Service-Oriented Architecture:

The foundation of any information management initiative needs to be a sound data management strategy to extract data from various systems, ensure that data are accurate, and present information to members in formats and terms they understand. However, extracting and exchanging data from partners systems is not always an easy process.

The solution is not another IT application, nor an interface engine approach. It is a change in technology architecture, called Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). Using sound SOA and data management strategies can provide a base for collecting organization information. Additional enabling technologies can then be applied to further facilitate the customer experience including:

• Contact centers that channel information requests to systems or experts and provide reponses via the member's communication channel of choice.
• Business intelligence systems that offer ad hoc capability.
• Prompt quote and enrollment for individual consumers for health insurance plans offering such a product.

Business process management solutions that apply rules to facilitate information exchange within and between enterprises.

SOA

Service Characteristics:

• At the highest level, services map to functions in a business process.
• Services are available to other processes and can also cross business domains and organizational boundaries.
• Services are standards-based, to allow use by other applications, regardless of the underlying system technologies supporting them.
• Services must be built in an architectural fashion that supports maintenance, version control, and ownership for long term viability.

Unlike the technology migration initiatives of the past such as traditional client-server, n-tier architectures, Web deployment and adoption of new platforms and languages – SOA is not a replacement strategy. It is a technology independent approach designed for efficient process-driven software development that allows the life of existing systems to be extended and integrated with new systems as appropriate to serve new customer needs.