Essential Practical Software and IT Architecture in Impractical Times

Have a good look at this article by Matt Valentine for some great insights. Matt Valentine joined Microsoft in 2003 to focus on helping customers address business challenges by using world-class distributed-computing technologies. Matt has over 15 years of experience in architecting and delivering application, database, Web, and transaction systems solutions with major corporations, including AT&T, IBM, ATG, and Microsoft:
https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/architecture/aa902620.aspx

“Today’s turbulent business climate creates interesting challenges for architects who are responsible for reducing costs and delivering new capabilities. A practical approach to architecture focuses on:
- Balancing business, technology, and user goals with the goal of delivering near-term revenue and efficiency gains.
- Taking a holistic approach that reduces the complexity of how infrastructure, applications, and tools work together to support critical business applications.”

Contents
Navigating the Storm
Business Goals
Technology Goals
Infrastructure
User Goals
Build Relationships
Create Fans
Practical Architecture
Creating New Efficiencies to Reduce Costs
Finding New Opportunities to Grow the Business
Helping All Users Increase Productivity
Connecting People and Teams
Team-Based Application Development

Cheers,
Stephen Ibaraki