Wouldn't it be nice if it organizational institutionalization was as easy as making a pronouncement of the change, waving your magic wand, saying a few words channeled through your inner warlock, and poof! the change was made. Sadly the real world is far more complex...
Read MoreThere is a group of companies, largely clustered around similar industry sectors, which have a similar culture. A culture which drives everything the business does and oozes from all those who choose to work within it...
Read More...Another tool I have found is to review margin notes of managers, directors, and above. When available, if you are able to take a look at meeting agenda's, presentation handouts, status reports, and the like you may notice something quite interesting. The handwriting which people place on these documents are far more than simple markings. The handwriting which in the margins is the individual's personal take on specific items. In a similar way that handwriting analysts are able to understand a writer from their handwriting (based a direct connection from brain to pen to paper), margin notes are created in the same way...
Read More...At the edge, the action is about change. The action is about identifying a vision and working towards transformation of an organization. In the post noted above, Edge IT is defined as functions and services that rhyme with IT Strategy, workforce planning, financial and operational modelling, scalability and capacity planning. This is an area where leadership makes all the difference...
Read More...This is also the area where truly great IT organizations separate themselves from their peers. Organizations which are able to articulate the problems to solve, the benefits and costs in doing so, and have develop a well though through approach in addressing the problem have a huge leg up. By doing so, the organization can avoid false starts and mis-direction, early involvement of stakeholders instead of late, and the projects have a better chance of running to conclusion. In general, this will provide a more efficient use of capital.
Read More"Cut your costs by 15%, I'll need your report on how you will do this by Friday." Ominous words, but words which are all too common these days. People are stretched pretty thin as it is and if your company is like most people, the work being done isn't going away. How will you do this?
Read More...One interesting aspect to explore here is not the comments or absence of them, but how the situations being commented on came to be. While many times these comments can refer to specific events, more often than not, when you dig beneath the surface, you will find that what is being reacted to is a systemic condition, the seeds (either crop or weeds) of which had been planted long ago.
Read MoreOrganizations morph. Sometimes the change is slow over time, sometimes rapid as part of a merger. What was effective structurally at one point inevitable deconstructs as the organization it supports changes. As people move in and out of the organization personalities change the roles and by association how the work gets done. Informal structures emerge and at some point the formal organization becomes a hinderance as opposed to a means to facilitate and support successful results.
Read MoreMarketing skills cannot be left to those in the marketing department. There is a heavy dose of marketing in IT. The job of the CIO depends on getting the marketing part right.
Read MoreAchieving meaningful change is hard - and the greater the mass, or greater the force of headwinds, the more difficult it is to succeed. It begs the question of "what forces can we marshall to achieve the change we need?"
Read MoreWe help organizations take their next steps, whether that be by through establishing a vision, and supporting operations to realize the vision, introducing emerging technologies, or working through the human capital challenges, we are there for you, engaging at whatever point you are in your journey,.
