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Software as Strategy
Architects should look to apply technology for competitive advantage, says Sun's Jonathan Schwartz.
by Dan Ruby
Posted October 30, 2003
Jonathan Schwartz
Executive Vice President of Software, Sun Microsystems
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Echoing his company's long-held slogan that "the network is the computer," Sun's Executive Vice President of Software Jonathan Schwartz told attendees at the Enterprise Architect Summit that in today's technology-driven economy, "the architecture is the business."
"In the competitive terrain that we're working in, CTOs need to be making business decisions, not just academic ones," he said. Even in cases where technology gains only a short window of a competitive advantage, "that matters if the technology is firearms and you are an Indian."
That's why Schwartz believes companies should empower technology leaders as "wartime CTOs," ones who are able to apply software as the cornerstone of business strategy, not who are academically inclined with a resume of publications and patents.
Schwartz spoke in a luncheon "conversation" with Enterprise Architect Summit chair Steve Gillmor, who questioned the Sun executive about industry directions and Sun strategies.
Several weeks earlier, Schwartz had rolled out Sun's ambitious new software strategy, centering on two comprehensive suites of software for the enterprise server and enterprise desktop. Both products combine a great deal of functionality for a single low price based on the number of employees in the customer organization.
Schwartz and Gillmor discussed how that approach applies to architects in their own organizations, not only as a product option but also as a model for their own operations.
Schwartz said that when talking to technologists at customer sites about Sun's strategy to synchronize all product updates in coordinated quarterly releases, their first reaction is to learn how they can achieve the same kind of economies. "We hope they will be interested in the benefits of that approach for buying our product, but they are even more interested in how they can do it themselves," he said.
For Sun, this strategy enabled the company to simplify its software product offerings from more than 200 specific-function tools and a five-inch-thick binder of license agreements, to two products and a three-page agreement.
"For customers, there is no need to spend time and money making things work together because we have already done it for them. That drives uniformity up, which saves money that can be put toward innovation [in their own business domains]," he said.
Buying software in this manner can also save considerable costs. One result of the per-employee pricing model is the elimination of the distinction between internal and external IT systems. Companies that supply Internet services to customers pay no more for software than they would for managing their internal operations.
"This model of shared network services is a conceptual hurdle for many companies to get over," Schwartz said. "There is no reason anymore to have different systems for e-mail, directory, storage, or anything for your internal and external users."
The model is also critical for Sun as it seeks to make up ground in the software business to competitors such as IBM and Microsoft. While the strategy will not result in substantial revenues from software sales, it is intended to drive system sales that will keep Sun competitive in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
"Software opens markets that we will monetize with infrastructure," Schwartz said. "Don't tell Dell, but today it is not the box that's important. We intend to commoditize software."
Besides taking shots at competitors Dell and IBM, Schwartz aimed some fire at Microsoft. "I have deep respect for Microsoft," he said. "It's just that its products are too expensive, and too buggy, and not secure." Playing the role of industry provocateur, Gillmor urged him to "let it out." But Schwartz demurred. "I'm done now," he said.
Schwartz finished the hour-long conversation by reminding the audience of Sun's history of technology leadership. To show that the tradition of innovation continues in Sun's labs, he demonstrated some forthcoming improvements in user interface design involving three-dimensional perspective and windows that can rotate and reverse. The eye-catching demo was a hit with the audience, which rewarded Schwartz with a round of enthusiastic applause.
About the Author
Dan Ruby is editorial director of Enterprise Architect.
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