Identification of Services - A Stakeholder-Based Approach to SOA Development and its Application in the Area of Production Planning

A successful implementation of a service oriented architecture demands for a systematic identification of the information system functions to be implemented as services. In contrast to other approaches attempting to transfer each existing function in a company into a service, the method presented in this paper proposes a selective identification of services from a business point of view, based on process models. Functions are rated due to their outsourcing and visibility potential for stakeholders. Functions are only implemented and provided as a service, if both business potential and technical feasibility have been verified. Having been evaluated in a medium-sized manufacturing company, the approach and the results of the evaluation can also facilitate a sound service identification in other companies.