Scalable Green Clouds

Some interesting points in the following article re ... analogy of on-premise computing with on-site power generation, a scalability success story with cloud computing, and alignment of IT sustainability goals with future cloud computing models. ...

... "Energy efficiency, as well as reliability and scalability, ought to be factors in your cloud computing migration strategies. " ...

Via InformationWeek: Cloud / Electric Generator

IT Branding

While substance (project execution, operating discipline) is important, cultivating a personal brand completes the picture of the successful CIO and IT organization. ...

... "the idea of the personal brand of a chief information officer (CIO) was viewed as being as important as project delivery or operational effectiveness. " ...

Via Information World Review: CIOs

For reference: Tom Peters on Brand You, Via Fast Company: Brand You Survival Kit: "Brand You. Me Inc. It matters. ... "

Marketing IT Projects

It is never too late to prepare your IT success story. Showcase your successes, show how you have learned from project challenges, and make strong connections to the business performance where appropriate. While its better to have laid the foundation of your success story during good times, you will need that story now to position your enterprise and the IT organization to survive and thrive. ...

... "but it's no long enough to simply ensure that your department is aligned with the primary interests of the business: now you have to demonstrate that alignment and educate the rest of the organization as to the efficacy of your efforts. " ...

Via The CIO Weblog: Open your kimono

Competition: A Good Thing

Whether in business or sports, competition can bring out the best in people and teams. ...

... "That's a good thing -- a truly Olympian feat should tax a champion to his fullest. If it had all somehow seemed too easy for Phelps in Beijing, it certainly doesn't now. Phelps got to seven the hard way. " ...

Via ESPN: Phelps' Olympic Run

A Perspective on Failure

We often point out project failure. However, it is important to learn from it. Here's a perspective, from JK Rowling, on how failure can be harnessed for success. ...

... "So why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me. " ...

Via Harvard Magazine: J.K. Rowling at Harvard Commencement

Service Desk System Tracks Performance

Ryanair uses service desk software to manage its processes, and sees performance soar. ...

... "We run weekly reports and measure satisfaction levels which are amazing considering we have 22 staff to run the IT department of a GBP 2bn-revenue company with 135 locations, he said. " ...

Via VNUnet: Ryanair IT

ITGovernance ITIL EnterpriseArchitecture Drive Benefits

Service management successes discussed at recent conference.

... "CIO of the state of Illinois saved over $130 million annually by implementing a strong enterprise architecture and IT governance program in conjunction with ITIL. " ...

Via Public CIO: Government IT Services

Project Management Excellence: Hospital Veteran Recognized

Healthcare leadership celebrates excellence. IT project manager makes the list. Users queue up for IT services. Pinch me. I must be dreaming. ...

... "Halle H. McNaney, 13-year Medical Center veteran, has orchestrated the roll-out with such efficiency that outpatient sites are now literally lining up at the door, waiting to be next in line for implementation - perhaps a first for the introduction of a new IT project. " ...

Via University of Rochester Medical Center: Excellence Awards Recognize Employees, Teams

Impossible Project Becomes Possible

Remediation project of Rocky Flats contaminated nuclear weapons facility demonstrates that the impossible can be accomplished. ...

... "Now on its way to becoming a wildlife refuge, the project is running 60 years ahead of schedule and $30 billion under budget. " ...

Via Line56: KM Blog: Link

Project Success Story: Veterans Heath Administration

When Ken Kizer took on the challenge of revamping the horrific state of affars that was the U.S. Veterans Health Administration (many of you have probably seen the movies that showed the sorry state of Veterans Hospitals), nobody suspected that they would go from "last to first."

Forget "Good to Great," these hospitals literally went from "worst to best!"

Reading the writeup on it in this week's issue of Business Week, I was struck by the similarities between Kizer's approach and Napoleon (whom most of you know I'm quite familiar with).

Whereas Napooleon was focused on equality, Kizer was driven by quality and safety. Like Napoleon, Kizer inherited a disastrous state of chaos and provided order, visibility, improvements in technology, training, accountability, decentralized decision-making, and most of all, hope and pride. Also like Napoleon, Kizer had his share of enemies, some who felt he was too arrogant and others who perhaps felt threatened by the changes. Finally, like Napoleon, Kizer was eventually ousted, except by Congress instead of foreign powers.

Fortunately, unlike Napoleon, Kizer's successors continued his methods and his passion. Because of these changes, every nurse and doctor in the network has instant access to electronic patient records, and drugs are filled robotically, avoiding the mistakes common to most other hospitals. And because these hospitals treat the patients for life, they spend more time and money on preventative care, as they realize it costs everyone less in the long run (talk about Total Cost of Ownership!).

I highly recommend picking up this week's Business Week (the July 17th issue with "The Plot to Hijack Your Computer" on the cover). Meanwhile, below is another article that talks about the amazing transformation that Kizer led the VHA through.

Expect to hear more on this as I research this in more depth. I also ordered the book, Straight from the CEO: The World's Top Business Leaders Reveal Ideas That Every Manager Can Use, which is mentioned in the article and apparently covers Kizer's story.

Here's the article (not the Business Week one, but a good one nonetheless) ...

"The Best Care Anywhere" by Phillip Longman

PMO Success Story: A.G. Edwards Case Study

There's an excellent article in CIO Magazine this month showing how A.G. Edwards reinvented its PMO to bring their projects to an 88% success rate (from about 50% originally).

Some key lessons:

• They created a 25-step project management high-level framework of just the high level activities common to all projects. They didn't inflict a detailed application development methodology and left the "how" flexible, as long as the "what" was satisfied. At a more detailed level, they used Primavera for project tracking and dashboard metrics.
  
• They provided leadership training to boost the confidence of their PMs
  
• They moved the project managers from the PMO to the functional areas to encourage collaboration and better align the PMs with the business.
  
• They offered project planning services to assist the distributed project managers with using the new framework effectively (allowing them to use the planning tool of their choice, be it Excel, MS/Word, or a whiteboard). The 25 framework touchpoints, however, are common to all projects for cross-project comparison purposes (I assume enabled in Primavera).
  
• They redefined "success" as "projects that deliver business value." This gives customer satisfaction and business value even greater priority than being on-time and on-budget (note: they still improved their schedule and budget statistics anyway).
  
  This is the essence of the new model and bears repeating. The customer defines success. Under this model, it's quite possible to have a project that is late and over-budget and seen as a raving sucess.
  
• They tirelessly met with stakeholders in individual and group settings to offer the benefits and ask for their support. They used a subtle soft-sell approach with the "bad actors."
  
• They first involved the PMs receptive to new ideas as part of a pilot and them used them to "spread the gospel"
  
• They measured success rates and publicized them in quarterly reports to senior management.

These are all powerful and valid ways to make a PMO successful, and are philosophically aligned with the Service Oriented-Project Management (SOPM) model I've been developing. In this case, these changes collectively served to boost IT's credibility at A.G Edwards significantly.

Here's the full article. Don't miss the sidebar "8 Steps for Improving Project Management."

When Failure Is Not an Option - Editorial - CIO

Project Goals and How to Achieve Them

Sometimes answers come from the strangest of places. I've been reading Jeffrey Gitomer's excellent Little Red Book of Sales Answers, which went to #1 on Amazon.com this week. There are many eye openers, and more than a few tips that project managers can benefit from as well.

For instance, here's what he has to say about the 3.5 reasons why people don't achieve their goals (by the way, he defines a goal as "a dream --- with a plan and a deadline")...

1. Failure to write your goals down and post them in plain view.

2. Failure to make a plan to achieve the goals.

3. Failure to commit, or live up to the commitments they made.

3.5 Failure to make goals that were achievable in the first place

I can say with certainty that every one of these are critical. Many people don't put goals in writing, nor do they develop a plan to achieve their goals. And even if they do, it's not always a realistic plan that considers all the angles.

With projects, like anything we're trying to achieve in life, we must begin with the end in mind. Or, as someone else once said, "If you don't know where you're going, you're probably not going to get there."

The book is chock full of simple formulas like this, that are useful whether in sales, project management, or in life.

PS: See my post from April 8th, Project Managers; Secret of Success Found, for a neat little story about JP Morgan. I think we have a "keep it simple" theme going here.

County IT Project Recognized ...

Nice little success story ... County + RCG recognized for innovative solution / IT project. The project shows a good use of IT (content management) with nice tangible financials and quick payback period. ...

... "The project was instrumental in reducing overall process cost associated with County operations. Suffolk County will generate $1.5 million of new incremental annual revenues which will pay for their entire implementation investment in seven months." ...

County IT Project Recognized: Via RCG: RCG IT Project Wins 2005 InfoWorld 100 Award: Award honors 100 Most Creative and Cutting-Edge Implementations of Enterprise Technology ...

Project Benefits; Easy to Forget

There's a good article in Computerworld about how frequently projects begin with a certain ROI expectation, only to have it forgotten by the time the project ends.

Everyone's so busy trying to complete the project on time and on budget, that nobody remembers to track the benefits the project was supposed to bring in the first place.

In fact, the two most critical parts of project success are often overlooked or not even covered in the project lifecycle: the up front strategy piece (i.e. why are we doing this project) and the post-project benefits followup (or at least a transition to benefits analysis as a prerequisite to project closure).

Here's the article, which offers some interesting examples...

Not So Fast! - Computerworld

Project Management Success Stories; Learning from the Past

There's nothing like learning from others who have "been there and done that" to expedite our attempts to try something new. It's sort of like asking for directions versus driving around for hours fruitlessly.

For example, for those considering implementing Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM), here's a list of CCPM Success Stories from the Goldratt Institute.

And if it's Agile Project Management you're considering, here's a great Agile Project Management success story from Computerworld, which shows how Sabre Holdings Corp. spent $125 million on a failed project to overhaul their reservation system in the late 80's, and then tried another attempt more recently, this time with a more agile approach, and had tremendous success.

All too often, organizations attempt to undertake huge initiatives without learning from others' successes, and more importantly, their failures.

And the past doesn't have to only include the recent past. I've been writing about project management "lessons from history" for years now, and some of the successes and failures of such notables as Caesar, Augustus, Napoleon, and many others bring lessons that are directly applicable today. For instance, Napoleon was using Earned Value before it was "invented" 200 years later.

I am absolutely convinced that the search for the "next big thing" will undoubtedly bear its best fruit through closer examination of the past.

Project Work Packages; The Importance of Delegation

I read this story on Stephen Covey's website about his inspiring interview with a well-respected Naval captain. They key success factors for this captain were his ability to delegate, and his trust in his subordinates. This trust and delegation truly inspired passion and accountability in his people (something we've promoted here at PMThink as well).

It reminded me again of the importance of Work Packages in project management, where we assign deliverable (or group of deliverables) to a work package owner, and give them full accountability of managing the details to "make it so" (as Captain Picard of Star Trek: The Next Generation would say).

Here's Stephen Covey's account of this interview:

I was training U.S. Navy officers in leadership during the dot.com era, when someone told me about an exemplary leader named Captain David Marquet, Captain of the U.S.S. Santa Fe, who never lost anyone, in spite of the hellish conditions submarine personnel are required to endure. An opportunity arose, which I jumped at.

I was invited to board Captain Marquet’s sub and interview him. Never before had I observed such empowerment. We stood on the bridge of this multibillion-dollar nuclear submarine with a football field of vessel in front of and behind us. A young officer approached the Captain and said, "Sir, I intend to take this ship down 400 feet." Captain Marquet asked about the sonar and sounding and then instructed this young man to give us another twenty minutes on the bridge before carrying out his intention.

Throughout the day, people approached the captain intending to do this or do that. The Captain would sometimes ask a question or two, but then say, "Very well." He reserved only the top decisions for his own confirmation and empowered others to make the rest. He said he wanted to empower his people as far as he possibly could within the Navy’s confines. He felt if he required them to own the problem and the solution to it, they would begin to view themselves as a vitally important link in the chain of command. He created a culture where those sailors had a real sense of adding value.

Months after my sub ride, Captain Marquet wrote to inform me that the U.S.S. Santa Fe was awarded the Arleigh Burke Trophy for most improved submarine, ship, or aviation squadron in the Pacific.

All in all, a very inspiring reminder to us that we don't need to be managing every last detail of our projects, and instead must have faith in our most valuable asset---our team. This "distributed accountability" approach is a surefire way to encourage and exploit team synergy. Just pick the right people, give them guidelines, and get out of the way.

ITIL Leader: David Ratcliffe Pink Elephant

ITIL is the recipe for IT services management success. Philip Quinn catches up with David Ratcliffe, CEO of Pink Elephant. Pink Elephant is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with operations worldwide. Pink Elephant works with organizations, including many of the Fortune 500, to improve the quality of IT services through the application of established best practices, such as the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL). ...

Via National Post: Flies around the world four times a year ...

... "We were the ones who launched this best-practice framework we support called the IT infrastructure library. If you think [in terms] of a restaurant ... it's the recipes you follow and the routines around how you keep the place clean... " ...

Additional PMThink References on ITIL:

• For Well-Rounded IT Project Management - Learn ITIL and PRINCE2


• IT Service Transformation Through ITIL Service Catalogs ...


• ITIL Certification BTO Software ...


• ITIL Helpdesk Transformation: Services Model


• ITIL IT Management Processes ...


• ITIL IT Service Management Differentiators


• ITIL Market Assessment: Podcast


• ITIL Microsoft Operations Framework Assessment ...


• ITIL Process Approach: Federated CMDB ...


• ITIL Process: Run IT Like Business ...


• ITIL Project: Cultural Implications ...


• ITIL Projects: Avoid Pitfalls ...


• ITIL Technology Standard Framework ...


• ITIL: IT Service Catalog: Alignment Focal Point ...


• Microsoft ITIL Sans CMDB ...


• Process Models: ITIL ITGovernance ...


• Ready or Not; Here comes ITIL


• Siebel CRM ITIL Ready: Helpdesk Capabilities ...

Prince2 Project Management Success Story ...

Imagine implementing a project management methodology (Prince2) and an ITIL transformation in your enterprise at the same time. Bryan Glick explores success stories of enterprises that are candidates for upcoming excellence awards in UK. The South Eastern Trains (SET) story is particularly notable. ...

Prince2 Project Management Success Story: Via Computing: Computing Awards - Company Awards ...

... "In less than 12 months, the company delivered 43 major projects plus some 150 others to fix more minor problems. Networks, servers and PCs were updated, and industry best practice processes were introduced, including Prince 2 for project management and ITIL (IT infrastructure library) for helpdesk services. " ...

ITIL Microsoft Operations Framework Assessment ...

ITIL Microsoft Operations Framework Assessment: Transformation Success Story: Network Operations & Security Center ...

Anecdotal evidence of Microsoft's experience with ITIL service processes: Capt. Nick Mossing, 83rd Communications Squadron, reports on ITIL transformation experience at the ACC Network Operations and Security Center, which provides network services ...

... "In February, Microsoft's ITIL experts led a one-week Microsoft Operations Framework assessment of the NOSC's IT Service Management functions. The target of the assessment was not technology, but business processes. Several independent studies have identified that over 80 percent of IT system downtime is due to people and processes, not technology. In March, Microsoft delivered a 106-page report providing 71 recommendations for IT best practices. Six months later, the ACC NOSC has completed just over half of the recommendations and the results have been remarkable. " ...

Project Success Rates Tumble with Higher IT Complexity

As this article from Computerworld points out, organizations that have a mix of IT software products are paying a price for dealing with multiple hardware and software vendors, lack of standardization, keeping master data in synch across the products, and all the other complexities that go with a best-of-breed suite of software.

Complexity certainly has its cost. And, according to Computerworld, a study conducted by the Hackett Group of 250 companies shows that this cost is considerable -- 15% higher spend, 36% more employees, and being late or over budget on projects 25% more often.

Read the full report...

Think Tank - Computerworld

Lessons Learned: Physics of Project Management

Lessons Learned: Physics of Project Management: Via Globetechnology: Lessons learned in unexpected places ...

Catherine Daw, SPM Group, describes the physics of project management inherent in all life experiences ...

... "Lessons Learned: Celebration is essential as we achieve our goals. Capturing the lessons that we have learned along the way is equally important. We should reflect as we think of the future. What worked? What would we do differently? And, how does it apply to achievement of our next goal? This is the key ingredient to consistent, repeatable success. " ...

Business Sponsors Critical to IT Project Success

How many of us have had IT projects fully embraced and sponsored by a senior business executive?

I didn't think so.

Unfortunately, lack of full participatory business sponsorship is one of the leading causes of IT project failure. This article from Computerworld offers some compelling reasons why business sponsors fail to get involved, and offers some tips on how to remedy the situation.

The Elusive Executive Sponsor - Computerworld