Replacing legacy applications: rebuilding is never just 1 on 1

Click the image for a closer look.

The proverbial cheese in the mouse trap for a client that wants to replace old systems with new technology is that replacing legacy is a straight forward and risk free assignment that requires little involvement of the Business.

The figure above shows 7 topics that require intense cooperation between the Business and the IT team.

Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) is dressing for success

Expect the unexpected

Change is the only constant and that can be a good thing for the end result of a software project. Increasing insight by all team members into what works and doesn't is vital. The agile movement maximizes the added value of new insights.

Projects are however continuously under attack from unexpected negative things happening. Murphy's law...

A 'striking' example of a sudden negative impact is the following scene from the war in Iraq.

Sounds like ... IT project

IT project disasters are still among us as much us ever. I am always left somewhat pondering when people ask me why IT keeps getting it wrong, it can't be that hard can it?

IT remains a 'magical' black box for many people. The illusionist (i.e. IT project team) does his or her thing and no one of the spectators (i.e. Business) understands what is happening behind the curtain.

The essence of IT (projects) is not the technology or the jargon used by techies BUT … (1) people and (2) that fact that projects are unique and one time only by definition.

Bear with me, I am asking some imagination of you as a reader… there can be found many good metaphors for the complexity of IT projects using non IT related examples. Don't get me wrong, I am not making any excuses for project failures. I merely want to show that the challenges for IT project teams are not small or benign. The following metaphors should give an idea where something can be done to control the complexity and risks.

I have transferred 2 non IT related people activities to the world of IT projects:

The non-IT world	Metaphor in the IT world
A symphonic orchestra	In the IT world the orchestra is asked to: play a new concerto for the first time play with team members that they don't know and have never played with before practice but all instrument groups are practicing separately all instrument groups only come together once, but only to talk about the concerto and not actually play together work with 3 different conductors that have no contact with each other to play with all instrument groups together for the first time only on the night of the performance
A family on a car trip to their holiday destination	In the IT world the family is asked to: go to a France for the first time to an unknown address in the Provence drive with no GPS, they get just a map that indicates only the national highways (the rest is uncharted territory) arrive at an agreed time (set ambitiously) In the IT world: only one person of the family can speak just a bit of French to ask directions only one other person can drive but cannot speak French passing through Paris is the only way to get there in time thankfully its no holiday season but helas no one knew that there were lots of roadworks on the major highways that they had to pass because the journey is somewhat uncharted territory is difficult to estimate the money needed for petrol/gas and for food and drinks on the way.

So what would YOU do so that:

• the orchestra would receive a standing ovation on the night of their performance?
• the family will reach their destination (in time)?

Grouping critical success factors for software projects

This is a model that has helped me to explain to people that project management alone is not enough to ensure success in software projects. It's a very simple but powerfull image that you can use in making all stakeholders aware what the main groups of critical success factors are. Per group you can identify the 'as is' situation, current lessons learned and define any usefull short or long term improvement initiatives.

Business & IT alignment (c.q. the innovation potential of IT for the business) cuts vertically accross these four groups.

On each level (or box in the figure) Business and IT should find a way to work together and become successful in business innovation.