In a recent
post on his blog, my colleague Venkat wrote about network-centric strategy and the role of a
platform architect. Connectivity via the Internet has created opportunities to engage other customers, complementors and even competitors. This has led to the creation of ecosystems and new roles that companies can play within them. Platform architect is one such role. What other roles can one play in this landscape?
While the role of a platform architect is a great outcome, it is hard to accomplish and clearly not the only one. One could choose to be a
module or component provider that preferentially attaches to a platform to compete. The platform could provide access (via a standard) to other services that satisfy a customer need. The third role is that of a
systems integrator (SI). While the platform and module provider create optional and core services, an SI could help customers choose and integrate these services. The final role we see is that of a
process orchestrator. Entities playing this role ensure that, by weaving together services, the transaction of the business is completed and when failure occurs they can recover from it.
In addition to these roles, how can one measure and exercise control within the ecosystem. In our research we have outlined a methodology to capture data on ecosystems and described some network measures to track progress. We have also described a concept called
architectural control that helps companies create strategies to being relevant in industries characterized by platform-based competition.