Why this book?

We live in a world of change. During my thirty-plus years in the software industry, I have witnessed some remarkable changes. One constant, however, seems to me to be that successful companies cope with change by nurturing their people, learning fast, building on what they have learned, and discarding things that no longer work. Surely, that's not rocket science! If that's the case then, “Why,” I ask myself, “write a book about it?” It seems appropriate to begin by offering the reader some kind of answer!

Even moderately large companies can no longer afford to “just get by” as they seek to cope with the challenges of a world of unforgiving change. Business is increasingly moving toward a marketplace model. This model is in sharp contrast to the traditional view of an organization as a production line. In this world, organizations collaborate together, consuming and offering services to maximize efficiency, better serve customers, and achieve long-term advantage.

This is the world of service orientation, in which a hasty decision to outsource an activity may well be a decision that the firm repents at leisure. Equally, focusing the company's own energies on the wrong kinds of thing could be a disaster. The power of technology, from the Internet to grid computing and Web services, is the irresistible force that is fueling this change. Business is increasingly less supported by software and more enabled by it. This means that simply automating business activities in software is no longer enough.