Find analysis of data from Cutter's ongoing industry research efforts, brief treatments of topics that don't require the in-depth research of an Executive Report, updates on previously-covered topics, and more, in 2-4 page Executive Updates.
OMG Services and Frameworks
In the last Executive Update, I reported that Cutter Consortium recently conducted a survey of more than 170 companies from around the world.1 In this Update, I'll continue to draw from this survey data to consider company attitudes toward the Object Management Group's (OMG) services.
Time to Market: Now's the Time!
"The business plans we're developing now will need a big increase in responsiveness from the IT group."
I was sitting in the CEO's office in a midsized brokerage in New York City; the CEO had just said that IT productivity was crucial for his company's future.
"How big is 'big'?" I asked.
"Tenfold," said the CEO.
British Petroleum Tops Survey Ranking European Knowledge-Based Enterprises
British Petroleum (BP -- London, UK) has been judged Europe's top knowledge-based enterprise. The 2001 European awards were given as a result of a benchmarking survey and study conducted by the Know Network.
Web, Portal Services May Be The B2B e-Globalization Silver Bullet For Small To Mid-Sized Enterprises: Part I
The immortal words "The Web changes everything" are never more appropriately applied than in the present era of knowledge-, content-, and business intelligence (BI)-based portal and Web services for globalization. In Part I of this series, we talk about why and how nearly all US companies are affected by, and have substantial new opportunities in, global markets.
Project Management Husbandry -- Part IV
"An army marches on its belly." In this Executive Update, Napoleon's motivational maxim will guide us as we continue our look at the issues involving project management husbandry, drawing on data from Cutter Consortium surveys. (See Executive Updates Vol. 2, No. 21; Vol. 2, No. 22; and Vol. 3, No.
Agility for the Masses
Agile development is raising eyebrows all across the world of software development. Yet agile methodologies are here to stay. Why? Because they have correctly exposed and provided viable solutions to the shortcomings of an increasingly heavyweight mindset that has, in recent years, ruled software development.
Getting Comfortable with Business Process Outsourcing
Say you're the vice president of IT in a major corporation, and your customers are looking for consistently high-performance, continuous improvement, and state-of-the-art technical solutions that satisfy their ever-changing business.
E-Mail and Organizational Effectiveness
Editor's note: An assertion from the Cutter Consortium Business Technology Council states, "Groupware will come into its own (or at least the need for it). This includes shared whiteboards, document control over the extranet, effective cross-organizational to-do lists, e-mail improvements, and improved intranets."
Instant Messaging Goes Corporate
In the past few years, the explosion of the Internet has propelled instant messaging (IM) from chat room fixture to boardroom issue. The dramatic growth of consumer IM services (from AOL, MSN, Yahoo, and others) has triggered a secondary effect: IM has gone corporate.
When Intelligence Is Much Needed
With the recent acceleration of the economic downfall of several industries, the business community is entering an untested playground mined with all sorts of unpredictable threats.
Network Management Software Paradigm Versus Security Management Paradigm
Editor's note: Assertion 57 from the Cutter Business Technology Council states: "Every server on the Internet is attacked every day by hackers or hacker agent software.
Starting the Knowledge Management Practice
The reason why enterprises pursue systematic knowledge management (KM) is clear: they wish to make people -- and the whole enterprise -- act intelligently to operate more effectively and better satisfy their stakeholders. However, the practical issue of how to approach introducing or expanding the KM practice is complex.
Security Then and Now
September 11 changed many things. Our personal lives have changed as much -- if not more -- than our professional lives. Some years ago, I had to beg for more money to enhance a security infrastructure. Why should we spend so much money on a "low-probability event?" I was asked. Do we really need such a large off-site contingency facility? How will we pay for all this stuff? Today, it would be easy.
The Reinvention of the OMG
Cutter Consortium has recently conducted a survey of more than 170 companies worldwide1 for its Distributed Enterprise Architecture Advisory Service. This Executive Update -- the first in a series based on these survey results -- focuses on a rather dramatic finding about the Object Management Group (OMG) as it relates to the plans of the companies in this survey.
Web Services
In a recent Executive Update, I reported on a Cutter Consortium survey of 170 companies from around the world1 (see Executive Update, Vol. 5, No. 1). Just over 40% of the companies are involved in software development or services, while the rest come from a cross-section of industries.
Data Quality in the Data Warehouse Environment: Part II
The importance of data quality for data warehousing and business intelligence (BI) has received considerable attention in the industry. But what are companies actually doing to ensure the quality of their data for data warehousing and BI initiatives?
Why Fly When You Don't Have To? Real-Time Communication and Collaboration Tools Get the Job Done
In the 1950s, as the interstate highway system was being constructed, who could have predicted the rise of suburban shopping malls 20 years later? In the wake of the September 11 attacks, some second- and third-order effects are already coming into focus.
Dragon Management 101
As a project manager, I adhere to J.R.R. Tolkien's advice on risk management: "It doesn't do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations if you live near him." Dragons come in all sizes and attitudes. Some dragons are small and inconsequential to the safety of the village. Others are mean and nasty and leave nothing but fire and destruction in their wake. Project management has a lot to do with dragon management.
Project Management Husbandry -- Part III
"Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes." In this month's Executive Update, Oscar Wilde's adage will be our guide as we continue our look at the issues involving project management husbandry, drawing on data from Cutter Consortium's surveys. (See e-Project Management -- now known as Agile Project Management -- Executive Updates Vol. 2, Nos.
Making the Right Outsourcing Decisions
Like IT outsourcing in the past decade, companies today are increasingly outsourcing business processes such as payroll, training, benefits administration, billing, logistics, and human resources. Both IT and business process outsourcing (BPO) are independent of the economic cycle -- companies outsource in bad times to reduce costs, and they outsource in good times to access new markets, compete more successfully, and grow.
Outsourcing 2002: Rolling with the Changes
As we move forward in the 21st century, the landscape for delivering technical solutions to business continues to change, and the concept of outsourcing IT products and services continues to gain momentum. In fact, more companies are using outsourcing than ever before. Traditional IT outsourcing -- such as product development, application support, and staff augmentation -- is now just another way of doing business.
The Rebirth of Business Process Redesign
Those who have been in computing long enough know that major technologies don't disappear. They are popular for a while, then less popular, and then more popular again. At each new wave, the names change, and the practices are more refined.
The Changing Legacy Integration Landscape
The past year was tumultuous in so many different respects, IT being just one of them. One of the conclusions we can draw about this year is that change happens fast, often faster than we can react. I'd like to take this opportunity to reflect on the technology trends I've observed in the past 12 months. One of these technologies -- enterprise application integration (EAI) -- is of great interest to me.
How to Select a Product Release Date
One of the unresolved issues associated with software methodologies is how to select a software product release date. Current thinking, embodied by the so-called "agile" software methods, is that software should be released frequently to the customer. Older, more staid methods are often silent on this topic.