Go to POV #5

Zero Latency: The Fast Path to 
Opportunity and Problem Detection

Go to POV #4:

Elegant Simplicity: Applying the Concept to IT

Go to POV #3:

Elegant Simplicity:  Keeping Complexity Under Control

Go to POV #2:

eBusiness is Business as eUsual 

Go to POV #1:

Let's Stop the Plate Spinning:  Going Slow to Go Fast

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Keeping IT Simple

1.  Work on a "minimum viable solution" basis 

2.  Consider total service costs; not just initial setup & installation.

3.  Help set & refine user expectations early with cross functional "messy meetings"*

4.  Appoint a benevolent dictator and use the 80/20 rule to measure them.

5.  Increment to perfection, if you choose to go there at all.

*see Fast Cycle Time on the lower right hand corner of our home page

 Elegant Simplicity: 

Applying the Concept to IT Development, 
Maintenance & Support 

As any experienced IT professional will tell you, hardware is relative cheap and getting cheaper.  Even software is trending in that direction but what continues to run counter to this trend is maintenance and support.  The cost and challenges are growing as our dependence on IT increases.  Stealing from Sun Microsystems, when the network becomes the computer, the cost and complexity of supporting increases significantly.  

Here's an increasingly typical scenario.  Company X's CEO has mandated that every function in his company should get "webify" itself; i.e. utilize the intranet and internet to create a seamless internal business "operating system" where information, tools and decisions reside.  Since the IT professionals available inside or out are far short of what's required, the CIO/CTO or whoever has the monkey, explores buying standard software packages or outsourcing.  During the early stages of vendor selection, the "unique" needs of the firm are described to perspective vendors.  Vendors then enter the "beauty show" mode where they strut their stuff, typically declaring that their package/approach can handle all these unique needs.  Much is true but there's always a little "vapor strut" as well.  

The vendor's response is well-received but rather than closing the deal, it wets the appetite of the company.  Recognize that the sourcing process is also a learning process.  As the company sees each vendor, it becomes clear that no single vendor has the "perfect" solution.  The company then works with it's top candidates to incorporate features from the losers into the top candidates.  At this point the top candidates are smelling a potential kill and are willing to "do what it takes" to win the business. 

So far so good...not necessarily for we've greased what's an already slippery slope.  First, one of the advantages of going with packaged software or an application specific provider is that they lighten or entirely carry the support burden.  The more the solution departs from the original, the more ongoing support and maintenance will inevitably fall back on the firm (regardless of what the service agreement says for when push comes to shove, the system's got to work).   Second, a unique advantage for many of the new ASP (application service provider) model is "instant on".  By having a reasonably flexible configuration process for all customers under their control, ASP's can get you up and running in days if not hours.  Carrying customization too far can negate this value.

Of course each situation must be decided on it's own.  Again the mantra of elegant simplicity argues for asking the right questions and testing the value of increased complexity over increased simplicity.