Friday, May 29, 2009
SIPOC...Process Mapping made simpler A good Process Mapping tool I've come across
lately is the SIPOC. Define the following at a high level. - Suppliers
- Inputs
- Process
- Outputs
- Customers
Saw it recently used
by one of our Service Providers. Worked great. Very simple.
Follow up with your flowcharts and you've got a pretty
good idea of your Process(s)
More to follow... Braun Tacon
10:51 am pdt
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Those steely-eyed missile-men at Popular Mechanics...have produced another Rocket Man story. More to follow... Braun
4:08 pm pdt
The ITIL Incident, Problem and Change Dance
10:00 am pdt
Friday, May 22, 2009
Major Incident Handling...first you need a Plan Incident
(Service Operation) An unplanned interruption to an IT Service or a reduction in the Quality of an IT Service. Failure of
a Configuration Item that has not yet impacted Service is also an Incident. For example Failure of one disk from a mirror
set. Major Incident (Service Operation) The highest
Category of Impact for an Incident. A Major Incident results in significant disruption to the Business.. Major Incidents…they can best be described as, er…Major. You don’t need to fear Major Incidents unless you don’t have a
Plan. Fighting a Major Incident without a Plan is like fighting a 3 Alarm fire without Firemen or Equipment.
Here’s a Plan you can use as a model for your own Plan. Modify it to fit your needs, and remember, “…first
you need a Plan.”
(Modeled after the UCSC Major Incident Handling Plan...used by permission)
More to follow…
Braun Tacon
4:33 pm pdt
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
What about Braun? Just a little background for those that visit here.
Who am I?
Braun Tacon. Over 25 years experience as a Strategist, Tactician, and Project Manager with an extensive background in Management,
ITIL and similar Frameworks. ITSM (IT Service Management), Information Security, Process and Documentation Management all
with a Strategic and Tactical Point of view.
My Current Interests? To focus on People, Process and Technology as
a means of Delivering needed Innovation and Continual Service Improvement
My Current Focus? Applying Strategic
Vision with a Tactical Approach to Consistently Deliver momentum and Closure for Large Scale Projects.
More to
follow...
Braun Tacon
7:43 pm pdt
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
When a Project stalls…A Project will stall for many
reasons. - Lack of resources (time, money, people)
- Lack of interest
(an unneeded Project, or one not well championed)
- Lack of motivation (disinterest, task saturation, higher priority concerns)
- Or a combination
of two or all three of the reasons above
There are other possible
reasons for Project slippage, but in my experience the above three are the most common. What to do? It really depends on the cause. You may need to ask for additional resources. You
might need to reexamine your Project charter and make it more relevant or even consider not doing the Project.
You might have to break out your very best influencing skills and appeal to your peers, colleagues, and management
in ways that you never imagined. The goal is the same…as Project Manager you have overall responsibility
for delivery or closure of the Project. I think the best trait a good Project Manager can have is
an innate sense of urgency, tempered with a patience honed from experience. Choose your battles carefully.
Remember…no plan survives the first engagement. If Project timing is important or critical,
speak honestly and state the need for commitment and delivery from the team or team members. If timing
is more fluid and you sense good intentions from your Project Team, be grateful they are there to help you and allow them
to set their own pace as much as is reasonable or is possible based upon the overall Project constraints. Projects, like many things in life tend to be journeys, not events. Take a little time to enjoy
the journey. Along the way you’ll probably learn a thing or two that will make you’ll be all
the better prepared and capable come the next time around. More to follow… Braun Tacon
7:10 pm pdt
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