Exploring Technical Tracks at SATURN 2012

The SATURN 2012 technical committee has put together a robust program of technical sessions, courses, tutorials, keynote presentations, and plenary talks that will allow practitioners at every level to walk away with knowledge that they can use at their organizations immediately.

Choose your path at the SATURN 2012 Conference on May 7-11, 2012 in St. Petersburg, Florida. Technical sessions will be divided into 8 tracks designed around aspects of software architecture from collaboration within an organization, to large-scale systems’ use of architecture-centric engineering. Architects at any level can delve deeper into the aspects of software architecture they choose. Personalize your SATURN 2012 experience by choosing from the 8 technical tracks:

SATURN 2012 Registration Now Open

Registration is now open for the eighth annual SEI Architecture Technology User Network (SATURN) 2012 Conference. Register by April 9 to take advantage of early-bird savings, which include $250 off the regular full-conference rate.

SATURN 2012 will be held May 7-11, 2012 in St. Petersburg, Florida  at the St. Petersburg Bayfront Hilton hotel. The conference is presented in collaboration with IEEE Software magazine.

Architecture: Catalyst for Collaboration

The SATURN 2012 program includes more than 25 technical sessions, tutorials, courses, panel discussions, and keynote addresses that will explore how effective collaboration across geographical, cultural, and technical boundaries is increasingly prevalent and essential to system success. You will leave the SATURN 2012 conference with new ideas and solutions to implement in your organization. You will also have the opportunity to

• Share ideas and hear case studies on hot topics including cloud computing; software architecture for ultra-large-scale systems; certification, culture, and process; architecture evaluation and review; enterprise architecture; and the interaction of architecture and Agile development
• Take the first public offering of a new course from the SEI, the Advanced Software Architecture Workshop
• Learn from and interact with industry leaders (including keynote speakers Michael Stal and Andy Hunt), researchers, and senior members of the SEI staff

To register and review rates, visit the SATURN 2012 website. We hope to see you in Florida!

CNN/Money Says Software Architect Now Top Job in U.S.

So says CNN/Money magazine. Last October, we reported here on the SATURN blog that CNN/Money had identified software architect as #8 on its lists of both top-paying and least-stressful jobs.

This year, software architect holds the top position.

Paul Clements on certified software architects

In the November/December issue of IEEE Software, Paul Clements of the SEI writes in the Career Development column about certified software architects. Here is the abstract:

Are software architecture certifications worthwhile? At a recent Software Engineering Institute architecture conference, certification programs from Boeing, Raytheon, Siemens, the International Association of Software Architects, and the SEI were presented and compared. This article captures the comparison, and offers some advice about engaging in certification activities and (if you’re an organizational manager) setting up your own program.

Speaker Abstracts Now Being Accepted for SATURN 2011

Save the date! The SEI Architecture Technology User Network (SATURN) 2011 conference is headed west to San Mateo County, California May 16-20, 2011.

The SATURN team at the Software Engineering Institute is pleased to announce the opening of the call for submissions for the SATURN 2011 Conference. We are looking for individuals who have real-world examples, lessons learned, innovative ideas, or an exciting perspective on software architecture to share with fellow software professionals.

The theme for the SATURN 2011 conference is “Architecting the Future” with a focus on architecture methods, techniques, and practices that will shape the future of architecture and enable architecture to shape our future. We’re calling this “7 Things You Need to Know about the Next 7 Years in Architecture.”

We invite those interested in speaking at SATURN 2011 to submit abstracts for presentations or half-day tutorial sessions. As part of SATURN’s collaboration with IEEE Software magazine, selected conference papers will be featured in IEEE Software.

Abstracts will be accepted until midnight on November 30, 2010.

For more information on topics, format, terms and conditions, and submission details, visit the SATURN 2011 website at http://www.sei.cmu.edu/saturn/2011/call.cfm.

We look forward to receiving your submission and we hope to see you in California!

About the SATURN Conference
The annual SEI Architecture Technology User Network (SATURN) Conference brings together software professionals from around the world to exchange best practices in developing, acquiring, and maintaining software and systems architecture.

SATURN 2010: Panel on Certification

Panelists:

• Rolf Siegers, Raytheon
• Don O’Connell, Boeing
• Frances Paulisch, Siemens AG
• Andy Ruth, International Association of Software Architects (IASA)
• Linda Northrop, SEI

Moderated by Paul Clements.

Each speaker gave brief overview of their organizations’ certification programs. Then each speaker presented concuding thoughts about certification programs for architects. Discussion and questions were welcomed throughout.

Here are excerpts and highlights:

Raytheon: Targeted for senior systems or enterprise architect practitioners. Companywide initiative that identifies, instructs, and assesses Raytheon’s top systems and enterprise architects. Intended to establish cadre of senior architects to develop architectures that meet Raytheon needs and mentor next generation of architects. Started in 2004. 150+ fully certified, 115+ others fully trained. Rest are at various stages. Certification is a mechanism to curtail “business-card architects.”

Hear from a Panel of Experts about Architecture Certification at SATURN 2010

Improve Your Skills and Gain a Competitive Advantage

As the practice of architecture at the software, system, and system-of-systems levels has been maturing, an increasing number of organizations are providing certified architect career ladders. The SATURN 2010 Conference will explore this development in a panel discussion on architecture training and certifications. Experts from Raytheon, Siemens, International Association of Software Architects (IASA), Boeing, and the SEI will discuss their experiences and lessons learned from their different perspectives. The panel, which will be moderated by Paul Clements of the SEI, includes

• Linda Northrop, Software Engineering Institute
• Don O’Connell, Boeing
• Frances Paulisch, Siemens AG
• Andy Ruth, IASA
• Rolf Siegers, Raytheon

Learn more about the panel discussion and get full bios for each panelist in the online Preliminary Program. http://www.sei.cmu.edu/saturn/2010/program.cfm

Link Roundup: April 12, 2010

Good morning all,

Welcome to our April 12 link roundup. Here are some notable posts and pages from other software engineering blogs and websites that you may have missed:

Testing Service Oriented Solutions, by Richard Seroter at Richard Seroter’s Architecture Musings. Richard talks about the SEI’s recently released report, Testing in Service Oriented Environments, and the 65 recommendations contained therein.

When Is It Time to Quit? by Peter Cripps at Software Architecture Zen. Peter discusses what to do when you realize the project isn’t going to be delivered, and how to recognize the warning signs before you get to that point.

7 Management Interventions for Adapting and Adopting Processes, by J.D. Meier at his personal blog. J.D. shares a good article about change management.

For developers, iPhone-to-iPad is a bigger jump than you’d expect, by Martin Heller at Strategic Developer. Martin examines the differences between programming for the iPad and the iPhone and how this can affect other types of cross-platform functionality.

Why we need certification for IT architects, by Matt Deacon at Matt Deacon’s digestive blog. Matt brings up a valid point about IASA’s IT certification process.

And finally, on April 22, the SEI will host a webinar with Nanette Brown where she will discuss Agile development and software architecture.

SATURN 2010 Technical Program

This week I have in my to-do list writing a blog post about the SATURN 2010 program as the technical chair. You have the benefit of the program laid out for you at the SATURN conference page, far better than I can do here. So instead, I will reflect on the process of putting together the program for SATURN from my perspective and why I am excited about it.

Software Architects: Are You Losing Ground if You Are Not Credentialed?

As previously announced here, we at the SEI are planning a track on architecture certification at SATURN 2010, including a panel discussion with representatives from Siemens, the International Association of Software Architects (IASA), the SEI, and other organizations.

An example of the increasing demand for credentialed architecture expertise comes from the U.S. Army. In a memo signed by Lieutenant General N. Ross Thompson, principal military deputy for the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army, Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology (Mil Dept of ASA [ALT]), on May 26, 2009, the U.S. Army mandated that all program executive offices (PEOs) appoint a chief software architect (CSWA) to be responsible for oversight and management of software development within each PEO. The memo also specified that the CSWA must earn a Software Architecture Professional Certificate from the SEI (or equivalent).

An article by R. Rivera, “Am I Doing Architecture or Design Work?” (IT Professional, Volume 9,  Issue 6,  Nov.-Dec. 2007 Page(s):46 – 48) discusses architecture certification at Hewlett-Packard Services and speculates that “Certification might become mandatory over time in the same way that Project Management Institute certification is expected for all HP Services program and project managers.”