CIO Corner Articles
Specialists Generalists
Published in the Nov/Dec 2011 issue of IT Professional, I question whether organizations are systemically weakening their organization by hiring specialists and incorrectly eliminating the valuable "generalists"... and the impact this will have on the future capabilities of the organization.
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Better Budget Planning
Published in the Mar/Apr 2011 issue of IT Professional, this CIO Corner article provides some approaches and thinking-points for building a better budget. The primary focus is on the proper alignment of corporate goals to IT projects, and not just the annual management of "to do" lists that reflect "activity" rather than "productivity".
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Lean: More Than A Shop Floor Fad
Published in the Mar/Apr 2011 issue of IT Professional, I introduce and reflect on the "Lean Culture" (Exec primer and workbook) produced by Lawrence Miller (author of Barbarians to Bureaucrats"). In this article, we review the value of "Lean Culture" to the organization at large, and the role IT can play (and gain) from employing these techniques.
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IT Without Hardware
Published in the Mar/Apr 2011 issue of IT Professional, this CIO Corner article questions whether the day is coming (soon?) when IT departments may not own any hardware - end-user or servers. Is it possible? Yes. It is likely? Probably for some organizations, its closer than you think.
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2011 Technology and Strategy Trends
Published in the Jan/Feb 2011 issue of IT Professional, this CIO Corner article outlines the top 10 technology challenges and top 10 strategic capability opportunities facing CIO's for 2011.
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IVI - A New Maturity Framework
This article focuses on the evolving Capability Maturity Framwork (IVI-CMF) as constructed by the non-profit IVI. An overview of the framework is provided, along with strengths and opportunities for improvement.
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COG (Culture Organization Governance) over PPT
In this article, I explain why "Culture, Organization, and Governance" (COG) is far more important to any organization than People, Processes, and Technology.
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Status Quo - The Silent Killer
Far too many organizations are content with maintaining a "status quo" operating stance rather than taking the necessary actions to grow. When the eventual upturn or competitive threat arises, these firms are unable to react to the threats or opportunities.
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Will BRIC Repatriation Cause IT Shortages
I test a question being raised by CIO's as to whether future repatriation of expats from the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) may ultimately impact the US IT workforce.
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CIO's Drive Change to a New Strategic Role
I question whether CIO's can leverage their understanding of both business and IT to transition away from the IT Silo and into operational executive leadership roles.
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Certification - The Emperor Has No Clothes
Although nearly every job posting in the IT world requests that the candidate hold given certifications, I question whether the certifications provide any guarantee of capability, and how organizations should change their hiring practices to better leverage certifications to capture the right resources.
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Never Let a Good Crisis Go To Waste
Dr. Phil Laplante and I cite numerous ways in which CIO's can leverage the existing poor economic climate to their advantage to overcome personal and organizational challenges.
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