In the IT world these days, creativity frequently caves to pragmatism. To survive and profit from the converging and merging evolution of IT advancements, in-house proprietary and legacy systems have largely succumbed to out-of-the-box and off-the-shelf solutions. This situation is increasingly forcing IT pros out from behind their computer screens
Blackberries, Web 2.0 tools and other nifty widgets may make life easier, but they don’t change the primary responsibility of a senior IT executive. The basic job description still involves overseeing all the resources — personnel, financial budgets, software and equipment — invested in various projects, whether they are temporary
The individual who was born to be a project manager is a rarity. If you’ve been given the title (and the responsibilities that go along with it), you may have had little or no prior training. Your expertise may be in traditional management or the specific subject matter or technical
You’ve no doubt heard of great college football coaches who couldn’t cut it in the NFL, or terrific salespeople who got promoted to sales manager only to find that they were much better at sales. It’s the same in IT. “The IT field is littered with great technologists who are
IT managers walk a fine line between profits and productivity, but never more than when launching a new enterprise project. Tight budgets, paper-thin staffing or a misstep in scheduling employees or allocating resources can lead to blown budgets and bungled projects. “Salaries are money, time is money and technology is
The perennial problem with teaching technology in an academic setting is that by the time cutting-edge applications reach the classroom, they’re often past their prime. IT professionals blame the distance between the ivory tower and the real world. The teachers “are mostly full-time professors and have no link to industry,”
Too little management can leave IT stalled; too much can choke it to a standstill. The trick is to find that magic balance that enables the whole IT department to chug steadily forward like a well-oiled machine. Historically, IT departments tended to be organized in layers. “That model doesn’t much
As enterprises become more adept at using Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Sales Force Automation (SFA) systems to enhance customer relations, the buzz is beginning to build around using these same tools to recruit and retain top IT talent. The question is, will CRM for internal use be the next
No organization is an island. To be sufficiently agile and survive in today’s fiercely competitive markets, you must work closely with partners, suppliers and customers. Not only will collaboration result in significant cost savings and process efficiencies; it will allow you to boost customer service and create a significant competitive
Does industry certification for IT workers still matter? It depends on whom you ask. But most industry experts will tell you that technology skills are just one piece of what employers look for in their workforce. “Of course certifications matter, but do they matter in the scheme of everything employers
