Not too long ago, IT organizations turned to service-oriented architecture primarily as a way to integrate enterprise applications. But now large companies are using SOA to create components that can be combined and reused as services across multiple applications.
This makes application updates easier and faster, reduces development time, improves service to customers and partners, and saves money.
It's still SOA, just all grown up.
"You don't get high marks anymore for simply writing Web service wrappers around existing applications," says Hamesh Yadav, lead systems architect at Wells Fargo & Co. in San Francisco and co-chairman of The Open Group's service-oriented infrastructure working group. "SOA is more problem-based now."