Unbundling the Enterprise: APIs, Optionality, and the Science of Happy Accidents

by Stephen Fishman, Matt McLarty

Overview

“This clear-eyed, highly pragmatic call for embracing digital flexibility as foundational to business models strikes an ideal balance between forward-thinking boldness and breakdowns of established best practices.. . . Unbundling the Enterprise stands out for its practical clarity, especially when it comes to facing the certainty of uncertainty.”
—Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Editor’s Pick

Unbundling the Enterprise provides a blueprint for organizations to remain relevant and maximize growth in the digital economy by embracing the flexibility and optionality enabled by APIs.

Drawing on real-world examples of both innovative “digital pirates” and legacy “digital settlers,” authors Stephen Fishman and Matt McLarty articulate strategies to unbundle business capabilities into reusable digital assets. These building blocks can then be rapidly combined and recombined to capitalize on new opportunities and innovations as they emerge.

For business and technology leaders, Unbundling the Enterprise provides an actionable methodology to engineer “happy accidents” and sustainable success in turbulent times. Underpinning their strategy are techniques tailored for digital business, like using APIs to create widespread optionality, designing digital business models focused on value exchange, and optimizing outcomes through tight feedback loops.

More than copying the superficial traits of digital pioneers, this book reveals the deeper mindset shift required to continually capitalize on unanticipated opportunities enabled by rapid technology innovation.

“Unbundling the Enterprise…blew me away. It is a combination of some of my favorite books: Dr. Carliss Baldwin's Design Rules and Eric Evans's Domain Driven Design with the strategic insights akin to Good to Great and Reengineering the Corporation.”

—Gene Kim, researcher and bestselling author of The Phoenix Project and Wiring the Winning Organization

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781950508877
Publisher:	IT Revolution Press
Publication date:	09/10/2024
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.95(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Stephen Fishman (Fish) is the NA Field CTO for Boomi. He is a practicing technologist who brings creativity, rigor, and a human-centric lens to problem-solving. Known as an expert in aligning technology and business strategy, Stephen places a premium on pushing business and technology leaders to embrace iteration and the critical need to collaborate across disciplines. Throughout his career, Stephen has consulted with organizations desiring to transform their technology-based offerings to better meet the needs of organizations and the people they serve. In addition to consulting with large organizations, Stephen is an in-demand speaker and advisor. Stephen has led multidisciplinary teams to deliver amazing results at Salesforce, MuleSoft, Cox Automotive, Sapient, Macy's, and multiple public sector institutions, including the US Federal Reserve and the CDC. He lives in Atlanta with his family, and when he's not working, he can be found biking on the many trails in Georgia.

Matt McLarty is the Chief Technology Officer for Boomi. He works with organizations worldwide to help them digitally transform using a composable approach. He is an active member of the global API community, has led global technical teams at Salesforce, IBM, and CA Technologies, and started his career in financial technology. Matt is an internationally known expert on APIs, microservices, and integration. He is coauthor of the O'Reilly books Microservice Architecture and Securing Microservice APIs and co-host of the API Experience podcast. He lives with his wife and two sons in Vancouver, BC.

Editorial Reviews

09/09/2024

This clear-eyed, highly pragmatic call for embracing digital flexibility as foundational to business models strikes an ideal balance between forward-thinking boldness and breakdowns of established best practices. As they explore and extol the game-changing power of APIs—interfaces that have allowed “software to talk to other software over the web”—the authors acknowledge that there is no precise roadmap charting the technological shifts that will shape the future. They persuasively demonstrate, though, through a host of fresh and compelling case studies from Edison to Etsy, the strategic value of creating the circumstances for the kinds of “happy accidents” that have powered the explosive growth of innovative companies like Amazon and Google—and how “successful digital organizations are … focused on creating conditions for opportunities to flourish and capitalizing when they do.”

While they draw from the experiences and observations of a variety of thinkers and innovators, the heart of the Fishman and McLarty’s guidance is a fresh coinage, their three OOOps (as in the “oops” of a happy accident): optionality, opportunity, and optimization. “Optionality” describes the “continuous innovation and unparalleled agility” that comes from “unbundling … business capabilities into digital assets that can be combined and composed into new products, processes” and more, while “opportunity” points to the authors’ value dynamics technique, a visual tool crafted to map and “accelerate” new business models and options for growth. This section is especially illuminating, though the text as a whole, illustrated with clarifying grafts, is lucid, inviting, and actionable.

“Optimization,” finally, refers to processes of “establishing feedback loops and reducing cycle time” to ensure that systems and models adapt as they grow or as technology and the marketplace changes. While language labeling innovators as “digital pirates” can at times jar, Unbundling the Enterprise stands out for its practical clarity, especially when it comes to facing the certainty of uncertainty. A final section detailing “Practical Considerations” of these techniques is a model, packed with tools, insights, and examples.

Takeaway: Illuminating guide to guiding a company to seize the “happy accidents” of digital business.

Comparable Titles: David L. Rogers’s The Digital Transformation Roadmap, Jeanne W. Ross, Cynthia M. Beath, and Martin Mocker’s Designed for Digital.

Production grades Cover: A- Design and typography: A Illustrations: N/A Editing: A Marketing copy: A

BookLife Reviews

I recommend this book for business folks looking for the ‘aha’ moment on APIs, and who want to make the business case for APIs in their organization.

Mark O'Neill

In today’s rapidly evolving landscape, the key to business success and innovation lies in intentionally fostering an environment that generates and capitalizes on emerging opportunities. Stephen and Matt provide a practical framework for developing the mindset and methodology to build a ‘composable enterprise’—one that harnesses optionality, expands its luck surface area, and positions itself to experiment rapidly and convert opportunities into success. With powerful, real-world examples drawn from both digital disruptors and well-established incumbent firms in a variety of industries, Unbundling the Enterprise is an essential read for leaders striving to build an antifragile, thriving business poised for sustainable growth.

Mahesh Moritamani

Fishman and McLarty make an undeniable argument for making more intentional choices today that open a whole world of possibilities tomorrow. The value dynamics chapter alone is worth the price of admission, but I think readers across business, design, and technology will see the wisdom in these pages and find new ways to collaborate, strategize, and win together.

Patrick Quattlebaum

"I reckon this book will be on the desk of all digital leaders and aspirants soon. The new math weaves optionality, opportunity, and optimization beautifully. While value dynamics is a powerful technique, the economic framing of APIs through the lens of optionality is refreshing."

Dinkar Gupta

To find novel value (digital treasure), CI's must dive deep, beyond the surface of websites, and connect the dots in this ever-evolving network of possibilities. Unbundling the Enterprise will help you navigate this vast digital sea.

Esat Sezer

Fishman and McLarty offer an enlightening look at the role innovation and experimentation play in creating successful products in the digital age.

Mike Amundsen

In an age where the pace of change is faster than ever, this book offers a road map for leaders to harness the power of digital transformation, bridging the gap between high-level strategy and day-to-day operations. It’s about creating a resilient organization that thrives on innovation, ready for the future’s challenges and opportunities.

John Rowell

It’s no accident that Stephen and Matt have written a book that clearly lays out a path for success in the digital economy. For years, they have been helping organizations drive new business value through the use of APIs. Not only do they show why the world’s most innovative companies have a knack for creating repeatable digital success, but they also identify patterns that every business can emulate to reach their goals.

Steve Lucas

This book delves deep into the fabric of digital success, unraveling the stories behind modern enterprises and distilling the essence of what makes them flourish. It’s not about the superficial mimicry of successful companies; it’s about understanding the underlying principles that drive digital innovation and success. Unbundling the Enterprise provides a blueprint for leveraging APIs to not only achieve seamless integration and enhanced flexibility but also to foster an ecosystem of innovation that can significantly amplify your market reach and financial outcomes.

John D'Emic

A phenomenal read! Stephen and Matt captivate you from the start. This book will challenge you to re-evaluate your perspective on how you can differentiate yourself in the modern data ecosystem.

Jason Beyer

Unbundling the Enterprise speaks to the imperative of digital data strategy for exponential value creation. Written in an approachable and easy-to-understand detail, it is an essential guideline for non-technical business leaders and executives responsible for growth. It will surely serve to inspire a cultural change within organizations by providing a more holistic understanding of the business and its potential attributed to its digital capabilities.

J. Ignacio Puente

Absolutely fantastic! Unbundling the Enterprise…blew me away. It is a combination of some of my favorite books: Dr. Carliss Baldwin’s Design Rules and Eric Evans’s Domain Driven Design, with the strategic business insights akin to Good to Great and Reengineering the Corporation. What a fantastic read. I learned a ton, and it reinforced some fantastic lessons. It’s one of the best books I’ve read in the last year.

Gene Kim

This clear-eyed, highly pragmatic call for embracing digital flexibility as foundational to business models strikes an ideal balance between forward-thinking boldness and breakdowns of established best practices.. .. Unbundling the Enterprise stands out for its practical clarity, especially when it comes to facing the certainty of uncertainty.

Publisher’s Weekly Booklife