The Ugly Architect: Building Beauty from Complexity

Recently, during an architecture forum discussion, I was asked about a tool called Leena AI . The question sparked my curiosity—how does Leena AI compare to other AI-powered productivity solutions like Microsoft Copilot ? With the rapid advancements in AI-driven enterprise tools, organizations are continuously exploring intelligent automation to enhance efficiency, optimize workflows, and improve employee experiences. As someone who doesn’t get easily biased by a specific vendor ecosystem , I approach these evaluations with a critical lens —especially in this Gen AI era , where every vendor is eager to market their product as a revolutionary AI solution. This curiosity led me to conduct a deeper assessment of both Leena AI and Microsoft Copilot , evaluating them against key enterprise architecture parameters to determine which tool is truly better suited for enterprise-wide adoption. To ensure a comprehensive comparison, both tools have been evaluated based on the following enterprise...

In today’s fast-changing tech world, AI isn’t just a futuristic buzzword anymore—it’s something we need to embrace right now. Businesses everywhere are using AI to streamline operations, wow their customers, and push the boundaries of what’s possible. But here’s the thing: knowing where you stand with AI is just as important as knowing where you want to go. That’s why I’m excited to share the AI Maturity Assessment Tool with you! It’s a simple, easy-to-use Excel-based framework designed to help you figure out exactly where your organization is on its AI journey, highlight areas that could use some work, and plan your next steps. What’s the AI Maturity Assessment Tool? This tool is built on insights from two fantastic resources by Microsoft: The AI Strategy Roadmap: Navigating the Stages of AI Value Creation Building a Foundation for AI Success: A Leader's Guide These documents...

Microsoft Ignite 2024 - Key Announcements AI at Work Agents in Microsoft 365 Copilot: Specialized roles for handling repetitive tasks and complex business processes. Includes agents like SharePoint insights, Employee Self-Service, Facilitator, Interpreter, and Project Manager. Copilot Studio Enhancements: Build autonomous agents with new templates and tools, featuring Microsoft 365 Agents SDK and Azure AI Foundry integrations. Copilot in Teams: Summarizes shared files and screen-shared content during meetings and drafts meeting notes and agendas automatically. PowerPoint Updates: Translate presentations into 40 languages and generate narratives and branded designs based on files. Excel Templates with AI: Create task-specific spreadsheet templates with AI assistance. Analytics with Copilot: Tools to measure AI impact, including Copilot Analytics dashboards and Viva Insights. Azure ...

The 2024 Power Platform Community Conference (PPCC) has just wrapped up. Attending 2024 Power Platform Conference was really exciting, especially seeing the new Power Apps features. These changes will make app development and automation much easier and more creative. Here are key notes i could recall from the event. AI-Driven App Design Tools: Power Apps now uses AI to suggest designs and optimize app layouts automatically. This means we can develop apps faster and spend more time on their logic and functionality. Better Integration with Microsoft Teams: We can now embed Power Apps directly in Teams channels and chats, making collaboration easier. Multiple users can also co-edit apps within Teams, creating a true collaborative environment. Pre-built Templates and Components: We can speed up our development with a larger library of pre-built templates and reusable components. Whether we’re building an inventory system or a customer service app, there’s likely a template to help us star...

As an Architect we all use certain Architecture characteristics decision matrix while taking a decision around application modernization. Recently I was having mentoring session on Open Architecture Community and one of the participants has asked me a question saying how we would qualify or is there a Benchmark figure which every Architect could use to take a decision while qualifying an application to be modernized. For example – How would we qualify an application is business critical? How would we know an application Functional Fit hence to be retained? How would we know the TCO of an application is high or less hence decision of Retire Vs Retain can be taken? Establishing benchmark figures for application modernization can be challenging because they are often industry-specific, vary by organization size, and depend on the unique needs and context of the enterprise. However, I am providing some general benchmark figures and guidelines for each parameter. These figures can serve as ...

Whether working with sprawling enterprises or nimble clients, one consistent theme emerges during discussions on application modernization or rationalization. There's often a surprising lack of fundamental details about the applications in question. If you're like me, this omission can be a source of genuine frustration. How can we craft robust, sustainable solutions without this foundational knowledge? Last week, I was reading a book " The Art of Reading Minds " by Henrik Fexeus and had a simple thought. In our world of managing software and technology, having a clear list of all our software can solve many problems. Most companies have a list, but it might not have all the details. And sometimes, they don't update it regularly. The absence of meticulous parameters and regular updates might explain why many applications owners stumble when sharing this vital information with stakeholders, or vendors such as myself. To bridge this gap, here I am outlining essenti...

 Yesterday while reading something on Application Modernization Trends one term I really found interesting is Modernization as a Service Offering – Though this term was coined 5 years back as a subset of Enterprise /IT Modernization, but surprisingly very limited organization (Enterprise and IT services) aligned with the concept of Modernization as a Service Offering. In the digital age, maintaining competitive advantage means staying on top of the latest technological trends. Application modernization plays a critical role in this, turning outdated, inefficient systems into modern, powerful tools that can drive a business's success. The traditional application modernization process is generally project-based and often treated as a one-time event. It usually involves the re-hosting, re-platforming, refactoring, re-architecting, rebuilding, or replacing of legacy applications to align them with current business needs and technology. While traditional modernization offers several...