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April 2006 - Posts
Due to inherent variations in processes and human behavior, change implementations will fail for one reason or another. In the event that a change can not be implemented in the time allotted, there must be a rollback plan to restore the CI to a
A question that I have been asked is “Why do you call some things assets in Visible Ops?” I must step up to the plate and admit that I am the culprit behind that non-ITIL wording. At the time, I didn’t understand the important difference between
Essentially, Change Management is a risk management exercise. In Visible Ops we stress the importance of the Change Management process in “Stabilize the Patient” and reinforce that repeatedly through the book. Unfortunately, many groups fight
In Visible Ops under “Modify First Response” we discussed integrating reported and detected Change records to the Incident Management. Right now, we’ll just assume the Service Desk is performing Incident Management to keep things simple.
In the Visible Ops phase of “Catch & Release” we mentioned that inventorying the data centers, wiring closets and so on can help groups just starting their ITIL journey to begin to create their Service Catalog retroactively. While collecting
I read yet another vendor funded article claiming to raise productivity. Having read and heard unmet promises far too frequently, it makes one stop to ponder the nature of productivity. In order to be productive, then we must have a goal.
In the world of Sarbanes-Oxley (Sox), section 404 is concerned about the integrity of financial reporting. As such, material systems are scrutinized to ensure they are providing accurate information for the financial reporting process. To
An effective Change Management process can be used to reduce the level of human error being introduced into the production environment. This is done not by inspecting quality into the applications and systems in question but by collecting metrics
The CMDB has been the subject of many articles and whitepapers over the last several years. To cut to the chase, it contains, or integrates to, the data that allows IT to operate in the various process areas and service desk function. Configuration
Last week presented me with several interesting conversations with senior IT executives. Several of the more interesting talks were with folks in the operational hot-seat. There was a golden thread that ran through all of them. Now these were not what I would call casual conversations. In fact, all but one of these folks were seeking advice on how to turn their massive mission-critical IT shops around. What did they all share?
This is my first blog posting for the ITPI and I must say it has been quite a ride since we published the Visible Ops Handbook in 2004. I have been amazed by the acceptance of the book and feedback that I have received. Thus, these blog posts are very exciting for me as I look forward to sharing ideas and hearing your feedback.
Senior management plays a significant role in any process improvement effort and this very much includes Visible Ops. People need to understand that processes and controls are shaped by culture. Culture will either assist in the implementation of new processes or cause them to fail. Management helps shape the culture by sending forth a strong message that clearly sets the tone for the organization. This is what auditors and control theorists call “tone from the top”.
We all like to think that metrics are perfectly objective. Interestingly enough the very metrics themselves can influence behavior. The real question that management should ask before they deploy any measurement system is “what is our goal?”
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