Where do we go from here? The next stage of MACH technology and the MACH Alliance
by Casper Rasmussen president, the MACH Alliance
By any measure, the MACH Alliance has been a remarkable success. Be it the incredible growth that has seen us go from conception to over seventy members in two years, our hosting of the most successful event in the technology calendar or the countless brand stories that have shown how much the Alliance has rattled the cages of established, legacy technology companies; it is hard to deny the impact we have had.
But now is no time to get cocky. Now is no time to rest.
The industry faces incredibly strong economic headwinds throughout various markets, and businesses are already looking at their technology and digital business budgets, looking for maximum return.
Firstly, this means we need to double our efforts in making it easier to access MACH technologies. This might be making it easier to integrate MACH into existing legacy stacks, removing barriers to MACH procurement, or expanding the composable technology marketplace. Regardless of the approach, it must be frictionless.
Second, we need to diversify MACH beyond the initial retail and e-commerce focus. We need to expand across industries such as manufacturing, distribution and more. This means we must make the MACH Alliance available everywhere, for everyone. And we must develop deep domain expertise that can orientate composable technology into the B2B realm.
The third priority is for the Alliance to continue to take responsibility for MACH business development through the development of best-practice standards and education. Having established a certification that has helped define an entire business practice, we now need to ensure that that mark of excellence remains relevant.
The challenges facing technology and business in the coming year will be acute. They demand a response that can bring to bear the absolute best of an entire industry: this is where the collaboration, agility and innovation that defines the Alliance will be felt most profoundly.
Casper Rasmussen, president, the MACH Alliance
What next for the next fundamental shift in business tech?
by Sonja Keerl, co-founder of The MACH Alliance, president between June 2021 - June 2022
As the basis for digital business, MACH has risen rapidly to not only challenge the monolithic, suite-based approach that has dominated investment for decades, but also change the face of business technology completely.
As businesses realize that they must be composable to be competitive, the catalogue of MACH based successes continues to grow. Examples such as Kraft Heinz, LEGO, Mars, Asda, Costa Coffee, and River Island now embrace the architecture as part of what one commentator calls: “the next fundamental shift in business tech…”
These projects are marked by incredible innovation, awe-inspiring scope and envy-inducing results: major initiatives delivered on time, on budget, with zero downtime and substantial increases in revenue. They represent the future of enterprise technology.
And we are only at the beginning. According to our independent research, 79% of enterprises are on the move from monolith to MACH. This is a huge market and the composable approach will only continue to grow as more elements of digital experiences are developed.
At the heart of this relentless activity, The MACH Alliance is a unique and authoritative community. Following our ground-breaking work in defining the MACH approach and putting composability on the agenda of every enterprise board meeting, we are now poised to define MACH best practice. This will go beyond technical detail and deliver both standardization and education that will alter technology investment for decades to come.
An elite group of MACH Alliance Ambassadors has arisen: end-users, agencies and systems integrators that have undergone the profound change from legacy to MACH practices. Likewise, vendors have begun to define aspects of standardization that will open this success to other businesses.
The driving force behind this will be to make successful adoption of MACH as easy as possible, to be as successful as possible, as fast as possible.
These are no empty dreams. The Alliance has focused on addressing board illiteracy of MACH and enabling the champions of composability to articulate the value of MACH, at the highest level. Simultaneously, the community is redefining how the technology looks and feels, to improve uptake and the impact of MACH on those organizations that embrace this future.
It is in this context that achievements such as the MACH ONE Conference, or the community swelling to over seventy members, representing companies that have secured over $3bn in investment, should be seen. But we shall not rest on these laurels, as the Women in MACH program and our calendar of in-person events throughout 2023 show.
It is the passionate belief in MACH, and the commitment to composability, which defines members of the Alliance. This book is an introduction to our community, a celebration of our achievements, and a calling card that will show businesses that, for technology to transform business outcomes, it must evolve from monolithic architecture to an innovative approach built for the digital age.
Welcome to The MACH Book.
Sonja Keerl, co-founder of The MACH Alliance, president between June 2021 - June 2022
The C-word: COVID and digital business
by Kelly Goetsch co-founder & chair person of The MACH Alliance, president between June 2020 - June 2021
COVID-19 is thankfully in the rear-view mirror for most countries. It remains one of the most sobering periods of recent history and the impact of the virus itself, lockdowns, and disruption is still substantial.
For those of us in the digital business arena, COVID was an unlikely catalyst. Although we had been advocating for businesses to reach digital maturity, the truth was that that investment was a result of competitive pressures. Quite correctly, businesses had a slow, considered strategy, occasionally spurred on by technological innovation.
Then came COVID. Overnight, the expense of not innovating online or pivoting to hybrid services was no longer just irrelevancy. It was extinction.
COVID also altered buying behavior profoundly. Pre-COVID, online shopping for goods as diverse as groceries, furniture and cars were – at best - nascent. Now, these are the fastest growing sectors in e-commerce.
The consistent theme is that COVID did not bring about new behaviors but turbocharged early development. It is a matter of degree, not kind.
This is not to say that issues will not arise. Accelerated markets can become unstable. There have been indicators that organizations are struggling to adapt to the new normal of digital business at this scale.
This is precisely where the Alliance comes in. It is no coincidence that Europe leads the US when it comes to stabilizing this growth and that the Alliance is grounded in a European heritage.
Of course, we are not taking all the credit. As an amalgamation of smaller markets, Europe remains far more agile and able to adapt than the behemoth that is the US digital business market.
But, as a deeply collaborative organization able to capture best practice throughout the UK, France, Germany, Spain and other European markets, the MACH Alliance was – and is – uniquely positioned to help smooth the path for this growth.
Part of this has been the recognition that MACH architecture is now the default for these companies. It is no longer an experiment. Technology leaders recognize that composable technology and commerce is a faster, more agile approach for the future. Which will keep the Alliance front and centre of the next wave of change.
Kelly Goetsch co-founder & chair person of The MACH Alliance, president between June 2020 - June 2021