Understanding SOA: A Technical Overview

Understanding Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) is a one-day, technical overview SOA training course geared for managers and project stakeholders who need to understand the impact of SOA, what is different about SOA and the overall process of adoption and implementation. This course focuses on what separates an ad hoc set of web services (NOT SOA) from a managed, vibrant, reusable catalog of enterprise services (definitely SOA). It provides an overview of the entire spectrum from the promise of cloud computing to the grit of XML content. The course presents a clear portrait of how a service orientation can fundamentally change the dynamics of how software is developed and "lives" within an enterprise. Organizations are struggling with how to translate SOA's vision into practical terms and concepts. Understanding SOA: A Technical Overview is designed for enterprise managers and stakeholders who wish to understand what services and service-oriented architectures are and how implementing a SOA system will impact their projects. While our training is “technology centric,” it is vendor independent, meaning that the content is not clouded by sales and marketing messages. Although a specific SOA product can be discussed, the comprehensive lessons are geared towards teaching the practical application of SOA, rather than focusing on the finer points of the tools in use. Of course, SOA is not a technology but a set of practices and concepts that hold the promise of more closely aligning business with IT applications. Understanding SOA: A Technical Overview provides coverage of practical issues for enterprise applications relative to SOA. The goal of this course is to empower students with the knowledge and foresight they need to lead and participate in the implementation of realistic SOA-based business application projects. In addition, there is an extensive review of topics such as Enterprise Service Bus (ESB), the Business Process Execution Language (BPEL), SOAP, Web Services Description Language (WSDL), and Web Services. The course provides a solid foundation in basic terminology and concepts, extended and built upon throughout the engagement. Processes and best practices are discussed and illustrated through both discussions and group activities. Throughout the course students will be led through a series of progressively advanced topics, where each topic consists of lecture, group discussion, comprehensive hands-on lab exercises, and lab review. This course is “skills-centric”, designed to train attendees in essential skills, coupling the most current, effective techniques with the soundest practices.