http://www.soamag.com The SOA Magazine is a monthly online publication provided by SOA Systems Inc. and Prentice Hall/PearsonPTR and is officially associated with the "Prentice Hall Service-Oriented Computing Series from Thomas Erl." SOA en-us Copyright 2006-2007, SOA Systems Inc. http://www.soamag.com/I5/0307-2.asp There are a significant number of companies investing in SOA initiatives, but only a small number are at the point of realizing a positive return on their investments. These organizations have embraced SOA as part of their core business strategies, yet they have also taken a pragmatic approach, knowing that a successful service-oriented architecture depends upon the quality of the architecture itself. Creating an SOA quality foundation means understanding the overall goals of a service-oriented strategy, and optimizing the environment for successful execution of that strategy. This article explores the major components that make up the foundation of SOA quality and discusses the need for communication, trust and control to ensure that a service-oriented solution meets or exceeds business and technical expectations - whether it's in the form of cost savings, productivity, better customer service, or reduced time to market. (First published in The SOA Magazine Issue V, March 2007.) SOA http://www.soamag.com/contributors/bio-jmurphy.asp#When:01.03.07