In the rapidly evolving distributed businesses& technologies landscape, understanding the intricacies of cloud and edge computing is paramount.
I got a complimentary copy of the book “Technology Operating Models for Cloud and Edge” from my friends, authored by Andreas Spanner & Ahilan Ponnusamy. The book offers a comprehensive guide dissecting the challenges and opportunities of creating a technology operating model for distributed technology – Create your purpose-built distributed operating model for public, hybrid, multi-cloud, and edge.
Content and Structure:
The book is structured logically and progressively, starting with the fundamentals and gradually delving into more nuanced topics. Each chapter serves as a building block, paving the way for the subsequent chapters.
Strengths:
Rich Examples:
The book offers and sets the tone by discussing organisations’ challenges to the cloud, enriched with many examples. This practical approach ensures that readers can relate to real-world scenarios. The authors provide a glimpse of the big consulting firm’s approach to the operating model. The reference to the Team Topologies book and DORA metrics nicely blend with the fundamentals of an operating model.
Holistic Overview:
The book offers a bird’s-eye view of the enterprise technology landscape, distinguishing between various systems and highlighting their associated challenges. It touches on SoR (System of Record), SoD (System of Differentiation), SoI (System of Innovation) and posts the question of what our transformation should focus on? The book’s second chapter deeply delves into Gartner’s PACE layered architecture. The people in the transformation operation space would resonate with the “Resist change to reduce risk and improve stability” statement.
Learning from the Past:
The book is open to discussing past failures. A deep dive into Gartner’s Bimodal IT approach’s shortcomings is enlightening and instructive — stability and agility modes. The challenges and limitations section is an excellent compilation of the issues of this Bimodal IT.
Future-Forward:
The focus on the distributed future is timely and essential as the hybrid cloud and edge adoption has been growing steadily and is fast becoming the standard deployment model for most organisations. It clarifies hybrid and multi-cloud definitions and the reasons behind their inevitability. The authors have provided a great list of reasons for hybrid cloud adoption, including Business, Governance, compliance, cost optimisation, etc.
Practical Guidance:
Part 2 of this book, particularly chapters 5 & 6, is the book’s heart, detailing the building blocks of a distributed operating model. Including real-life use cases, templates, and assets makes this section particularly valuable in building our operating model for the distributed future. The three streams & associate dimensions, Leadership and architecture, Platform and tenant experience, and Products and services, provide a logical and practical sense. The one-page dashboard technique is a great way to communicate the progress. These chapters go into deep detail, touching on various aspects and components to be considered in defining our operating model and demonstrating this in action.
Integration with Open Source:
Chapter 7’s exploration of implementing platforms using enterprise open-source technologies is a testament to the book’s contemporary relevance. This chapter provides the nuts & bolts of the implementation requirements and discusses the details of the Platform, Platform Teams, mapping platform and capabilities. Both authors have a strong background in open-source and work for Red Hat, and I see the influence of their thinking in this chapter.
Concluding Insights:
The final chapter, “Into the Beyond,” ties everything together, introducing advanced concepts and offering tools for decision-making, prioritisation, measuring progress and roadmap development. I like the nested or rollup model presented for progress reporting: Dimension Items -> Operating Model Dimensions -> Operating Model Streams -> Operating Model; some are already familiar with other reporting approaches/techniques. The concluding chapter also allows us to understand the “Edge” and sustainability.
Audience:
While the book is a treasure trove for IT professionals, its structured approach and lucid writing style make it accessible to a broader audience, including business leaders and decision-makers. It would help if you had the technical expertise to understand a few terms and architecture-style approaches in some areas.
Areas for Improvement:
While the book is comprehensive, including more real-world case studies from diverse industries like healthcare, pharma, retail, and telco could have added depth and given us different perspectives on what to consider in other sectors and domains. Additionally, a section dedicated to potential challenges and mitigation strategies in implementing these models would have been beneficial. (is there a GitHub link for the template and dashboard example?)
Conclusion:
“Distributed Technology Operating Models: Navigating the Cloud and Edge Landscape” is a masterclass in understanding the complexities of today’s tech environment. I agree with the author’s statement: “We urged leadership to avoid confusing marketing slogans such as the cloud-first strategy” stance. The book strikes a perfect balance between theory and practical application, making it a must-read for anyone looking to harness the power of distributed technology. – the cloud and the edge.
BMK 