Technology architecture is Automation AND Automation is Technology architecture.

Good Technology Architecture

An extremely complex concept and range of disciplines; skills, factors that lead to ‘Good Technology Architecture’ Let’s face it. There is plenty of ‘failed’ Technology and ‘bad’ architecture with an UN-believable combination of apparent Business Success that is now coming to roost across the world.
Lest us start by exploring how do we achieve ‘Good Technology Architecture’ by ‘Design’.
There are many key words that need to placed in the mix.
1. Design – The art of working out a form of something. (There is no clear definition of design).
2. Functional Design – It is something that has to be used and serve specific a purpose. A way of doing things. A process, method, system or way of living, day to day or when needed way of working. There but not there – yet important and almost taken for granted.
3. Creative – Create things. Completely original, unique and not thought of before. Any and all the aspects to ensure every other.
4. Innovation – Different way of doing the same thing. Improvement. Better than the previous.
5. Technology –The use of technical means and their interrelation with life, society, and the environment, drawing upon such subjects as industrial arts, engineering, applied science, and pure science.
6. Architecture –The art and science of design and erecting buildings and other physical structures. Computing back-ends, Networking frameworks included.
7. Good – In this context implies simplicity, cost-effective, practical, realistic, integrated and functional.

The ‘Technology Architect’ has to be a ‘Systems Thinker’ and bring all this into play to craft a ‘Plan’ that can have ‘Cash’ placed on it to create ‘this’. You need to find and entrust this to someone who can and has done this before. Combining ‘left-brain’ and ‘right-brain’, ‘arts’ & ‘sciences’, Pure & Applied Research, Theory with Practice, mulch-faceted, mulch-talented and mulch-skilled. They don’t come cheap.


Key Visuals to create ‘Good Technology Architecture’ …

Design – Keep it simple
Creative – Anything is possible
Innovation – Don’t re-invent it. There are many ways to improve on it.
Architecture – Take the essence of Vaasthu, Feng Shui, Karma etc. … there are specific reasons to ‘old wives tales’ and ‘superstition’.
Technology – Observe, Involve, Understand, Learn, Know and Use the best from every other Discipline, Industry, Marketplace and the Community.

Plan to Execute : If the ‘plan’ is impossible; the ‘action’ is also likely to be.



Technology Selection

What is the real ‘benefit’ of the low-cost of Internet the reach of cellphone networks, increase in satellite imaging, GPS and accuracy; mobile penetration, improving reliability of connectivity, reducing hardware costs for computing, storage and input/output, integrated digital convergence, improving Technology Standards such as TCP/IP, 3G and Open Standards?

You ‘local’ device can be ‘connected’ and work with a ‘central’ device. This way you are ‘amortizing’ costs and getting the benefit of ‘demand / supply’ and shared infrastructure.
A whole ‘Technology Infrastructure’ which is similar to Shipping Lanes around the world; Air Corridors; Railway or Road Infrastructures, City Public Metro Rail etc.
However more so in the case of ‘Technology Infrastructure’ the analogy is more like an ice-berg.
The 10% : What you see is the front-end, visual, GUI (Graphical User Interface); paper, screen etc. Newspaper, Magazine, Television, Information Carousels, Ticketing automatic access, kiosks, tablets, PC’s, cellphones, smartphones and the like.
The 90% - In especially the Technology space is ‘virtual’ hidden and completely obscure to all but an elite few who integrate this.



An example

Take a simple user task of going to a Booking counter at a Shopping mall and buying a Bus Ticket. You give them information … where to where, day, time, how many, which, seat type, perhaps which Bus Company …. You pay money, and you get your ticket. On the day and time you go to the Bus Station and you are on your way.

Now think …
1. How many bus companies are there?
2. How many buses to and from your city?
3. How many seats? Capacity?
4. Are they booked on that day, time, route? How many free?
5. How many ‘Vending clerrks’ are there in your city? A dozen?
6. How many come to the vendor to book each day? 100?
7. What about ‘return’ tickets booked by other vendors in other towns?
8. How is the money collected? Cash. Credit. Debit.
9. How does the Service Provider get their money?
10. How is the commission to the ‘Vendor’ paid?
11. How is the ticket provider?
12. How do they prevent counterfeit? Fraud? Negligence?

More to think …?
a. Bus is good. What if decide to take a train? Can I fly?
b. Can I book my cab at the other end?
c. Can I book tickets from some else? Can I become a vendor?
d. What about loyalty cards and discounts – I travel often.
e. I want my luggage picked up from home.

… And more?1. What if you are not in Ticketing.
2. You are Telco. Provider.
3. You are a music vendor.
4. Your are an eLearning Company.
5. You are into physical Education doing online Assessments.
6. You want to access Rural Markets.
7. You are a Bank. Insurance Company.
8. You are a Security Agency. Risk, Governance, Compliance.
9. You are into Logistics. You collect and delivery ‘small’ packets.
10. You are into LTL (Less than Truck Load) or LCL (Less than Container Load) Logistics requiring cross-docking.
11. You are NOT into retail at all … you want to have b2b solutions with more or less the same convenience and low-cost.
The size of the iceberg may differ. The top 10% may reduced to 5% or less. It may grow – very quickly. However … it is still an iceberg.



Design Philosophy (Based on Traditional & Biology)

The time-line should be based on a ‘Fishing Net’ analogy. Have the whole picture in view as a ‘Systems Thinking’ approach. However due primarily to a RESOUURCES CRUNCH a Six-Sigma like approach of listing the priorities and ATTACKING the highest priorities sets up a Calendar-Delivery-Schedule and Project Time-line.
Hardware, Software & Systems pose different headaches in terms of ‘Design’, ‘Specifications’, ‘Acquisition’, ‘Integration’, ‘Change’, ‘Uptime’, ‘Service Levels’ and ‘Business Continuity.


The Final System

The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Oragnic farming practices; good quality control; excellent procurement; tested receipt; the best chef in town; all the right tools; all the ingredients the right way at the right time; the garnishing and dressing …. produces a meal that we can enjoy.
Good Technology Architecture does the same. A final product for a citizen that he or she does not even realize is there. A world class metro is an example. You decide; you go; you swipe; you travel; you exit; you swipe. You don’t even remember using the system.
We can build systems like the ‘first’, we can only understand and harness the input and output of the ‘second’.
Write to me at casper@edgevalue.com for a complete whitepaper PDF with supporting visuals for all the above. (Would have posted it but stripped by Linkedin.)