After 8 months of a combined role as manager of our Call Center team/Lead Software Architect, I'm back to being focused 100% on software architecture.

It was with a degree of resignation that I handed the Call Center team over to my boss (who's acting as an interim manager until a suitable candidate is ready to take the helm). Truthfully, there's nothing more I can do to help the team without leading them on to the next level, and there was no way I could do that if I wasn't focused 100% on our future plan. Even so, it's always hard to leave something you've put your soul in to for an extended period of time, and this team is no exception.

It's amazing how strange it's been to switch gears mentally. In December of last year, I had full clarity and vision for how the roll out to Flex and Java would proceed. But when I took over the Call Center team, I had to focus on process improvement and radically changing the environment for both my newly acquired team and the business (in order to get us on a solid footing for the next step). So I pushed all my energy and motivation in that direction; thus, switching back has been somewhat weird.

The good news is that is have made the mental switch, and I'm as excited and motivated as ever to get the new stuff rolling. The last eight months has been a great experimental period for us, with Flex and Java/Spring apps spreading their wings, and a lot of great feedback from the team on the RUP implementation. Being in the Call Center for eight months has given me perspective, and if anything has solidifed my original resolve that we have to take the next step to meet the needs of our business.

In many ways, I'm feeling like we've gotten over the hump, and are approaching an event horizon that will shoot us off down our new path like a rocket. You can feel the excitement in the new technology meetings, now that the barriers of uncertainty and fear of change are falling by the wayside. It's inspirational in nature, with each team member's excitement and enthusiasm building off that of their peers.

But alas, that Willy Wonka bastard was right: so much to do, and so little time in which to do it. We've got source control to configure, processes to procure, standards to set, technologies to tinker with, and a plethora of projects awaiting attention. I'd kind of like to clone myself across parallel universes and do it all at once, but as usual I'll be restrained by the space-time continuum to move linearly with only a single corporeal presence as my vessel. I guess it will have to do.

To quote Douglas Adams: time is an illusion - lunch time, doubly so. The time I'm really interested in is this time next year, when we look back at what we've done and marvel that we ever tried to do it any other way.

With that being said, I intend to enjoy the journey as much as the destination. You'll hear about it here.