Marchitecture!

Marchitecture

Noun

A technology solution designed purely based on the information found in marketing slicks and Power Point presentations. Marchitecture can be created with no more than a high level understanding of the underlying technology and no attention need be paid to how the solution will actually solve a problem or achieve a desired outcome.

See also: Marchitect

Marchitect

Noun

A purveyor of marchitecture. The Marchitect creates a compelling vision of what could be, with little or no regard for what is. Presenting features and capabilities that are planned or being considered, as if they were currently available, is perfectly acceptable when marchitecting a solution. Marchitects are adept at “staying out of the weeds”, because details tend to slow down the sales process. The most seasoned Marchitects carry a bag full of anecdotes to support their vision. As required, marchitects apply FUD (Fear Uncertainty and Doubt) against alternative solutions.

Why is Marchitecture so common?

• Trying to understand the problems you and your organization face is time consuming. It’s much more effective to paint a rosy picture based on the capabilities of their products, than it is to actually spend the time to learn and understand your problems.
• Marchitecture sells! If a sales team were to dive into the details they would likely have to answer questions they would rather not. This slows down the deal. Better to push forward and If there are problems down the road, offer a deeply discounted fix.
• There is persistent belief in our industry that either you can sell or you can deliver but you can’t do both. The result is that those creating the solution often have little direct experience with the technology. They’re not intentionally creating a bad design, they just don’t understand it well enough.

How to Spot Marchitecture

• The solution has been shared primarily in presentation format, supported by prepackaged case studies, marketing slicks and anecdotes.
• The solution does not include any specific details on how it will be integrated into your environment. Worst case you are handed an incomprehensible Bill of Materials – that’s your solution, a list of parts.
• There is no downside, this is a perfect solution! It hits your price point and will solve all your problems. Every implementation has been 100% successful and there are no significant caveats or considerations.

In Summary

This is not a dig at sales or presales, most of them do an excellent job but there are marchitects out there wreaking havoc. Once you have purchased a marchitected solution it’s too late. You’ve committed to this path, often you pushed for it! You can’t change course now, so you suck it up and sign off on the additional purchase needed to make it right. After all, they apologized and they’re giving you a great deal right?