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Architectural Oversight |
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Software development is a complex and expensive undertaking. Many underestimate how difficult, time-consuming,
and (again) expensive it is, because they can't see software being developed. If you were to hire
someone to build you a bridge or a building, you would expect them to quote you a serious price, undertake a
great deal of rigor and process, and take a long time to build it. This is because you can see a bridge, touch
it, etc. You've seen other bridges built, and it's a little intimidating. It looks hard ... like something you
couldn't do, and that those who can do it would have to go to school for years to learn how to do it well. The
invisible nature of software makes it seem easy, or at least muddies the waters with regard to how much it should
cost and how long it should take to construct. For example, did you know that it took 4,000 software engineers
to build Microsoft Windows XP? That's more than it took to build the Hoover Dam!
As with bridges or dams or any other complex engineering project, the most critical consideration for the project
is its architecture. Before a single brick is laid or beam is placed, an architect must first design whatever
is being built. Software is no different. In the software development world, like any other engineering discipline,
the architect is the person who best knows the ins and outs of what information technology can and cannot do.
So, why then is architecture "easier than you think"? Because when you partner with Capstone Consulting, expert
architects are just a phone call away. With an average of 18 years of experience each, Capstone's architects are some
of the best-trained and most experienced you'll find anywhere in the business. Capstone employs four kinds of IT
architects, all critical to the software development process. Each is unique in terms of their focus, but all are
highly skilled at adding value in their respective areas.
When building a piece of software, technical leadership is typically provided by an application architect. This
resource knows every nook and cranny of the programming language, tools, design patterns, and frameworks necessary to
build the right solution to achieve the vision and requirements of the end users. The application architect models the
application before it's built. His experience tells him which areas will be hard, and which will be built smoothly.
He oversees tests to ferret out risk, interprets the business requirements of the user community, assesses technical
feasibility, builds prototypes to set expectations with users, and generally leads the development team from a
technical perspective. Capstone's application architects are proficient in the use of UML diagramming and other tools
valuable to the communication of design concepts and requirements. We also know how to right-size your application —
building what you need and what's right for your business, not the biggest, most powerful, coolest thing we could think of.
Capstone knows the difference between critical functionality and unnecessary bells and whistles which complicate your
project and make it cost-prohibitive.
The application architect is a full-time role on a software development team. In the absence of these full-time staff
resources, Capstone can supplement your staff by placing a full-time application architect on your team to architect
the solution and mentor your resources.
Software isn't built in a vacuum. No engineer would construct a building without considering the demands it would place
on the water, sewage, power, waste management, postal, traffic, and other infrastructure systems. So is it with
software. Enterprise software lives in the context, using the infrastructure of, the enterprise. Therefore, building
a new application or making significant modifications to an existing one requires an understanding of the impact on
network bandwidth, CPU/memory/disk usage and capacity, security policy, fault tolerance, service level agreements,
fault tolerance, and many other aspects of the organization's technical enterprise. These are the concerns of an
enterprise architect. Capstone's enterprise architects have the knowledge and experience necessary to make sure
that your application development efforts make the best use of your enterprise resources. If changes need to be made,
we'll recommend them early, help you fully understand the cost and benefits, and prepare a roadmap for successfully
implementing the changes. And Capstone knows how to right-size your enterprise, not just your application, maximizing
and making efficient use of enterprise resources.
The enterprise architect is a part-time role. Ideally, an enterprise architecture team serves as consultants to your
project teams within your organization. In the absence of these full-time staff resources, Capstone can provide enterprise
architecture oversight as needed on your projects.
All software requires the effective and efficient management of data. As the application and enterprise spaces increase
in complexity, so do the requirements of data and databases supporting these systems. Capstone's veteran data architects
have seen it all — from high-speed, high-throughput transactional databases supporting order entry and fulfillment systems
to massive data warehouses supporting complex analytical reporting requirements on the backend. Whether you have a few
records or terabytes of information, your data is an asset. Let Capstone help you optimize your corporate information to
be used as a strategic asset within your organization.
The data architect is also a part-time role. Data architects typically "live" on the data governance council, giving them
cross-functional visibility into data-related initiatives, particularly those related to
Business Intelligence and Data Warehousing.
As with other architectural oversight roles, Capstone can supplement your organization's staff with a seasoned
data architecture, if these resources are not on staff within your IT organization.
Learn more about Capstone's Enterprise Data Warehousing services.
Last but not least, Capstone offers the services of specialized Business Intelligence architects who can help you launch, revision,
rescue, or accelerate a BI initiative within your orgnization. Like other architecture roles, these resources are seasoned veterans
with many years experience solving problems like the ones you're facing.
Learn more about Capstone's BI Architecture services.
Capstone's architects understand that a great many factors play key roles in your success, long before
the particular product or technologies used to build a solution is even discussed. Because we know how
critically important architectural oversight is, Capstone offers expert architectural services to our customers
by making seasoned application, enterprise, and data architects available to supplement existing project teams.
Our architects then serve as leaders, mentors, and guides to the project team, the initiative sponsors, and your
organization in general. They can help chart a course to successful delivery of your project or larger initiative
within your unique environment and to maximize your return on investment in your information and your technology.
If you don't need an architect onsite full-time, Capstone offers services contracts which effectively put
an architect on retainer for your organization. Ask us about our "Capstone Consulting Units", or CCUs,
which are a bank of pre-purchased hours customers can use to access expert architecture or development
resources when and where you need them.
And of course, Capstone can assist you by building your entire application, if needs be. Check out our
Custom BI Software Development offering for more details.
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