS SOA Adoption Blueprints Technical Committee. He is well-recognized for his work at The Middleware Company, Systinet, and as Chief Java Evangelist for Sun Microsystems. He has an MBA from San Francisco State University and a Masters in Neuroscience from Yale University.