What Everyone Needs to Know About SOA:
Diving Into “The Next Big Thing” While Reusing
Legacy Software
By Curt Finch
Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) is a style of information systems architecture that enables the creation of applications that are built by combining loosely-coupled and interoperable services. These services inter-operate based on a contract that is independent of the underlying platform and programming language - Wikipedia
I’ve been writing software for a long time.
When I was 14, I got an HP programmable calculator that I taught to tell time by flashing hours, minutes and seconds repeatedly. It used a loop of null operations to take up the time between each second. Slight changes in room temperature would cause it to speed up or slow down the rate at which it performed these loops, ultimately making it a poor timepiece.
About the Author:
 
Curt Finch
Curt Finch is the CEO of Journyx (http://pr.journyx.com), a provider of free Web-based software located in Austin, Texas, USA that automates billing, payroll & project management by tracking time, expenses and mileage. Finch is a software industry veteran. In 1997, Curt created the world's first Internet-based timesheet application and the foundation for the current Journyx product offering. Curt has managed development teams creating enterprise-level software solutions since 1985, with a focus on distributed workforce management. In 1992, Finch led the team porting Tivoli's product line to the AIX operating system, which led to the company's acquisition by IBM. As a member of the executive team, Curt helped launch The Kernel Group (TKG), a venture-backed firm that grew to 50 employees and $7.5 million in sales during his tenure. Curt has a B.S. in Computer Science from Virginia Tech University in the USA. Curt Finch can be reached at
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Positioning PRINCE2™ in an Unforgiving Business World
By Dayo Sowunmi
Introduction
The objective of this paper is to provide the project management practitioner with some practical advice on ways to gain business approval of PRINCE2. This paper focuses on practical methods to ‘sell’ PRINCE2 to senior management, particularly in an environment where a number of past projects have failed or were closed prematurely.
When a project fails, how do you separate the methodology from its implementation? Quite often the project management methodology is blamed for the failed project, making it more difficult to recommend the methodology for future projects. This reaction is similar to throwing out the proverbial baby with the bath water.
About the Author:
Dayo Sowunmi
Dayo Sowunmi is the Managing Director of The Anode Group Pty Ltd, an IT and Marketing Consultancy company he founded in 1999. He started his career in the Oil & Gas industry working for Shell Petroleum and later Schlumberger Ltd as a systems engineer. He is a PRINCE2 project management practitioner, has a Masters degree in knowledge management and an Honours degree in computer engineering. Dayo has 11 years experience managing and delivering projects concurrently with emphasis on retail, financial services, utilities, automotive and real estate clients. His core focus includes projects in enterprise systems implementation and CRM, strategic planning and business process re-design. He also works in an advisory capacity on knowledge management. He has managed project teams of up to 40 staff, including a number of staff based offshore, and has written and presented several papers at Australian and international conferences. Dayo currently lives in Melbourne, Australia and can be reached at .
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The Winning Team & Project Success
By Harvey A. Levine
What A Team!
I was born in The Bronx, in the shadows of the House That Ruth Built. So it was natural that I became a Yankees fan. It was easy to do that. My father did business with Yankee Stadium, and I could get into the games – sometimes for free. It didn’t hurt that they were traditionally a winning team. Any sports fan appreciates a winner. Hey! It was fun being a Yankees fan. Even if the past few years have been far from perfect, they are still a perennial winner.
About the Author:
Harvey A. Levine
Harvey A. Levine, with 44 years of service to the project management industry, is founder of The Project Knowledge Group, a consulting firm specializing in the dissemination of PM knowledge through writing, training, mentoring and direct consulting. He has implemented or enhanced the project management capabilities of numerous firms, often combined with the selection or implementation of computerized project management tools. For more information on Harvey Levine or the Project Knowledge Group, please visit http://home.earthlink.net/~halevine/. Mr. Levine is the author of three books, and over 240 articles, whitepapers and videos on Project Management. His 2002 book, "Practical Project Management: Tips, Tactics, and Tools", is still available from John Wiley & Sons. Mr. Levine's latest book, "Project Portfolio Management, A Practical Guide to Selecting Projects, Managing Portfolios, and Maximizing Benefits", Jossey-Bass, was released in July, 2005. Mr. Levine is past president and chair of the Project Management Institute (PMI®), a recipient of PMI's 1989 Distinguished Contribution to Project Management award, and has been elected a Fellow of PMI. He was Contributing Editor to PMI’s PM Network for thirteen years and has contributed to dozens of periodicals and websites dedicated to project management. He is a popular keynote speaker and panel chair, as well as presenter of workshops and problem solving sessions in the private and public sectors. Mr. Levine has been an early supporter of Project Portfolio Management practices and has promoted PPM though books, articles, presentations, and individual mentoring and consulting. Mr. Levine has offices in Saratoga Springs, New York and San Diego, California. Harvey can be contacted at . Additional information about Harvey Levine can be found at http://www.pmforum.org/pm%20forum%20team/index.htm#3.
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Assessing Bid Viability for the Organization
Accounting for Risk
By Dan Patterson
As the stakes continue to increase within the environment of large capital expenditure (CapEx) exploration and refining oil and gas projects, the need for competitive advantage during the strategic bid decision making phase is paramount. If an organization can identify areas of uncertainty in a project, then it can account for these in its proposal.
Mission-Critical Factors during Bidding
During the opportunity phase of corporate portfolio planning, there are three key factors to consider when appraising the viability of a project bid:-
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Revenue potential: an evaluation of the long-term total revenue gained from a project investment.
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Contract type: determination of the type(s) of contracts entered into between the project owner and the sellers/sub-contractors.
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Portfolio Capacity Planning: evaluation of the contractor(s) capacity and expertise to execute and deliver the project to completion.
About the Author:
Dan Patterson
Dan Patterson is a vice president for Primavera Pertmaster, a provider of project risk and analysis software for Project and Portfolio Management (PPM) environments especially in oil and gas exploration, engineering, manufacturing, construction, aerospace, defence and government. With over ten years of project management experience, Dan is an expert in IT product development, specifically in the field of project portfolio management. Before joining Pertmaster, Dan was responsible for the overall development and product marketing of web-based project management applications including the first fully web-based PM portal and a powerful qualitative risk management solution. Other areas of expertise and interest include project risk management, construction management and the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for planning and control. Dan currently lives in Houston, Texas, is a certified PMI PMP, and holds a PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Nottingham, UK. Some 7,000 projects around the world incorporate Pertmaster solutions to help management model and control risk and uncertainty in project portfolio planning, costs, resource requirements and schedules. Dan manages the North America territory and is responsible for all market and business development in the US for Primavera Pertmaster. For more information, see www.pertmaster.com.
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Meeting Efficiently Can Save You a Month Every Year
By Hannon Brett
How many meetings did you attend or hold in 2006? Tens? Hundreds? Now, take a minute to consider how many of those meetings were actually turned into positive, productive action that made your business better.
These are important questions to ask in a world of ‘fast-food communication’, where on-demand, real-time, dynamic collaboration technologies have quickly turned global business into a single, connected cube farm. Everyone has meetings; it’s up to you to determine whether the information and responsibilities shared in those meetings drives your success, or simply leads to deeper inefficiency.
About the Author:
Hannon Brett
Hannon Brett is co-founder of Yon Software Corporation, founded in 2004 to empower businesses to maximize their ROI related to meeting time and technology. Yon Software’s flagship software product, MeetingSense, addresses the emerging need among today's businesses for a simple but effective way to increase efficiency and optimize meeting productivity. Mr. Brett has more than 13 years of experience as a successful business and marketing professional for tier-one software and media companies. He has extensive experience with traditional and new media marketing and strategic relationship management. Mr. Brett previously served at Macromedia management, where he was responsible for strategy and marketing of multiple collaboration and business products. Prior to Macromedia, Mr. Brett filled key marketing and business roles at EduPoint, a leading provider of online corporate learning marketplaces; MP3.com, a record setting on-line music service provider; and NTN Communications, developers of online two-way interactive games. Hannon Brett earned a B.A. in International Relations from the University of San Diego, USA. For more information about Yon Software Corporation or MeetingSense, please visit www.meetingsense.com.
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