Extending the Web services model to it services

Web services and service oriented architecture (SOA) represent a radical departure from traditional monolithic, tightly bound, customized applications with proprietary interfaces. Their range however is limited as yet by the very structure and standardization which support their interoperability. While they are able to support heterogeneity of technical components, their ability to support complex business interactions has yet to mature. This paper summarizes research in progress which asks how might the Web services model be mapped to other kinds of IT services and extended to account for services of greater human and organizational complexity through their lifecycle. The research proposes the construction of a generic IT service model and a taxonomy IT services to provide a frame of reference for analysis and evaluation for the extension of the Web services model and for a transition to a service oriented view of IT.