enterprise

Solving the Polyglot Persistence Puzzle
– Using the Oracle Information Characteristics Architecture Method

Polyglot – Knowing or using several languages.
Persistence – A coding technique or technology used to store information.
Polyglot Persistence – Storing information in multiple information management technologies to meet a business requirement.

The Polyglot Persistence Puzzle – Combining multiple information management technologies into comprehensive information architectures to meet business requirements.

Today an information architect has a wide array of information management technologies available to solve business problems.  451 Research published a Data Platform Map in June 2015 that identified 277 information management products in 18 categories.  

Three forces have contributed the explosion of information management technologies: 

1. The enormous amount and types of information generated on the internet and by connected devices,
2. The reduction in the cost of compute and storage platforms per a unit of processing capability and,
3. The explosion of open source products for specific information management use cases.

Together, these forces have provided the opportunity for information architects to collect data onto low-cost platforms that only a few years ago would have been deemed too high-volume, too low-value and too expensive to capture.  Hence we are now in the era of Big Data – high-volume, low-value data that can be cost effectively researched, explored and mined.  But experience has shown that the value of Big Data is multiplied many times over of it can be combined with high-value information in existing systems to enhance the quality of decisions made throughout the organization, i.e. solving the Polyglot Persistence Puzzle. This daunting task falls to the Information Architects.  It is the Information Architects that must lead the era of Big Data into the era of Polyglot Persistence for organizations to take full advantage new types of information and information management technologies.

But with this new era comes the need for new ways and methodologies to solve the inevitable Polyglot Persistence Puzzle.

In this series of blog articles, we will introduce and explain such a new methodology – Oracle Information Characteristics Architecture Method (ICAM).  ICAM measures 16 information characteristics and 8 usage patterns to evaluate and value information to assist Information Architects in making the best information management technologies decisions, i.e. the right tools for the right job.  ICAM has been developed with input from many Oracle information management thought leaders from around the world.  We have also worked with a handful of beta customers to implement and refine ICAM with very positive feedback and results.  My colleague, Bill Wimsatt, and I will post several blog articles explaining and walking through the process of implementing ICAM and showing the value of using this methodology.

The next ICAM blog article ‘Why solving the Polyglot Persistence Puzzle is so important today – The Information Value Lifecycle’.

Bill Wimsatt is a Senior Business Technology Professional with a broad background combining business and IT strategy, execution, and program management.  He has over 25 years experience in business and IT strategy and business optimization.

Ron Mayfield is the Senior Enterprise Architect specializing in database and information architectures at Oracle.  Ron has been a professional in the IT industry for 30 years and an employee of Oracle for the last 26 years.

Bill and Ron will be presenting ICAM at the Open Group Towards Boundaryless Information Flow™ in San Fransisco on Wednesday, January 27, 2016, at 9:00 – 9:45pm.  Their presentation is titled ‘Developing Information Architectures via Business Capabilities and Information Characteristics’.

‘Boundaryless Information Flow’ is a trademark of The Open Group.