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What is the difference between solution architecture and enterprise architecture? One lens is below – the viewpoint or scope is more granular.

If there is a short top 5 list of digital disuptors, Netflix is in that list. Netflix is not only a digital pioneer, it disrupted industries and changed consumer behavior. Netflix is a digital leader and many companies aspire to be the Netflix in their business. A lot can be learned from Netflix. This article from HBR is a good start.

From HBR: To See the Future of Competition, Look at Netflix

I’ve been following Netflix since 2005, when I first visited its headquarters in Silicon Valley and interviewed Reed Hastings, its founder and CEO. I don’t think I’ve learned more about strategy, technology, and culture from any other company I’ve studied. It’s a stretch to claim that everything I know about business I learned from watching Netflix, but there’s no doubt that many leaders can see glimpses of the future of competition and innovation by looking at how the company does business.

Software spend was approx. 7-10% of total IT spend during financial crisis. Now, it is approx. 30% and that too not including cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP etc.). Including cloud, it is approx. 50%.

I came across the above metric in a podcast, but need to validate. From my personal experience with cloud and SaaS it is not a big surprise, but what can we glean from this metric?
a) Many companies, particularly small and mid-size, are using way more SaaS than on-premise software.
b) Companies are buying (vs. building) in a BIG way. Tough to argue for building, unless it is product development.

Other big components of IT spends are human capital and real estate (i.e. workspaces).

Does the relative standing of cloud providers correlate to search keywords? For e.g. AWS is the top cloud provider and hence one would think people search for AWS the most. Is it true for all the major cloud providers? I was just curious and went to Google search to find the answers. The answer is in the graph below. In short – yes!

From PwC in 2016: Financial Services Technology 2020 and Beyond

It is 2020 and a good checkpoint.

The ten technology forces that matter: how to compete in the financial services industry in 2020 and beyond
1 FinTech will drive the new business model
2 The sharing economy will be embedded in every part of the financial system
3 Blockchain will shake things up
4 Digital becomes mainstream
5 ‘Customer intelligence’ will be the most important predictor of revenue growth and profitability
6 Advances in robotics and AI will start a wave of ‘re-shoring’ and localisation
7 The public cloud will become the dominant infrastructure model
8 Cyber-security will be one of the top risks facing financial institutions
9 Asia will emerge as a key centre of technology-driven innovation
10 Regulators will turn to technology, too

From industryweek: Don’t Rush Digital Transformation: 8 Considerations in a New Era

Readers must be familiar with the eight considerations. It is a good summary and list to keep handy.

-Focus, focus and focus
-Keep it simple, stupid
-Forget about legacy versus digital business
-Prioritize better and faster
-Address the internal typical organizational bottlenecks
-Digital opportunities start with new business models
-Monetize and leverage data
-Solve your internal inefficiencies right now

One doesn’t get to hear a lot about the cloud players outside of the big three (Amazon, Microsoft and Google). The above article from Last Week in AWS shines light on Zoom’s decision to go with Oracle Cloud over AWS or Azure (Zoom already uses AWS and Azure) for some of their workloads.

How much is at stake with digital transformation? Apparently, $2.5 Trillion dollars annually. Wow! Just to give a frame of reference, US GDP is $21 Trillion

From CNBC: $7 trillion to be invested in making work more digital by 2023

“ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott estimated there will be $7.4 trillion invested in the digital transformation of business operations over the next three years”

“Before the pandemic, only 7% of workers had access to a “flexible workspace” benefit, or telework, according to Pew Research Center. Now 42% of workers who previously did not work from home are doing so, according to CNBC’s All-America Economic Survey”

From HBR: Why Design Thinking Works

Design thinking could be a very valuable approach in an enterprise’s digital transformation and product strategy. The good thing is enterprises of various sizes (and in various sectors) can practice it.

HBR gives a further look on Design Thinking with some great examples.

“All too often, good ideas die on the vine in the absence of people with a personal commitment to making them happen”