|
Gartner
Says 2003 is the Year for Even Cautious Enterprises to Begin Web
Services Pilot Programs
Web services have begun to infiltrate enterprise IT projects, and
even cautious companies will need to begin Web services pilot programs
in 2003, according to Gartner, Inc.
"As companies begin the early implementation of Web services,
the versatility of the technology is becoming increasingly clear,"
said Whit Andrews, research director for Gartner. "Web services
is fulfilling its potential as low-risk, high-utility data integration
catalysts, but it is also emerging in unusual, visionary projects."
Over the past year, Gartner has monitored companies implementing
Web services projects in order to examine the challenges and lessons
learned from the early adoption of Web services. One of the main
challenges experienced by the companies was deciding which projects
should be assigned to Web services.
"Few enterprises should base a costly, strategic overhaul
of mission-critical applications for 2004 or earlier on Web services,"
Andrews said. "However, companies whose IT staffs intend to
embrace robust new programming models should begin to experiment
with Web services now, developing pilots for deployment no later
than 2003."
One major trend Gartner has recognized through monitoring the companies
is that enterprises on the whole are not engaging in projects that
require substantial security. Most companies are engaging in interactions
that are unattractive for miscreants, or simply layering on basic
security capabilities.
Another trend is that many companies are deploying Web services
in projects with low developer headcounts. Gartner recommends that
projects not exceed eight developers, except when a company is unusually
committed to Web services or to the development of appropriate management
methodologies. Most enterprises have used even fewer than eight
developers.
"Typical internal project teams have been closer to three
developers and external development has generally been conducted
in such a way that the load for enterprises is distributed to teams
of similar size, for instance, two internal and one external developer,"
Andrews said.
|
Products & Services 
