I have been meaning to lay out an argument since the recent Sun analyst conference, which we covered pretty extensively here, here, and um, here.
The basic argument is that Sun would do well to build a new team tasked with putting pressure on its own software portfolio. This disruptive influence would ideally eschew technologies associated with the Java Enterprise System. Instead it would concentrate on other issues such as establishing a business model for the Roller blogging platform, or working out a non-virtual machine story for scripting languages. Doing cool things with Rome and Atom. Focusing on mashups, Web 2.0, Read/Write and programmableweb and new ways of getting things done. Oh yeah – AJAX.
Sun and Roller business model? Hint for Sun – IBM and Microsoft are conflicted when it comes to enterprise blogging software- both companies are focused on selling tools from the Lotus and Exchange/RTC portfolios, so that they can’t just sell a thin slice of blogging functionality. IBM and Microsoft see blogging as a new feature to sell existing toolsets, rather than a new billable service in its own right. Its not about good enough, its a feature function spitting match.
Why would Sun start to cannibalise its own portfolio just as it finally begins to get the thing cleaned up after multiple acquisitions? One word- innovation. Or two words- creative destruction.
External competition is an important driver of innovation–see Eclipse and Netbeans–but IT companies that are built to last also establish internal competition models, to keep themselves honest – see WebSphere and WebSphere CE, or RS/6000 and AS/400.
Alignment between technology streams is not always a good thing, because it can lead to groupthink and over-integration. Steve Mills and Bill Gates might like to see every component in their respective portfolios glue-gunned together into the kind of once and future architectures that any astronaut would love. But there is a downside. Integrated aggravation – no thanks. Let’s be clear here- I am not arguing that customers don’t buy or want integrated platforms-what is JEE after all, but an integrated set of services? Companies buy Microsoft technologies every day on the basis of tight-coupling between tools.
SAP created the biggest monolith ever, R/3, with a pitch all about the value of integration. But don’t forget the associated costs. Indeed if SAP is the poster child for the value of an integrated portfolio, why is it now trying to decompose the monolith using SOA methods? Because monoliths are bloody expensive, that’s why, and they create too much account control for vendors, which users eventually rebel against, often catastrophically for the vendor concerned. Think IBM in 1994.
Over-integration is the enemy of service-oriented architecture, although Microsoft and IBM haven’t fully realised it yet. Both of these firms are currently on course to build their own SSA 2.0s. But if its not loosely-coupled its not service oriented.
At least IBM is explicit about creating internal competion models, has IGS recommending competitor’s products, and has even allowed/created a cannibalisation team to start chucking stones at Software Group Monoliths. Microsoft meanwhile has its MSN portfolio, which potentially caniballises some of its enterprise products.
Why loose-coupling? Recent Harvard Business School research shows a key open source advantage is building modularity into the system. Components are designed with clear service interfaces and interchangeability in mind. The services aren’t all designed to work together, rather they are small pieces, loosely joined. Open source acts against hairball creation. You can see the very human act of slowly beginning to get it over at Nicholas Carr’s blog.
Anyway Sun has some incredible people assets, that aren’t being used to create enough change at the moment. Sun needs to set these people free to not just do stuff, but to help establish new business opportunities.
So who is on the A-Team, in my view?
- Hal Stern – Hal is a playful, but could play the role of Corporate Guy on the guerilla team. As a Sun Services representative he can bring some very useful resources to the table. Many of the new approaches in web 2.0 require hosting. That’s a potential services play. Note that IBM Global Services doesn’t like hosting easy software that doesn’t require a lot of expensive customisation.
- Simon Phipps – Simon is currently Sun’s chief open source officer. Perhaps counterintuitively, as the rest of the industry begins to realise that Sun isn’t “out out get” OSS, his role may become less, rather than more, important. A successful open source strategy requires less top down management of issues. So why not free up Simon to do what he does best. Contrarian Evangelism.
- Tim Bray – developers respect Tim almost without reservation (although his championing of ATOM has left some people scratching their heads). He even thinks of himself as the honourable opposition. Needs to be on the team because he has a visceral dislike of space architecture and WS-I.
- Dave Johnson – the developer behind Roller. He just gets the new new thing, and he builds stuff, rather than talking about it.
- Matt Raible – doesn’t work for Sun, but works well with Dave. And RedMonk just likes him…
The core team should be small – but bigger than 5 people. But these people would make a great start. Actually it looks a bit men heavy – why not include Michele Dennedy – Sun’s chief privacy officer? She could work on privacy and user control issues around declarative living and tagging infrastructures, thinking about how to mitigate concerns about user privacy.
Don’t give the team any marketing resources. They can use this new social software stuff and existing contacts.
Who might benefit the most from a guerilla team, thinking of new software packaging options, and unconstrained to Sun only middleware? John Fowler – EVP of scale out server technology. His group is building some ludicrously cool hardware that’s going to drive some interesting software use cases. Why not let the use cases drive the packaging, rather than the Sun software marketers drive the systems packaging. SAMP? WAMP – stuff like that.
That’s my argument. What do you think? Anyone for Project Long Tail?
Ryan Tomayko says:
March 1, 2006 at 7:38 pm
Hell yea. But I wouldn’t stop at Sun, every company needs this team.
Robin Wilton says:
March 1, 2006 at 8:54 pm
“You might think that… I couldn’t possibly comment.” (c)F.Urquhart
Actually there are a few more people we ought to put you in touch with, who are already spending most of their time not just on AJAX, but other stuff like LAMP, RESTful web services, mashups and the like.
Have you seen our Web Services-controlled OO-scale train yet?
Simon Phipps says:
March 2, 2006 at 12:15 am
Should I send you my resume?
/pd says:
March 2, 2006 at 1:08 am
Ok How about some real guerilla tactics :)-
what is your opinion of Scott open letter to Hurd ??
http://www.sun.com/aboutsun/media/features/converge.html
james governor says:
March 2, 2006 at 9:05 am
Ryan – I just haven’t written the IBM one yet!
Robin – no OO trains afaik
Simon – you dont want to be on the team, and besides what would you put on a resume that I don’t already know? You are one of the people in this industry I deeply respect. I have a soft spot for corporate troublemakers..
Peter – haven’t read the open letter. Jonathan’s blog was enough for me.
Jaime Cardoso says:
March 2, 2006 at 10:33 am
Has you know, I’m in the Sun Software Summit and under NDA so, I really can’t comment a lot right now but, from what I’m seeing, … Stay tuned. Sun is really listening on what the community is saying about JES and, the feedback is going all the way up to engineering and, … They’re doing something about it.
I gathered a “list of complains” (or improvement points) from customers, partners and competitors (friends in other Sun resellers that weren’t able to make it here) and, all of my issues were spontaneously addressed in the keynotes section like “what people are ranting about, what we’re doing about it, in wich order and when”
Why wont this form work says:
March 2, 2006 at 10:00 pm
So why is it that of the Sun developers that started R.O.M.E only Alejandro is still employed by Sun and he is on leave-of-absence.
Dave Johnson has recently done some work on it, but only in his own time (as far as I know). There are no other Sun employees involved in the project in anyway – kind of weird for the next cool thing don’t you think?
(Your comment was denied for questionable content. What’s up with that!?)
Michelle D says:
March 29, 2007 at 3:14 am
Woo-wee could we have some fun & come up with some dangerously, outrageously cool stuff with this team. Where do I sign up?! 😉