The renewal of the SIAM Body of Knowledge
The second edition has been published: what's new, what have we contributed to it?
An eventful year is coming to an end. Reason enough to look back on some of its positive highlights. For us, this includes the publication of the second edition of the SIAM Body of Knowledge. Markus Müller, co-author of the SIAM Body of Knowledge & Blueponte co-founder, gives valuable insights into the SIAM world and how it has evolved in 2020.
The SIAM development in numbers
A lot has happened since the Foundation Body of Knowledge was first published in January 2017. Here is a quick look at the numbers: there are now more than 10,000 downloads, successful certifications in more than 36 countries and the annual market analysis for SIAM shows that it is now a global and relevant method. The understanding of SIAM has evolved and the application of SIAM knowledge, i.e., what is possible, how the concepts can be implemented across industries, has increased significantly. The market itself has also changed. A good example is the much-wanted inclusion of agile methods for the provision of services. Most frameworks have been adapted accordingly. Hence it was time to adapt the concepts, contents and theory to reflect the latest developments.
Bringing trust to sourcing
The team of authors worked hard to determine which chapters should be renewed and which should be added. True to the Blueponte claim of “Bringing Trust To IT Sourcing” the focus was put on describing the practices and procedures of a trust-based approach to managing multiple suppliers. For example, we investigated which factors determine the building of trust and how the supposed contradiction between pure contract-based multi-supplier management and the trust-based interactions of all actors can be resolved in the direction of increased productivity.
Right from the start, it was clear that it will be revision and not a redefinition of the SIAM basics. We integrated new fields of knowledge based on the existing principles, made additional support tools available and improved the consistency of concepts and the use of the technical language.
In a project of this kind, where the overall success depends on the collaboration of individual authors the revised edition is a fantastic learning opportunity and offers a broad terrain for applying what we, as authors have learned as SIAM practitioners. It’s also about the way we ensured quality and consistency, which was unique and just as educational as the content itself, which we developed together from our different backgrounds and experiences. In doing so, we, the entire Blueponte team, made use of our shared experience. As a result, the contributions to the SIAM Body of Knowledge were enriched with our experiences, ideas and opinions.
So not everything that brought us in 2020 was negative. We look forward to the next year to continue what we have created this year. Follow us on LinkedIn for regular updates.
