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Enterprise-wide computing requires a high degree of connectivity allowing all elements of the corporate computing environment to communicate with all other elements. The two types of interfaces required for this are between different elements and between users and computers. The diverse needs of various users make design of the user interface difficult: it must be consistent while supporting the individuality of users. IBM's Systems Application Architecture (SAA) treats all external interfaces equally but supports diversity in connections of computing elements and data management under many operating systems running diverse applications. SAA provides the consistency and control required to manage corporate data while supporting the flexibility required by users in their daily work. IBM uses the relational database as the consistent storage technique and SQL as the way to retrieve data; how these and other elements of IBM's strategy are used is described.

The last five articles in this series have addressed the need to empower people throughout the organization by: * Defining the vision and values for the firm; * Flattening the […]

In this series we have been examining the negative effects of traditional, bureaucratic organizations. The preceding two articles discussed the overcontrol inherent in these organizations, its effect on motivation, and […]

The corporate database market should be seen as a whole, combining microcomputers, local area networks and mainframe connections in a way that gives users access to all corporate data regardless of where it is located. Few corporations appreciate the value of the data residing on their computers until they lose it. Corporations need a coherent data management strategy, which, for large organizations, entails cooperative processing in one guise or another. Small organizations may be served very well by LANs and database servers, but large organizations require connections to mainframes, and the largest may require a hybrid system that connects microcomputers, minicomputers and mainframes. This level of integration calls for consistency in system design, which no company provides as well as IBM. A set of rules and procedures is required that supercedes computer hardware and operating systems: the relational database and SQL provide those rules.