Ultimately, architects are judged by their ability to structure systems that support the business. The job would be a lot easier if business needs didn’t change so often. But because the business environment today demands that companies constantly innovate and adapt, architects need to design IT infrastructures for maximum agility.

With its leadership in supporting SOA and its recent releases of BEA WebLogic Server 10, BEA WebLogic Portal 10, and BEA Workshop for WebLogic 10, BEA helps architects leverage the latest Web 2.0 and Java EE 3 capabilities to deliver what businesses need today—and to build in the flexibility to meet tomorrow’s requirements. We’re also providing thought leadership: for more information on designing systems that align with the needs of the business, we invite you to check out the resources in this newsletter, and visit the Arch2Arch Website.

Portal infrastructure is often cited as an ideal way for businesses to enhance service, efficiency, and agility. But if you’ve already got Web applications in place, making the transition to portals seems daunting. In this interview, Peter Laird, managing architect for the BEA WebLogic Portal engineering team, explains how BEA WebLogic Portal 10 smoothes that transition, allowing your business to start benefiting from portals now, without significant disruption and with minimal effort.

In this article, author Gabriel Bechara delivers a simplified, top-down approach to enterprise architecture in the context of SOA. With a focus on information technology, he shows how to build better alignment between business and IT.

As initial SOA deployments expand, change management and governance issues become a priority. This whitepaper from IDC explains why SOA organization and governance is so critical, what people and process issues senior IT management must address, and what practical steps you can take right now to put a governance plan in place. Case studies and interviews with the VPs of IT at Washington Mutual (WaMu) and T-Mobile add real-world depth and detail to this whitepaper.

BEAParticipate is an exclusive event filled with 2½ days of product, customer, and partner sessions all focused on BEA AquaLogic User Interaction and BEA AquaLogic BPM products. Speakers will include innovative customers such as Pratt & Whitney, Naval Sea Systems Command, and Citigroup. This is the premiere event for deep-dive experiences delivered by product experts, engineers, and your peers. We will also be showcasing new Enterprise Web 2.0 products that will redefine “participation” for business users.

How can you address today's eCommerce challenges? This Webinar explains how innovative search engine optimization (SEO) technology and Web 2.0 can help you attract and convert online customers profitably. Register to attend on April 25 at 9:00 a.m. PDT.

Business data is increasing at phenomenal rates—which makes data discovery and data management increasingly difficult. This webinar describes the benefits of adopting a service-oriented approach to your information and how BEA AquaLogic Data Services Platform can help.

Network Computing magazine recently conducted a very positive standalone product review of BEA AquaLogic Data Services Platform (ALDSP) 2.5. “ALDSP is on the leading edge here, especially when integrated with other BEA SOA offerings,” says the article, which calls out data integration and data protection as exceptional strengths in the product.

You probably already know that a mashup is a Website or application that combines content from more than one source into an integrated experience. But with the recent explosion in popularity of sites such as MySpace and YouTube, they’re also part of a revolution in new-media applications and services. Come to this half-day event to find out how mashups are changing the Web user experience and how they’re impacting enterprise computing.

How do F500 companies use SOA governance to make SOA deliver? Find out by tuning in to this online conference, Keys to Business-Critical SOA: Governance II. A stellar line-up of experts from BEA Systems and other SOA governance providers will describe how customers are relying on SOA governance to boost SOA ROI, reduce SOA risks, and prepare for new business opportunities.

The theme of this year’s Enterprise Architect Summit is solving real-world architecture issues. The summit, brought to you by Fawcette Technical Publications, includes Beyond Blueprints: from Vision to Value with Service-Oriented Architecture Governance, a presentation by Charles Stack, vice president of engineering, BEA Systems.

Government organizations are evaluating how to measure the impact of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) and open-source software within IT programs. This whitepaper presents strategies for defining evaluation criteria for BEA WebLogic Server and JBoss Application Server, to help rationalize enterprise application server infrastructure decisions.