For Information Specialists: Envisioning New Technologies

Information specialists are defined in this context as those vendor engineers, IT specialists, CIOs, and corporate strategists who are responsible for longer term goals, such as product planning, IT planning, development of future systems, research into new technologies, and future power system operations strategies. These information specialists are not responsible for a particular implementation, but instead envision the future systems and develop migration strategies to reach longer-term goals.

Information specialists would focus (in the context of this document) on developing strategies and migration plans for long range objectives. They can review the UML models, described in Volume III, and study the detailed engineering descriptions, in Volume IV, to better understand information engineering concepts and strategies, and thus plan the migration path to future systems and products along the common roadmap. Information specialists are also most likely to review the gaps in technologies identified in IntelliGrid Architecture projects, and then contribute actively to develop the standards or other solutions to close up these gaps.

How to Design Products Using the IntelliGrid Architecture

For vendors, the most time consuming and expensive part of developing future products is determining what objectives must be met and what future technologies are best to use. The IntelliGrid Architecture provides such a project a big step up by providing a roadmap to the future information infrastructure. In particular, information specialists can use the Strategic Vision and the High Level Concepts to plan long range objectives, and then review the Tactical Approaches, described in Volume 4, for determining the best paths for migration from older systems and to create interoperability between systems from different vendors.

Although the term ‘vendor’ is normally associated with external companies selling products to other companies, in reality any department or group that is developing products for any other internal or external clients can be seen as a vendor. Therefore, this product design strategy is as important to internal product developers as it is to external vendors.

How to Develop a Corporate Long Term Strategy Using the IntelliGrid Architecture

CIOs corporate IT specialists, and other corporate planners involved in the flows of information can use the Strategic Vision of High Level Concepts from the IntelliGrid Architecture as a guide to develop long range goals. These specialists can also use the Tactical Approaches as key methods for developing migration plans for their corporations.

How to Contribute to the Evolution of the IntelliGrid Architecture

The IntelliGrid Architecture cannot be a static document. Instead, IntelliGrid Architecture must be a living, expanding, and evolving Reference Architecture that takes into account new requirements and technologies as they appear. Information specialists will be particularly able to point out these new developments and recommend updates to the Reference Architecture.

Information specialists are also in an excellent position to review and understand the gaps in standards and technologies identified in IntelliGrid Architecture project. These specialists can then be active in developing standards, technologies, and other solutions to fill these gaps.