Four tools to bridge from Raw Productivity to Sustainable Results

I've noticed a definite trend in the "best practices" wing of the Productivity building; it goes by many names and takes on a few different forms, but the idea is rooted in a few simple concepts: Focus on the Critical Few: Multitasking does not work - plan for doing three things per day, and allocate your time accordingly Done is Better than Perfect: Learn to recognize "good enough", perfection is the enemy of progress. Ignore Details Early On: Get a skeleton out…

Developing an IT Strategy: Approach

Previously: Timing The new year approaches, and most IT groups aspire to start out with a completed IT Budget, derived from a well thought out set of short-term Objectives, that align with an IT Strategy - that itself aligns with the overall Corporate Strategy. If your timing is a bit off, and you haven't established these connections with the process yet - where do we begin? In my last post, I talked about Timing: get in the conversation early, take…

Developing an IT Strategy: Timing

In some companies, IT struggles to find a voice amid the other functional areas of the business - Finance, Operations, Sales and Marketing, even Human Resources. "Business Alignment", a regular item on lists of Top 5 IT Concerns each year, pops up because (I believe) it's difficult to glibly draw a line connecting IT systems and projects to the changing priorities of most organizations. I will admit to a small amount of cynicism here - part of the problem is…

Five Lessons on Social Media from an Unexpected Source

A true-life story of collaboration in action; social media done right, with plenty of lessons learned. Because coffee!

Four Required Behavior Changes for Enterprise Social Media

18 September, 2012
Social Media, Change Management, Popular
1 Comment

Can Social Media technologies and practices translate well into your organization? Think differently about these four behaviors inside your teams - the right changes will drive the benefits.

Coffee Shop IT

A practical analogy for operating your IT function "like a business", with emphasis on design, usability, sustainability, and rigor. Think of your team as the boutique consulting firm that it really can be. The real payoff comes when you focusing on the built-in advantages of the internal team ...

Another 90 Day Sprint

... and now the work really begins ... For the second time since starting this site, I've made a change and taken on a new position. This time was a bit more structured, using the learning process from The First 90 Days, by Michael Watkins. I had read the book before, so the ideas weren't new - but as with any familiar technology or idea, it never hurts to go back for a review. Of note - in the past,…

Tilt-Shift / Timelapse Artistry

Another great example of tilt-shift / time-lapse film making - thanks to Photojojo and It's Nice That ... httpv://vimeo.com/37157187 I like the helicopter rescue at about 1:20, a mini-flashback to a previous video from this guy ... http://vimeo.com/3156959 ... which was featured on the Guggenheim site (what a great site to wander through for inspiration!) Take a quick look at the filmmaker's web site - the home page has a video of samples that are just stunning!

I Hate the Business

Hmm, not quite ... how about I Hate "the Business" More specifically - I really am getting uncomfortable with the whole "IT and the Business" meme: ... demonstrating IT alignment with the business ... IT's relationship with the business ... IT and the business need to work together / build partnerships ... the Project is made up of the IT team and the Business team ... and so on. It's an unhealthy mind set to get into; when corporate IT,…

“Lean” meets “Demand Management” in IT – Managing the Constraints

15 February, 2012
Project Management
1 Comment

It has been a few months since I've posted, but I haven't been idle - two significant projects (aside from working very hard at the full-time job), only one of which I can talk a bit about at this time. Tomorrow (Thursday, 16 Feb 2012) , I am presenting at a conference on IT Portfolio Management in Rosemont, IL - a case study on how we use ideas from Lean Manufacturing and Demand Forecasting to solve a fairly common problem…