Adaptive Service Engineering

Next-generation business service architecture. 

Welcome to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ page). Below, we have tried to answer the most common questions visitors to this our Web site may have. If you find that your question is not answered on this page, please email us nwasserman@adaptiveservices.com or call us at 617-484-4822.

How does Adaptive Service Generation differ from Business Process Re-engineering?

Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) is an old approach to business design made popular in the 1990s. BPR aims to restructure business processes and related IT systems across functions and organizations. ASG differs from BPR in a number of ways:

• Rather than defining a business process in terms of rigid model of inputs, activities, and outputs, ASG emphasizes the interactive and adaptive qualities of the service relationship. With ASG, the service recipient is the force behind service design.
• BRP generally views processes as chain of activities, defined in advance and executed as a whole. In the ASG view, componentization of the service delivery capability permits a much more fluid response (adaptation) to changing requirements of recipients and markets. 
• ASG methods define common resources that support service capabilities across business units.
• ASG defines service delivery mechanisms that generate services on a much reduced time-to-market cycle than traditional approaches like BPR.

What is a “Service Component”?

A service component is the genetic unit of reusability for services. Like biological genes, service components may be used in different contexts to varying effect. Service components are combined to define and deliver services.  For the same reason that components are used to build software systems or integrated circuits, complexity of service design and change is managed with services components.  The service component captures operational features of the service capability in a way that can be replicated in different business units, geographies, and systems.  The service components are then used to generate services through combination and adaptation of individual component behaviors. Service components come in different varieties (we call them colors) depending on whether they represent units of business analysis or implementation. 

What is the difference between a Service Component and a web-service?

Web-services represent a type of software component technology that may be used to implement service components.  Despite similarity in nomenclature, however, a web-service is simply a standard for software wrapping and identification.  It does not necessarily contain a service capability within our meaning of service.  The problem is that in the software world, service often takes on the meaning of a called procedure, as in a CORBA service. We view “service” as an interactive process that changes the capabilities of the service recipient to do something of value.  A Service Component is the componentized formal view of the interaction we call a business service. A web service is one technology option for implementing that interaction in software.

What is a “Service Component Architecture”?

The Service Component Architecture is a multi-layered view of the service delivery capabilities of the business organization.  The Service Component Architecture offers both an “as-is” and “to-be” view of service delivery capabilities.  When applied to the current state of service delivery operations, the service components can be used to characterize service delivery processes in relation to common elements among multiple business units. 

What is “Service Component Accounting”?

Service Component Accounting is the method by which measures of business value are associated with service components.  These techniques permit prioritization of service components and change strategies in terms of business impact. 

How do I decide where to focus in changing service delivery capabilities?

The initial focus may be determined by a business decision that recognizes a specific need — to control escalating costs, to manage customer confusion, to enter new markets. More formally, the ASG Assessment Service and other ASG services use Service Component Architecture analysis and Service Component Accounting to identify priorities and return on investment in service change. 

What’s the difference between a service component and business object or business component?

There is great confusion in the use of terminology related to objects, components, and other descriptors of business and technical “containers.” Briefly, the “service component,” adopts formal features of systems engineering components such as encapsulation and interface definitions.  But service components address reusability of service capabilities as well as their technical representation.  The emphasis on service in ASG methods narrows the focus and reduces ambiguity.   A more detailed discussion of the nuances of object/component concepts will be found in Adaptive Service Engineering, the book. 

How do service components relate to shared IT services and ASPs?

The trend toward shared IT services is one factor that will make implementation of ASG capabilities easier.  In fact, ASG is designed to implement the business that can make use of shared services or other options for obtaining technical support for service delivery.  With a robust service model, business service capabilities (service components) can be shared across business units, markets, and geographies. Application Service Providers (ASPs) provide one option for implementing service components. Whether the service component is built, bought or rented is a business decision that follows the definition of the Service Component Architecture.