Dr. Alex Paul Conn, Managing Partner of SBSA Partners, brings over 30 years of experience in computer systems architecture and design, with a strong background in methodologies that help bridge the gap between business needs and computer-based technologies. His focus on sustainability is an outgrowth of both research and practical work on critical system qualities ranging from security and business continuity to internationalization and interoperability. In his recent work, he introduced the concept of “progressive transition” to describe the need for technology-based solutions to align with existing “ways of doing things,” thus minimizing the degree of disruption introduced by new systems architectures and the policies and governance associated with them. Alex validated many of these ideas while at a telecommunications-oriented startup, where he designed mobile device interfaces as well as information and navigation architectures.
He recently established a solution architecture methodology for a large telecommunications firm by carefully surveying top practitioners and integrating corporate-specific best practices into the curriculum and courses that he delivered worldwide. In these courses, he explored the need to recognize and respond to threats from disruptive technologies, market shifts, and from third party partners who might seize opportunities to alter established value chain relationships. As a “hands on” manager of technical offices and as a high-level technical architect and consultant at multi-national computer and telecommunications firms, Alex brought clarity to a wide range of architectural practices by creating models, white papers, and technical presentations on new technologies and emerging practices. He played a central role in defining a pioneering solution architecture program including delivering highly successful workshops and training symposia that often incorporated high-profile customers.
Alex received his Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley in computer science with a dissertation that focused on gathering and representing requirements for large-scale reliable software systems. His earlier degrees in engineering and computer graphics at Dartmouth College and Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering exposed him to its famous business and creative “methods engineering” approaches. Alex is TOGAF® 9 Certified. He has also received the CISSP certification.
