Organizations perceive that systems of systems can help them achieve important business and mission goals more effectively. Yet, they are finding that systems of systems are difficult to acquire, develop, test, and operate.

Research-based

Our work in system-of-systems is grounded in research into the ways to achieve the business and mission needs of systems of systems. The core of our research work is a set of system of systems principles which form a conceptual framework for the methods, processes, and tools we develop, including

• Distributed, loosely coupled collaboration promotes system-of-systems agility.
• Independent and continuous evolution means that system-of-systems behavior cannot be completely predicted.
• Influence is more important than control in getting collaboration among system-of-systems stakeholders.

We apply and continue to refine these principles as we investigate

• system-of-systems engineering (leveraging service-oriented architecture life-cycle issues)
• system-of-systems governance and acquisition

Also, to assist those who are planning, constructing, and maintaining interoperable systems of systems, we have established an evolving guide to interoperability that surveys research in several key areas.

Providing proven tools

We apply our research findings to real-world situations through engagements with our customers. Those experiences and collaborations with other researchers enable us to develop, pilot, mature, and transition tools and methods to assist organizations with system-of-systems problems. We offer tools and methods for

• migrating legacy systems to service-oriented architecture (SOA) environments
• evaluating the effectiveness of technologies for systems interoperability
• understanding the distribution, adoption, balance, and evolution of governance in systems of systems

Offering unbiased guidance and assistance

Consider us to be your independent, third-party advisor whether your organization is

• working toward legacy system migration to an SOA environment (Get started by visiting our SOA information center)
• looking to manage its systems of systems more effectively in a turbulent demand environment
• engaging in a multienterprise acquisition
• beginning to investigate popular technologies for systems interoperability

As a federally funded research and development center, the SEI is vendor neutral, realistic about the current effectiveness of technologies and standards, and focused on the widespread transition of the best practices for systems of systems, whatever their origin.