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- Implement change management with these six steps
- Change management deals with how changes to the system are managed so they don't degrade system performance and availability. Change management is especially critical in today's highly decentralized, network-based environment where users themselves may be applying many changes. A key cause of high cost of ownership is the application of...
- Tags: change request, change management
- Technical articles 2003-12-01
- Implement security management with these six steps
- Security management deals with how system integrity is maintained amid man-made threats and risks, intentional or unintentional. Intentional man-made threats include espionage, hacks, and computer viruses. Unintentional threats include those due to accidents or user ignorance of the effects of their actions. Security management ranges from identification of risks to...
- Tags: asset, Change Tech Solutions Inc., risk, security, security management
- Technical articles 2003-10-08
- Develop a comprehensive business continuity program to prepare for emergencies
- The state of business continuity and disaster recovery planning is dismal in most organizations and nonexistent in many. Most plans in place simply won’t work. This is not surprising since disaster recovery hasn't been given sufficient consideration; until now, it's been among CIOs’ lower priorities.The terms business continuity and disaster...
- Tags: business continuity, business continuity planning, Change Tech Solutions Inc., disaster recovery
- Technical articles 2003-09-03
- Focus your staff behavior to position your department as a strategic business partner
- As CIO, you should be able to describe: the cultural identity of your IT organization; where you are in your quest to become a truly recognized partner of your business vs. a cost center; and how your organization is acting to affect this. After reading the last article in this...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc.
- Technical articles 2003-04-30
- Understand behavioral culture of IT teams to help align with business goals
- By Harris KernFor years, my company has employed assessments, workshops, process owners and champions, and leadership counseling to address the common problems found in IT infrastructures. We’ve accomplished varying degrees of success.We've helped organizations with poor structures eliminate conflicts of interest and increase efficiencies. And we've helped them add key...
- Tags: cultural identity, Change Tech Solutions Inc., information technology, identity
- Technical articles 2003-04-25
- Examine group behavior to identify causes of nonperformance in your IT department
- By Howie LykeMuch is being discussed, written, and applied regarding the IT value chain and the best practices in IT management that focus on three fundamental dimensions: people, process, and technology. However, IT executives must look deeper into their organizations to identify, understand, and address the true source of their...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc., information technology
- Technical articles 2003-04-23
- Implement problem management with these seven steps
- By Harris KernProblem management is a continuous process. It encompasses problem detection, documentation of the problem and its resolution, identification and testing of the solution, resolution, problem closure, and generation of statistical reports. Many times in IT organizations, IT managers skip or mishandle one or more of these steps, which...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc., problem management
- Technical articles 2003-04-10
- Ten keys to successful outsourcing
- By Anthony TardugnoWhen an organization is struggling with IT services or support of a specific system or application, there's a propensity to say, "We don't have the skills or understanding to do it right. Let's outsource it to someone who does." But the mindset should be, "We don't have the...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc., outsource, outsource provider, outsourcing
- Technical articles 2003-04-02
- The CIO's first 90 days: Laying the foundation
- By Ralph Boethling IIThe most important period in a CIO’s career is the first 90 days. This is a honeymoon period during which executive management and the board of directors may be most receptive to the CIO’s needs and concerns, including requests for special resources such as staff and funds...
- Tags: 90-day, first 90-day, information technology
- Technical articles 2003-03-21
- CIOs must get their infrastructure in order
- By Harris KernDue to global competition, business requirements/issues, shrinking IT budgets, and unhappy customers, CIOs have no choice but to focus on getting their infrastructure in order. Let's examine the main obstacles to the effort to make operations cost-effective and methods for overcoming them.Obstacle 1: Lack of long-term planningInfrastructures are...
- Tags: Data centers, RAS, data center
- Technical articles 2003-03-24
- Defining the ideal IT organization
- By Harris KernThe experience I’ve gleaned from workshops, assessments, and consulting activities with hundreds of major IT organizations bears out one fact: IT is still considered a cost center by its business counterparts in 70 percent of the Global 2000 companies. IT executives need to change this perception. CIOs must...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc., information technology, Traditional IT strategic planning
- Technical articles 2003-03-10
- Managing customer expectations is key to aligning IT with business
- By Harris KernEach year, Information Week takes a poll of its readers on the top issues affecting CIOs and IT departments. Each year, the issue of aligning IT to the business is at or near the top of the list. Key to the issue of aligning IT is the ability...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc., information technology
- Technical articles 2003-02-24
- Keep outsourced IT services from impeding high availability
- By Floyd PiedadOne of the biggest risks you face when employing a third-party provider is reduced availability. Low system availability not only infuriates users, but it usually defeats any possible reason for employing a third-party provider in the first place.When your IT organization decides to outsource a service that it...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc., information technology, IT services, outsource, outsourcing, third-party provider
- Technical articles 2003-01-28
- Choosing a service provider requires careful research
- By Floyd PiedadIs it possible to have high availability in outsourced IT services? The answer is a cautious “yes”—as long as you are willing to put in some extra work. Maintaining high availability while using a third-party provider requires a change in management practice, close monitoring of the service suppliers,...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc., outsource, outsourcing, service provider
- Technical articles 2003-01-29
- How to measure system availability targets
- To accurately measure system availability as experienced by end users, you must first thoroughly understand the system's configuration. This includes all the components and resources used by the application, both local and remote; and the hardware and software components required to access those resources. The next step is to monitor...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc.
- Technical articles 2003-01-20
- Avoid these facilities management mistakes to keep your computer center online
- Facilities management in an IT infrastructure is analogous to the props, lighting, scenery, and sound in a major theatrical production. All the elements must work in harmony for users the audience to get the most out of their experience. Avoid these five facilities management mistakes and you can be sure...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc., computer, facilities management, suppression
- Technical articles 2003-01-08
- Implement these disciplines for effective systems management
- Systems management disciplines are essential for effectively managing your IT systems. Here are the five phases you should include in your systems management process.You need some form of systems management discipline to effectively manage the availability, performance, security, and other aspects of your IT systems. If you don’t, your systems...
- Tags: Network administration, IT Services, Change Tech Solutions Inc., systems management
- Technical articles 2002-12-23
- IT should establish realistic availability requirements
- Before you can determine your availability requirements, you must find out what your users really need and expect. These suggestions can help you determine the best availability definition for your organization.Too many IT organizations focus on providing "high availability" according to the IT department's definition. Instead, it's the end user...
- Tags: Change Tech Solutions Inc., availability requirement, system availability, information technology, IT Organization, agreement
- Technical articles 2002-12-10
- The four key elements in effective systems management
- Systems management can be a failing prospect if you don't have the four key elements in place. Learn how ignoring processes, data, tools, and organization can stop your systems management effort before it starts.By Harris KernWhether you manage a large IT organization or a small one, you need some form...
- Tags: Call centers, IT Services, Change Tech Solutions Inc., help desk, systems management
- Technical articles 2002-12-02
- The seven Rs of high availability
- For most companies, continuous uptime has become an expected necessity for business survival. Here are seven approaches the IT manager can take to maximize availability and make this expectation a reality.By Harris KernThe goal of all availability process owners is to maximize the uptime of the various online systems for...
- Tags: Channel management, Change Tech Solutions Inc., supplier, high availability
- Technical articles 2002-11-26
