Articles by Ron B Palmer
Creating Strategic Thinkers
Ron B Palmer, April 19, 2010
One of my good friends told me of a challenge he and his manager were facing. They needed their people to think more strategically but were having difficulty achieving this seemingly simple objective. As we discussed the issue, I began thinking of the problem in terms of a framework for strategy. <More>
What is more vital to success, executing strategy or achieving goals?
Ron B Palmer,
April 10, 2010
Too many battles have been lost and business efforts failed because people are confused about these basic concepts. An excellent strategy does not guarantee success anymore than does achieving a goal. Success is an ephemeral or emergent idea than cannot be achieved with strictly linear concepts such as goal or strategy. Goals and strategy must interact within the confines of a system to create success. The two are intricately intertwined and cannot be easily separated. <More>
Where to Start
Ron B Palmer,
April 10, 2010
One of the most common questions in IT Service Management is “where do we start?”
It is a very common understanding that the IT infrastructure and therefore the management of IT is growing increasingly complex. ITSM solutions are commonly sold based on this knowledge and IT managers demonstrate significant pain from this reality. Increasing complexity is an integral part of our world today and is recognized in many areas such as science, politics, and religion. <More>
The IT Manager in a New Era
Ron B Palmer, 11/9/2009
To really understand the job of CIO you have to dig down to the fundamentals of why the IT department exists at all and build from there. Why do organizations find it necessary to create an IT department at all? Why doesn’t each department just handle their own IT? For that matter, why do we even use technology at all? The most fundamental answer is that technology adds value to the critical activities of the business. <More>
Defining success for ISO 20000, Section 9.1
Ron B Palmer, 1/2/2007
There is significant confusion in the ITIL community about the Configuration Management Database (CMDB) and Configuration Management. Some people believe that the CMDB includes every database and data-store used by IT to manage systems (I was formerly in this camp.) Others believe the CMDB is made up of only hardware and Software Configuration Items (CI). Many find themselves somewhere in the middle with fuzzy boundaries around what is and is not part of the CMDB.
In the past this has been something of a philosophical discussion. However, with the introduction of ISO/IEC 20000 (ISO 20K) in December of last year, this discussion becomes critical for any company pursuing ISO 20K certification. < More>
Companies Should NOT wait
Ron B Palmer, 11/29/2006
Ann All, of the IT Business Edge writes in her blog:
If you are thinking of undertaking an ITIL initiative, it might be best to wait for the dust to settle between the APM Group, the organization recently appointed the new ITIL accreditation body, and the two groups that were recently responsible for accreditation. Gartner says that a disagreement among the three bodies could result in confusion and even “a parallel qualification scheme.”
I respond:
Ann,
How can you reasonably suggest to a company that needs to improve their
operations and achieve better alignment with the business that they should wait.
Waiting is what they have been doing for years. <More>
Putting Configuration Management in its Place
Ron B Palmer, 11/26/2006
I feel guilty every time I teach ITIL Configuration Management. Even though I’ve taught hundreds of students the foundations of ITIL and more than 95% of them pass the ITIL Foundations Exam, I still feel a twinge of guilt. Why would I feel guilty about teaching a core concept of ITIL? The simple answer is that students will waste significant resources trying to implement ITIL Configuration Management with little or no return for their investments.
Every time I teach this material I rack my brain trying to find ways to directly tie Configuration Management to business value. I have come up with some unique approaches to teaching this material and I think I have helped many students understand how to approach building a CMDB in much more efficient ways. However, a direct tie to business value eludes me. <More>
The CMDB: A Money Pit That Creates No Value?
Ron B Palmer,11/20/2006
The Configuration Management Database (CMDB) is the most expensive and wasteful dead end in ITIL. The name itself entices technology managers to ITIL implementation failure like moths to a flame. ITIL with its metrics and management concepts is just so much fluff to most traditional technical people and IT managers. It is an unfathomable set of theories with nothing ‘real’ for technical people to grab onto, everything that is except the CMDB. A configuration management database, now that is something that IT can build.
This is how the money pit is birthed, a desperate attempt to demonstrate an active ITIL initiative. Projects are created, initial schemas are designed, and coding begins. Then the scope creep begins. First the schema must be expanded as complications arise. Other groups become involved and the schema expands again. Next entire existing data stores are identified that must be included. The project expands to include rewriting existing database applications. More resources are consumed and other IT projects are delayed. Results seem always just beyond the next scope change. Eventually there are no more resources, the organization becomes disillusioned with ITIL and IT goes back to business as usual. <More>
What's next for ITIL and IT Service Management
Ron B Palmer, 7/25/2006
The ITIL community is in a state of confusion at the moment. No one seems to be quite sure what the OGC is attempting to do with this move. I personally am not sure what all of this is going to mean for ITIL. What I do know is that IT Service Management is here to stay and it is up to the ITSM community to keep it alive and grow it into a respected professional discipline.
ITIL is a good collection of best practice but it does not introduce any specific new concepts or ideas. All of the recommendations within ITIL are based on pre-existing knowledge. The IT Infrastructure Library combines this knowledge into one set of books, and expresses the concepts in a specific fashion. <More>
Can an MBA become a programmer in two weeks?
Ron B Palmer, 7/19/2006
Today, I had a discussion with a customer about expectations for training. The discussion went something like this.
If a very smart MBA with little or no computer science background took a two week intensive computer science course would they then be qualified to design, build, implement, and run a complex IT system? Most IT people would immediately answer that there is no way that this person would be qualified to do this.
<More>
ITIL’s Journey of Acceptance
Ron B Palmer, 7/22/2005
Yesterday, August 21, 2005, we delivered the first day of the first class for the first US graduate program in IT Service Management. This significant event occurred without fanfare or fireworks. Nine students took part in this seven-hour event.
This is a direction that I have long believed to be crucial in the evolution of ITIL and IT Service Management. Academia has responded to industry’s demand for ITIL. By recognizing IT Service Management as a discipline. <More>
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