Issue 5-1

The recent inclusion of “Cloud computing and Cloud/Web platforms” by Gartner in the list of top 10 disruptive technologies for 2008–2012 will continue to increase awareness of Cloud and SaaS computing solutions and offerings among enterprise IT decision makers. As James Staten, principal analyst at Forrester Research, puts it, “If you’re a large enterprise, somebody in your organization is using Cloud computing, but they’re not telling you.” The same applies to SaaS.

Typically, the term enterprise architecture (EA) brings to mind a centralized group of individuals responsible for various strategic initiatives. But interestingly, several organizations have attempted to adopt a decentralized EA model. Coming from a centralized EA environment, I wondered: is it possible for a decentralized model to succeed? This article analyzes some of the challenges around decentralized EA and how to overcome these challenges.

The financial markets are in dire straights with global banking stalwarts a mere shell of their former corporate selves. As divestitures, downsizings, asset sales, and in particular mergers and acquisitions proliferate, leaders from the strategic technology planning and information management domains have the opportunity to step forward and provide great value to an otherwise unsavory situation.