deriving business value from

application lifecycle management

kenneth a. faw, president

pillar technologies, LLC

pillar speed-to-valueand Borland ALM

introducing our fulfillment approach:

speed-to-value™

People take different roads seeking fulfillment and

happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't

mean they've gotten lost.

- H. Jackson Browne, author

the problem that ALM solves

ALM represents the strategic alignment of Borland products to facilitate their promise:– “Borland helps its customers gain competitive

advantage by enabling them to create better software, faster” – source, Borland Software Corporation

– the pillar position is that Borland has achieved much of its goal through ALM

• continuing initiatives will also enhance their success in this area

given a project with a problem to solve, ALM streamlines the handoff between tools used to move toward a solution

what about methodology?

many of our customers ask what methodology Borland sells as part of ALM– others often ask what methodology works

best with Borland toolsthey are often surprised to hear that there is no

preferred method– ALM integrates the handoff of artifacts from

various software development activities– it effectively “blurs” the lines that distinguish

methodology “phases”ALM could make you more productive regardless

of method, even if you have no method at all

pillar speed-to-value™ – an approach

as consultants, we, too, are often asked which methodology we use, or we are required to use our clients’ methods– ALM works well for us regardless, partly BECAUSE it

does not include a prescribed or recommended methodology

regardless, it has always been necessary for us to maintain fulfillment consistency under various methods– we therefore defined an APPROACH that transcends

methodology, which we call speed-to-value™, or S2V– S2V is the fulfillment subset of our complete Value

Management™ approach and service offering

approach or method – what’s the difference?

in our distinction, an approach is a pattern of thinking or behavior, supported by process or tools that could be used in ANY method– meanwhile, the method defines the

systematic sequence of actions and deliverables

we have applied S2V under RUP, XP and other methods, and with clients in which formal methods are avoided

because both ALM and our approach are method-independent, they work well together

key elements of S2V and ALM

ALM– StarTeam SCM core tool

support– traceability through

Caliber– OptmizeIt and

ServerTrace– JBuilder, C#Builder,

Delphi cockpits– bug tracking, workflow,

CR’s and discussion threads

– on-the-fly visualization and modeling in Together

– support for nearly every app server and platform

S2V– configuration

management practice– continuous integration– rapid releases/iterations– comprehensive

automated regression testing

– one-line deployment and rollback

– development sandboxes– integration with pillar

Value Management business approach

the “speed” side of S2V

our core fulfillment practices, some from the previous slide, focus on:– formalizing and standardizing developer best-

practices• fast, automated regression test harnesses• incremental releases to production• continuous integration and collective code ownership

– preserving a focus on delivery• systems in development have negative value

– constructing a “Framework of Trust™”• commitment leads to Trust, which leads to Momentum• truth exists, but what we know about truth is our

interpretation of an evolving understandingthis allows better “change management”

practices and vendor-client relations

distinctions when combining S2V and ALM

S2V is always concerned about the prioritization and fulfillment of promises for realizing business value

– Define• Requirements Management – all requirements do not have equal value – prioritize and flesh out detail

according to Value Management™ practices; specifications as assertions of truth are the most valuable, which relates more to test code than to source code; traceability and requirement decomposition should align with Release Management decisions

– Design• Analysis and Design – clarify truth as we know it; development artifacts express increasing

understanding of truth; truth builds and generally does not take away; truth is captured abstractly in models, but declared as distinctions in test harness source code; the model is the code (sound familiar?), but changing models using LiveSource does not encourage testing

– Develop• Version Control – the repository is not a backup system for work in process, but reflects truth at a

snapshot in time, ready for deployment; S2V uses strict continuous integration standards– Test

• Truth is captured in comprehensive, automated regression test harness; segregated by constraints; traceable (at a realized-value level) to Release Management and Requirements Management

– Deploy• Integrated build environments can hide local “efficiencies”; S2V creates developer “sandboxes” and

does not accept a check-in from local build success alone– Manage

• Change is not managed – it is encouraged, according to Value Management™ practices; systems should prove flexibility to change DURING development

synergistic integration

the notion – when ALM components start working together, new things are possible that were not previously

in the case of ALM and S2V, we also achieve synergistic integration (they facilitate each other)– ALM preserves dependencies between artifacts as

they evolve, facilitates communications, and integrates everything into the tools each role has readily available

– S2V increases quality, speeds delivery to production and implements the Framework of Trust™

nevertheless, none of this speaks the language of business… so how do we get a chance to show value?

why buy?

reconciling IT value and business value

Value is the most invincible and impalpable of ghosts, and

comes and goes unthought-of while the visible and dense

matter remains as it was.

- W. Stanley Jevons, professor

ALM, S2V and business value

ultimately, a project delivered using ALM benefits from reduced inefficiencies due to integrated lifecycle transitions

ultimately, a project delivered using S2V benefits from early and often delivery, with high demonstrable quality

so what?

ultimately, ALM and S2V are both concerned about delivering the results of projects, the fundamental unit of work for IT systems… neither speaks in the discourse of business

the advent of value management

at about the same time ALM was conceived, pillar identified the gap between our capacity through S2V and trends in IT related to realized business value:

The Business sees thatBudgets are tightCompetition is highTime is crucial

And feels that IT…Is overheadTakes too longDoesn’t deliver

Focus = Value

Meanwhile, IT sees thatBudgets are tightDemand is highSystems are complex

And feels that Business…

Makes bad decisionsProvides too littleExpects too much

Focus = Demand

Different Goalsuniversal business goal

increase shareholder value(for-profit organizations)

increase Salesdecrease Costincrease ROIdecrease Riskincrease Cash Flow

throughnew Marketsnew Products/Servicescheaper Productionmore Efficient Operationimproved Marketingfaster Time-to-Market

universal IT goaldeliver high quality, on-time,

on-budget

increase Predictabilityincrease Repeatabilityincrease Maintainabilityincrease Usabilityincrease Enhanceability

throughmore Process (SDLC)more Planning (Portfolio)more Governance (PMO)more Documentationmore Formalism (SEPG)more Structure (CMMI)

business is trying to become more agile while IT is trying to become more managed

ramifications

the Business needs better, faster, cheaper…

but IT delivers determinism

the Business needs to manage fluidity…

but IT doesn’t respond well to change

the Business is unhappy with IT delivery

but IT tries to manage expectations

and the gap is growing, not shrinking

so how does ALM fit into this?

the primary problem with ALM, and with S2V by itself, is that each lives in a different discourse– as we said earlier, the discourse of IT is projects– however, the discourse of business is realized value

so what do we do about that?1. organize delivery mechanisms around value2. understand projects as a housekeeping structure for

delivering value3. build practices that allow continuous re-prioritization

of value within consistent fulfillment practices4. measure the value we help the business to realize

how can ALM help us in this new discourse?

increasing communications between fulfillment practices1. makes it easier to change course (CR, discussion

threads, x-Unit, live-source)2. helps us organize and prioritize requirements

(Caliber)improves quick, iterative releases and rollback

1. provides the most productive tools for development and design (JBuilder, Delphi, C#Builder, Together)

2. better SCM practices for planning quick releases than provided with simple version control (StarTeam)

3. traceability from business value to implemented features in StarTeam views (Caliber)

how can S2V help us in this new discourse?

by reducing the time to realize “nuggets” of value1. reduces the cost of waiting2. reduces costs of potentially “wrong” decisions3. remaining agile to changes in direction4. enforcing a consistent view of “current truth”

by always focusing on the most important value components1. integrating with Value Management™2. maximizing total realized value3. streamlining the project component into a vessel for

delivering components of value

by speaking the discourse of business with respect to realized value1. S2V repeatedly delivers 5 profitability measures2. maximizes uptime, the capacity to generate profits from IT

what else is needed in the new discourse?

how do we identify business value?how do we compare value measures with different units?how can we tell which “nuggets” of value are more valuable?how do we structure value into units of work (projects)?how do we determine what to allocate budget dollars to in

our “project portfolio?”how do we continuously re-evaluate value, while minimizing

the cost of course corrections?

pillar answers these questions with Value Management™

Value Management™

a practice that helps our customers realize the highest business value from their investment dollars (implemented in several service offerings)– defining and managing business cases– identify and prioritize alternative flows– clarify inconsistencies between different value measures– trace actual efforts back to the realized business value

expectedsome of the results of this effort

– better scoped projects– better incremental ROI planning– more consistent release planning to increase the business

value of IT– preservation of the role of IT as a fulfillment organization and

business as the owners of value

the “value space”

PillarValue Management

Space

Corporate Strategy

IT Strategy(leveraging

information and technology to increase

shareholder value)

Strategic Value Decomposition

(valuable activities we could implement)

Portfolio Planning(prioritizing value

realization according to constraints: time, resources, budget,

etc.)

Business ValueSpecification

Estimate Level of Effort

Prioritize Value to Realize

Value Fulfillment

(realization)

Business Case Management

(the realizable value of a given tactic)

Goals and Strategies

Objectives and Actionable Items

Projects and Schedule

IT and Business Alignment

Planned ROIT

Iterative Software Development/Systems Integration

the value industry

Strategic Planning

Strategic Planning

Strategic Planning

Strategic Planning

High-level decompositionNot usually actionable

Too generalizedNo impact analysis

Portfolio Management

No feature dependenciesInflexible project granularityNo feedback from fulfillmentPlaces value decisions in the wrong hands

ERP

General ledger (financial)Human resourcesService automationProject managementWork breakdown

Large, cumbersomeNo what-if analysis

No traceability to valueNo feedback loop

StrategicValue

Planning

summary – demonstrating business value from ALMmake a commitment to speak in the discourse of business value, not

“demand management” or “determinism”– careful, the discourse of business value is not simply ROI– fear may be a stronger motivator – think Sarbox, HIPAA, etc.

determine how you will answer the questions that ALM does not answer– ultimately, you are not selling ALM, but ALM is a facilitator of your

plan to increase realized value– as Borland enhances the ALM story with business-level capabilities,

it will accommodate your plans– you will most likely need fulfillment practices that support value

delivery as well (remember, agile versus deterministic)demonstrate the capacity to measure the value you deliver, and show IT to

be a profit center for your business– evaluate CMMI, PMO and other “best practices” for their potential

benefit to you, not HP or others– run IT like a business; produce reports on NP, ROI, Cash Flow– identify “new markets”; seek flexibility and adaptability

contact information

pillar technologies, LLC– Chris Beale (cbeale@pillartechnology.com),

Regional Manager, Great Lakes248-350-1004

– Bob Myers (bmyers@pillartechnology.com),Regional Manager, Ohio Valley740-965-6596

– Mike Shanton (mshanton@pillartechnology.com),Education Manager,248-321-8135

Questions?

The outcome of any serious research can only be to make

two questions grow where only one grew before.

- Thorstein Veblen, economist