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While watching the stock of both GM and Ford plummet recently it started me thinking. The funny thing is, I think every Joe American knows what is wrong with the Big 3 (or at least thinks they do) and I am no different. I started wondering that if an IT guy was put in charge of a car division, leveraging all that is now known about Object Oriented Programming, Requirements Gathering, Open Source, off-shoring/outsourcing and cool UI design, could he do a better job?Lets start with the test s... Read Full Story
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This blog will be moved to TechRepublic starting in late August. Thanks for the support thus far. I hope to see all of you at my new blog on TechRepublic. A new link will be provided upon launch! Top Stories Read Full Story
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Coming into a company versus creating an organization from scratch is very different. I will attempt to address coming into a new company here. You have some core functions that IT must perform. Some resources will move on. You either need to hire these resources or grow them. I like growing them. So lets look at a typical IT organization...There is a technical track, an engineering track and an administrative track. Your most senior folks have already chosen their track, but your you... Read Full Story
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Some would argue that hiring good people is now more science than art. Personality tests, leadership tests, background checks, reference checks, relevant experience, etc. all make selecting the right candidate a walk in the park. That may be the case for some IT resources, but it does not necessarily apply to project managers. And Project Managers for Small and Mid-sized Businesses (SMB) it definitely does not. I will address other hiring and organizational insights in my next post, but I... Read Full Story
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So here is the interesting thing about good project management... Things get done...on time... within budget... and meet or exceed the expectations of the business. Project management is a key skill any CIO needs. But you can't manage all projects and run the IT organization at the same time. As a CIO in a Small or Medium-Sized Business (SMB), you will likely have to manage some, but your best bet is to create a project management group.But this project management group does more than jus... Read Full Story
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I have been postponing this post because it varies so much. There are a few rules of thumb that will help, and some lessons learned, but the course you take is usually dependent upon the industry you are in.What you are attempting to do with the IT strategy is several fold:1. What is the perception of IT in your organization? This is key to helping you understand how hard you have to work to get projects approved and your agenda implemented. If IT has a history of failed projects or poor c... Read Full Story
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After completing my last entry I stepped back and looked at it and it just didn't get across how important it is to have a partner instead of a vendor. There is a good synopsis at a high level here:http://www.gerhardsconsulting.com/whitepapers/RM_partner.htmThe table at the bottom really demonstrates the power of partner. When I was at toysmart.com, a now defunct online toy retailer, our systems administration staff under our CIO, John Puckett, worked with a new company called Arrowpoin... Read Full Story
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Starting at a new company brings with it a lot of opportunity for some homeruns. One of the low hanging fruits is strategic sourcing. Even in small to mid-sized companies, strategic sourcing can be performed. It would not be the same as larger companies, but there is still opportunity here. More and more technology vendors have specific sales incentives for companies of this size. One advantage you have as technology leader in an SMB is that you can go through your financial system and r... Read Full Story
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OK. So you are at the new job and you have identified some root causes to the IT organization's biggest headaches. As I stated in the previous posting, an old or patched together infrastructure is likely one of the root causes. Where do you start?We talked about the core processes within the organization being the most important so start there. First, start with the "illity's". First predictability as it relates to probability of failure. What level of redundancy is needed? ... Read Full Story
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Published to Techology Leadership in Small and Mid-size Businesses
There are different approaches to starting at a new company and it depends on the type of company that you are starting at and the maturity of the IT organization. A common thread in Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMB's) is that the company is growing like gangbusters, but the investment in IT has lacked. These companies typically start to look for new technology leadership when IT is getting in the way of the company's growth.Unfortunately and fortunately, these companies start w... Read Full Story
