|
|
|
|
|
 |
In these cases, the best outcome is that IT is merely relegated to a supporting utility role in the enterprise; in the worst cases, IT actually contributes to the failure of the lean efforts to deliver lean’s promised benefits. Where IT is tightly integrated into an enterprise’s lean culture, the outcomes are far more positive, with customer satisfaction and profits both increasing, as one expects from a successful lean transformation.
Using several real-world examples which illustrate the results that can be achieved from engaging IT in an enterprise’s lean journey, TAC Expert Dan Miklovic will explore the best options for making IT an integral part of a lean transformation. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What is lean; and why are so many enterprises pursuing lean?
- How is IT impacted, both functionally and operationally, when an enterprise pursues lean?
- How can IT assess its lean maturity, so lean benefits remain and do not become transient?
Dan Miklovic, TAC Expert, has more than 35 years of industry, consulting and management experience in manufacturing and natural resources industries. He is a certified manufacturing engineer and a certified Lean Sensei and is the principal analyst at Lean Manufacturing Research, which he founded after retiring from Gartner. A recognized global expert in lean and sustainable manufacturing, he has provided keynote addresses to manufacturing conferences in Europe, Asia and North America. He has published more than 30 technical papers and articles for leading technical organizations such as TAPPI, the ISA and the SME, as well as authoring numerous magazine articles related to MES/MOM, EAM, quality and lean, and is the author of Real-Time Control Networks, a text on industrial data networking, and a contributor to numerous handbooks on control engineering and quality management.
|  |
Building a private cloud enables enterprises to enjoy the benefits of cloud infrastructures without the security and service issues of the public cloud.
Using a case study of a company that has undertaken a project to build an enterprise cloud for its internal use, TAC Thought Leader Beth Cohen will explore the available options and issues when building an internal cloud IT infrastructure. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the compelling business reasons for building an enterprise cloud?
- What are the current enterprise-class cloud products, and how do they compare?
- What gotchas should be considered when implementing an enterprise cloud environment for your company?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only understands where technology is today but where it’s heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scalable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
All this has created fear, uncertainty and doubt in RIM’s core enterprise customer base, which remains critical to its survival. Many enterprises are nervous about committing further investment to a platform which seems to be under threat, while also seeing new trends such as “bring your own device” policies and more robust cloud e-mail offerings.
This webinar, presented by TAC Expert Caroline Gabriel, will provide a balanced assessment of RIM’s challenges and opportunities, and of the risk of continuing to base your enterprise mobile messaging strategy on this platform. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How safe is continued investment in RIM technology?
- How likely is RIM to be acquired, and if it were to be, what impact would that have on users’ current technology investments?
- What are the best alternatives to BlackBerry as an enterprise mobile messaging platform?
- What should you do to meet demand for mobile devices until alternatives are evaluated and deployed?
Caroline Gabriel, TAC Expert, specializes in technologies and business models for service providers and vendors, in the broadband wireless, 3G, fixed/mobile convergence and wireline broadband markets. Prior to co-founding Rethink Research Associates, Caroline spent a large part of her career in various senior positions at VNU Business Publishing Europe. Most recently, she was European editorial director with responsibility for editorial and research strategy, organizational structuring and business development.
|  |
This webinar, presented by TAC Expert David Schmidtknecht, will focus on visual business intelligence tools, some of which are traditional dashboards, as well as how companies are moving business analytics to total visual displays. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the best means of communicating information to data consumers?
- How is it possible to display thousands of rows of information in a single screen?
- When is visual analysis most effective, and when is seeing the numbers still best?
David Schmidtknecht, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience in corporate management, operations and finance. David was the VP of Civilian Government and Delivery at a boutique BI firm specializing in the U.S. Federal Government. In this role he was responsible for all business capture, financial management and customer delivery. During this time, he lead many customers through the selection, implementation and O&M support of Business Intelligence solutions with a focus on internal government finance. David has held CFO and other senior financial executive roles for several firms. David recently led a firm through CMMI Level II Certification. His blend of financial management technology expertise has given David a deep understanding of how, with the right solutions and expert implementation, enterprises can more easily solve technology-based problems. David is a Certified Public Accountant, and a PMI-certified Project Management Professional.
|  |
This webinar, presented by TAC Expert David Schmidtknecht, will explore all the “hidden costs” of purchasing, deploying and maintaining an in-house BI solution vs. the cost of implementing a BI solution in the cloud. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What is the real cost of an in-house BI solution?
- What is the real cost of a vendor-hosted BI solution?
- What are the security risks of an in-house BI solution vs. a cloud-based solution?
- Would your users be better off with a traditional BI solution or a cloud-based solution?
- What are the roadblocks to moving a BI system to the cloud?
David Schmidtknecht, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience in corporate management, operations and finance. David was the VP of Civilian Government and Delivery at a boutique BI firm specializing in the U.S. Federal Government. In this role he was responsible for all business capture, financial management and customer delivery. During this time, he lead many customers through the selection, implementation and O&M support of Business Intelligence solutions with a focus on internal government finance. David has held CFO and other senior financial executive roles for several firms. David recently led a firm through CMMI Level II Certification. His blend of financial management technology expertise has given David a deep understanding of how, with the right solutions and expert implementation, enterprises can more easily solve technology-based problems. David is a Certified Public Accountant, and a PMI-certified Project Management Professional.
|  |
This webinar, presented by TAC Founder and Chairman Alan Guibord, will give you some of the tips we have provided to our clients to help them be prepared. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What is the optimal funding mechanism moving forward?
- How do I balance resources with demand?
- What is the best financial model for my organization?
- What skills must I have to adequately support the company?
- How do I justify IT investments?
Alan Guibord, TAC Founder and Chairman, is one of the top experts in the area of IT career and leadership development. He has more than 25 years of experience leading IT organizations as CIO with both Fortune 100 companies and small-to-midsize businesses. He was most recently CEO of Computerworld, and has served as VP and CIO of Fort James Corp., VP Information Technology at RR Donnelley & Sons, CIO of PictureTel, and VP MIS and Administrative Services at Timeplex. He is considered a visionary in the field, and is a sought after speaker in the United States and around the world. His areas of expertise include senior corporate management, organization-building, management/ business alignment, building investment strategies, linking IT with business management, large-scale project management, manufacturing efficiencies, and acquisition and merger integration.
|  |
...as with the Oracle acquisition of Sun, yet others have been tolerated for decades as inevitable. Armed with information provided in this webinar, IT organizations will be able to identify and negotiate important service Ts&Cs with a solid business-case foundation.
TAC Expert Gay Gordon-Byrne will present the grading system developed by the Service Industry Association International Contract Competitiveness Council, of which Gay is the current chair. Attendees will learn which Ts&Cs are most damaging to user organizations, and how to understand them as the basis for better negotiations. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What is the relationship between hardware break-fix and software support?
- What impact do service lockouts, service keys and service exclusivity have on user IT organizations?
- What can user IT organizations do about restrictions on self-service or independent service?
Gay Gordon-Byrne, TAC Expert, is a 30-year veteran of the equipment sales and leasing world. She is a frequent writer, speaker and consultant to the industry on the subject of vendor terms and conditions. Her experience gives her comprehensive insight into marketing and pricing practices for both equipment and associated break-fix.
|  |
...reserves have been stretched to the limit, and a new or increased tax base is off in the distance, due to the still shaky economy driving legislators and governors to cower. While the dilemma this situation presents to the K–12 IT executive is clear, the solution promises to be highly variable requiring consideration of many disparate factors.
This webinar, presented by TAC Experts John Tracy and Bev White, will present ideas for reducing costs without negatively impacting progress toward educational goals. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What new and innovative options are available for K–12 organizations to continue supporting teaching and learning while reducing costs?
- How can expectations of faster process automation and increased demand for technology solutions be addressed with diminishing funding?
- How can K–12 organizations provide the mobile infrastructure to keep pace with the learning styles and personalized service demands of the young “digital natives” populating schools today — and their parents?
John Tracy, TAC Expert, has more than 35 years of experience in software development and quality-assurance, accounting, and project, program and general management. John’s private-sector background includes telecommunications and billing, IT and payroll/tax. His final assignment at Convergys Corporation was project/program director for software development services for a Fortune 500 client, where he consistently drove multiple overlapping 100,000-hour software development projects to successful completion while reducing the program cost structure via offshoring program work to India. In the public education sector, as CIO of Seminole County public schools, John drove virtualization, thin-client desktop, ERP and network build-out projects. He also has developed and taught project management courses for local colleges and the University of Central Florida (UCF).
Bev White, TAC Expert, has more than 35 years experience in education including K–12 classroom teacher, college professor, college technology administrator, K–12 cabinet-level Chief Technology Officer (CTO), and K–12 cabinet-level Chief Information Officer (CIO). Author of multiple texts and supplements for distance learning, Bev’s consulting experience encompasses workshops, presentations, and design and delivery of webinars emphasizing the areas of educational leadership, team building, management of technology, stakeholder relationships, and the evolving role of the K–12 district technology leader. Bev’s continuing passion is empowering practitioners who are working to improve teaching and learning.
|  |
Many issues arise from the fact that processes are ill-defined, and that software built and bought to monitor and facilitate the process flows are designed in ways that actually hinder achieving the objectives of the processes. In addition, many businesses fail to take into account the experience of the people who interact with the process management software and handle the manual work streams associated with the processes.
This webinar, presented by TAC Expert Sue-Rae Rosenfeld, will describe how IT executives can solve these problems. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How should processes be identified and prioritized?
- What should IT managers do to map processes and their business functions?
- Where should boundaries be set for where a process starts and ends within your organization?
- How can managers determine if processes are actually helping or hindering business work flow?
Sue-Rae Rosenfeld, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience as an IT project manager and business analyst, primarily in the financial industry. She has special expertise in data analysis, data modeling, and converting systems into new platforms, including mainframe to Internet and intranet server environments. In addition, she trains IT professionals in project management fundamentals and Project Management Professional exam prep. She is an active member and volunteer for the Project Management Institute.
|  |
Handled correctly within an IT framework, SaaS applications can significantly increase business agility and competitiveness. However, like any powerful tool, handled incorrectly they can be a ticking time bomb.
Using a real-life case study of a company that had rogue SaaS applications putting the company at serious legal and business risk, we will explore how to bring governance and rigor to an enterprise SaaS portfolio. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How can IT managers determine whether there is a “rogue application” problem in their enterprise?
- How can one assess the risks of shadow SaaS installations?
- What are the eight key risk factors of SaaS applications?
- How can one improve SaaS portfolio management and governance?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only understands where technology is today but where it’s heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scalable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
Much to his surprise, when he presented the “Business Process Efficiency” report to his peers, it was almost immediately dismissed as being misfocused, inaccurate, untimely, and consequently of little to no value.
The CIO knew that the data being generated by the ERP system held great value if it could be turned into accurate, timely and meaningful information. The CIO called us in to assist him in determining what to measure, how to measure it, and how to make the information available in a form that would be informative, capable of analysis and actionable.
This case-study webinar, presented by TAC Executive Consultants Michael Bitterman and Charlie Ambuhl, will present a set of concrete, practial guidelines for developing and implementing an organization’s KPIs. The concepts to be presented have been developed through many years of experience, and are in use at many organizations. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What phases should be included in KPI development?
- How should one evaluate existing or new KPIs?
- What techniques are effective for getting KPIs embedded into the organization?
- What visualization and presentation techniques are best for communicating KPIs?
Charlie Ambuhl, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 25 years of experience in IT benchmarking, with the past 12 years focused on increasing the business benefit from IT investments. He has designed and implemented innovative approaches to performance measurement, benchmarking, and alignment of technology for increased effectiveness. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Ambuhl was VP, EMEA benchmarking for Meta Group, VP, North American client services for Gartner Measurement, and spent 14 years at Real Decisions prior to their acquisition by Gartner. There he was instrumental in launching several IT benchmarking services still in use today.
Michael Bitterman, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 25 years of information technology experience. He works with senior business and IT executives in performing high-level engagements focused on establishing current performance baselines, targeting future performance goals, and implementing the means to achieve them. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Bitterman was VP at Gartner, where he established their IT Transformation and IT Performance Management practices. Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior management positions within both user and vendor IT organizations.
|  |
...since this is one part of the organization that must pull its weight if IT is to truly succeed in program and project delivery.
In this case study webinar — oriented primarily toward CIOs and their direct reports — TAC Expert Peter Stansbury will not only look at some of the key problems encountered, but also describe a highly effective structure for a coherent and holistic Portfolio, Program and Project Management Office (P3MO). Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What is the difference between a portfolio, a program, and a project — and why does this matter?
- What are the three types of PMO, and when is each appropriate?
- When and why should a P3MO be virtualized?
Peter Stansbury, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience. He consults widely on IT-enabled business change, PMO and P3MO design and build, and sees the role of the P3MO as fundamental to the success of corporate project investment. He is also a Visiting Executive Fellow at globally renowned Henley Business School. His experience covers a wide range of industry sectors including financial services, health care, professional services, telecommunications, media, technology, government and education.
|  |
In this webinar — oriented primarily toward CIOs and their direct reports — TAC Expert Sue-Rae Rosenfeld will provide real-world examples of how the IT Infrastructure Library standards, implemented correctly, helped a specific organization eliminate these problems. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How should you set-up a framework addressing all aspects of incident management to which your IT organization needs to respond?
- How should you provide for ongoing continuous improvement of the issue/request resolution process?
- How can you get buy-in for implementation — from upper management down to the individuals who will be using the ITIL system?
Sue-Rae Rosenfeld, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience as an IT project manager and business analyst, primarily in the financial industry. She has special expertise in data analysis, data modeling, and converting systems into new platforms, including mainframe to Internet and intranet server environments. In addition, she trains IT professionals in project management fundamentals and Project Management Professional exam prep. She is an active member and volunteer for the Project Management Institute.
|  |
Now that cloud computing is moving into the mainstream, organizations are also starting to question where their ERP system should fit in their enterprise architecture, versus new cloud applications.
In this webinar — oriented primarily toward CIOs and their direct reports — TAC Expert Rick Belmonte will examine common shortcomings of ERP implementations. He will also define the key components and activities of a successful ERP system, identify success factors, provide some ideas for ERP optimization, and present specific steps that you can take to optimize your ERP system. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How can you track the actual benefits realized in your ERP system?
- How should you go about streamlining and continuously improving your business processes?
- When should you implement additional modules of your ERP system?
- Should you stick to your original ERP architecture plan, or move to a “best of breed” approach that leverages more advanced cloud computing applications?
Rick Belmonte, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of experience in the IT industry. Rick has been both a CIO and a consultant in both large and boutique firms. As a CIO, he implemented ERP and SaaS solutions and has firsthand experience with both. He also supported several ERP implementation projects as a consultant. His expertise includes ERP implementation/optimization, IT strategy and architecture planning, business intelligence, business process management, and organizational change management. Rick co-founded IT Renaissance, is a partner in The Atre Group, and managed the IT Strategy and Transformation group for Gartner Consulting.
|  |
- Global sourcing
- Process redesign
- Organizational transformation
- New governance structure
- New demand/resource delivery process
- New strategy cycle of innovation
During this case-study webinar, TAC Founder Alan Guibord will describe how, with TAC’s decision support, this client was able to:
- Transform the IT organization into a recognized corporate contributor
- Create a structure which balances demand and expectations with resources
- Implement a workable governance process to better align with the business
- Transform the organization into a balanced in-sourced and out-sourced structure
- Create a cycle of innovation to lead the business to the next level
Alan Guibord, TAC Founder and Chairman, is one of the top experts in the area of IT career and leadership development. He has more than 25 years of experience leading IT organizations as CIO with both Fortune 100 companies and small-to-midsize businesses. He was most recently CEO of Computerworld, and has served as VP and CIO of Fort James Corp., VP Information Technology at RR Donnelley & Sons, CIO of PictureTel, and VP MIS and Administrative Services at Timeplex. He is considered a visionary in the field, and is a sought after speaker in the United States and around the world. His areas of expertise include senior corporate management, organization-building, management/ business alignment, building investment strategies, linking IT with business management, large-scale project management, manufacturing efficiencies, and acquisition and merger integration.
|  |
This webinar — oriented primarily toward CIOs, their direct reports, and their counterparts in the sales and marketing organizations — will start in the present, but quickly shift its attention to straddle the future and the past. The focus will be on using mobile technology to generate revenue and cut operating costs, while appreciating lessons from the PC and Internet eras to avoid costly and painful adoption mistakes. Hot issues to be addressed include the good, bad and ugly:
- What business value can be obtained from mobile devices?
- How effective and powerful are smart phones as computers?
- What are the capabilities and limitation of mobile devices (including limitations nobody talks about)?
- What mobility issues should CIOs worry about?
Walt DuLaney, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 30 years of experience developing IT strategies and new IT-management practices for Fortune 1000 companies. He consults extensively on strategy-alignment, project-management, and performance-measurement methods to assure that strategic initiatives are delivered successfully and operating results are verifiably improved. He’s currently helping clients deploy advanced real-time mobile systems.
|  |
In this webinar, TAC Expert Rick Belmonte will provide a clear definition of cloud computing and describe its various forms and types, including SaaS, PaaS, IaaS, DaaS, etc. He will then explain the premise that cloud computing will be an inevitable part of your enterprise architecture, and provide a sample IT architecture which includes cloud computing and supporting integration standards. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the failings of traditional systems architectures?
- Why has software-as-a-service become such a hot technology?
- How does cloud computing benefit enterprise applications?
- What does open source software have to do with cloud computing?
- What should enterprises do when new ERP offerings are made available via SaaS?
Rick Belmonte, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of experience in the IT industry. Rick has been both a CIO and a consultant in both large and boutique firms. As a CIO, he implemented ERP and SaaS solutions and has firsthand experience with both. He also supported several ERP implementation projects as a consultant. His expertise includes ERP implementation/optimization, IT strategy and architecture planning, business intelligence, business process management, and organizational change management. Rick co-founded IT Renaissance, is a partner in The Atre Group, and managed the IT Strategy and Transformation group for Gartner Consulting.
|  |
However, if these relationships are not effectively (and continuously) managed, organizations risk their reputation — by missing deadlines, incurring higher-than-expected costs while receiving lower-than-expected quality, and lower staff morale.
In this webinar, TAC Expert Ken Emery will describe a holistic approach that enables organizations to more effectively work with their service providers and their own staff, to create long-term value and increased ROI from each of their vendor relationships. Issues to be addressed include:
- How does the choice of the type of desired partnership affect the selection of a vendor, the contract terms, the performance metrics, and the governance structure?
- What are some techniques for bridging the differences in corporate cultures?
- What are some key metrics which should be considered to ensure that the vendor is helping you meet your business objectives, and process performance metrics?
- What are some costs to quantify when considering switching vendors?
Ken Emery, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of IT executive and management experience in a range of industries. In addition to being CIO for Fortune 500 companies, he has been a senior executive for corporate shared services, including strategic planning, purchasing, and call center operations. Key areas of expertise are organizational development, strategy development, business process improvement, and strategic sourcing. He has had many experiences in leveraging IT for increased business value. Ken currently is a Senior Facilitator and Consultant with Ouellette & Associates.
|  |
This webinar, presented by TAC Expert Tim Pacileo, will help you compare your organization with a nationwide survey of online metrics. Registrants will receive, in advance of the webinar, a survey they can take to see how they compare. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the top online marketing trends?
- What key online metrics should you be tracking for your web site, social media and e-mail marketing?
- What best practices apply to developing a successful online marketing strategy?
- What design metrics should be considered to improve web site and social media effectiveness?
- What tools are needed to manage online marketing metrics?
Tim Pacileo, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of diversified domestic/international executive, IT management and consulting experience with Fortune 500, government and smaller companies in multiple industries. He specializes in developing and implementing strategic IT plans for organizations, as well as acting as a senior project manager. His experience includes marketing, sales, planning, IT and business operations, business development, mergers and acquisitions, general management, systems/network integration/outsourcing, e-commerce, social media, e-business, direct marketing, IT strategy and governance. He is a leading business and IT change management consultant, specializing in assisting organizations in reducing costs, improving efficiencies, and integrating IT operations.
|  |
A greater opportunity exists in managing the portfolio of contracts held with a specific vendor — i.e., a cross-contract view of all business conducted by the organization with that vendor. A comparative analysis will often identify inconsistencies across contracts — some which may be material from a financial, compliance or operational perspective.
Based on a compilation of client engagements, TAC Expert Sherry Irwin will discuss the concept and value of a contract portfolio review. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- Why should IT organizations take a contract portfolio view?
- What contracts should be included in contract portfolio management?
- How should IT managers approach contract portfolio management?
- What representative findings characterize clients’ contract portfolios?
Sherry Irwin, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience in IT asset management (ITAM), including license, contract and vendor management, across a broad spectrum of industries. She is a recognized expert and evangelist about ITAM best practices, based on years of personal and client experience. Sherry is founder and chair of the Canadian IT Asset Management Users’ Group (1992) and an instructor for the Certified Software Manager (CSM) and Advanced Software Manager (ASM) courses developed by the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA). She developed a series of educational seminars on IT asset, license, contract and vendor management, and is mentor to numerous IT asset managers in defining, learning, and executing their ITAM accountabilities. Sherry is also a Certified Software Asset Management Professional, as certified by the Business Software Alliance (BSA).
|  |
Often compliance audits from customers are the most demanding and critical to the organization. However, it is cost prohibitive to manage a security program around multiple compliance requirements. In addition, this approach does not assure that the organization will be secure between audits.
In this webinar, TAC Expert Frederick Scholl, Ph.D. will describe a three-step process to meet multiple security requirements using ISO 27001, the international security standard. This process will enable attendees to get compliant and stay compliant. The process is modular, so each firm can choose which of three steps to implement, depending on its current security maturity level and available security resources. The presentation will include HIPAA and financial services client case studies. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How should you conduct a security baseline assessment of technical and management controls?
- How can you evaluate internal and external threats to information assets?
- How is a comprehensive remediation program constructed?
Frederick Scholl, Ph.D., TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience in technology investigations and research. He is acknowledged as a subject matter expert in information security best practices, information security operational procedures, compliance and audit compliance management, threat and vulnerability management, corporate security strategic planning, security risk evaluations, security and privacy requirements analysis, and Sarbanes-Oxley, J-SOX and HIPAA/HITECH. Moreover, he has substantial knowledge and expertise in LAN and WAN technologies, Internet e-commerce systems, and Internet and optical fiber communication technologies. His clients include Dow Jones, JP Morgan Chase, Solomon Smith Barney, McGraw-Hill, Merrill Lynch, Memorial Sloan Kettering, and Blue Cross Blue Shield. Dr. Scholl has 13 U.S. patents related to network technology and fiber optics.
|  |
Most institutions are behind the curve in becoming certified, leaving them unable to take advantage of these Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments (available January 1, 2011). Those institutions that are “first in line” will receive more of these incentives, leaving less for those that lag behind. Not being certified will eventually lead to reduced Medicare and Medicaid payments, costing your institution money!
What does your institution need to do now to become Meaningful Use certified? In this webinar, TAC Expert Shyam Desigan will share his insights into this critical question. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How do you go about tapping the Medicare and Medicaid incentives?
- Which one should you go for first, and can you do both?
- How do you achieve Meaningful Use by using Certified EHR Technology?
- How do you go about the process of meeting the Meaningful Use staged IT functionality and Clinical Quality Measures?
Shyam Desigan, TAC Expert, has more than 13 years of health-care and pharmaceutical IT, development finance, and project management experience. He has held senior positions in large health-care and non-profit institutions, where he directed staff with responsibilities including health-care IT, strategy & architecture, project finance, forecasting & trend analysis, strategic planning, and budget & business-case planning. As co-founder of a telemedicine company and health-care IT consultant, he is focused on enabling health-care providers use telemedicine, context-aware mobility, and revenue-cycle management solutions. His consulting expertise with health-care providers includes joint business/IT evaluation of software vendor offerings, application service providers, and alignment of IT with the business needs and financial capabilities of mid-market health-care providers.
|  |
In this webinar, TAC Expert Lori Sechio will present the 15 critical questions every organization must address to determine the health and value potential of their ITAM program. These questions provide rapid insight into the organization’s situation in the key areas of governance, support tools and business processes. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What ITAM best practices provide the most business impact?
- How can one assess the most impactful next steps to take for their organization?
Lori Sechio, TAC Expert, has more than 27 years of technical and leadership experience in IT, with the past 15 years focused on increasing the business benefit of IT through effective IT asset management (ITAM). She is a pioneer in the ITAM discipline who “lived” the client experience. Lori is the developer of the QuickITAM assessment methodology for rapidly determining the health and value potential of ITAM for a client organization. She is recognized for independent and reliable ITAM strategy development and advice.
|  |
Anecdotal evidence shows that the range of BI penetration within organizations is between 3 and 8 percent. Considering the investment that companies make in their BI software, one must ask why this is the case. We have found a number of reasons, and a primary one is the disconnect between the business’s requirements and expectations vs. IT’s understanding and their requirements for support.
Agile BI can create the connection and establish the alignment between the business and IT. This webinar, presented by TAC Executive Consultants Michael Bitterman and Charlie Ambuhl, will describe how IT can now provide “self service” to their business partners, enabling the implementation of agile BI in reasonable time frames at affordable costs.
Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What steps are necessary to align business and IT regarding BI?
- Where should lines be drawn between BI “self service” and IT support?
- What development approach is most effective for agile BI?
- What technical architecture and capabilities are required for agile BI?
Charlie Ambuhl, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 25 years of experience in IT benchmarking, with the past 12 years focused on increasing the business benefit from IT investments. He has designed and implemented innovative approaches to performance measurement, benchmarking, and alignment of technology for increased effectiveness. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Ambuhl was VP, EMEA benchmarking for Meta Group, VP, North American client services for Gartner Measurement, and spent 14 years at Real Decisions prior to their acquisition by Gartner. There he was instrumental in launching several IT benchmarking services still in use today.
Michael Bitterman, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 25 years of information technology experience. He works with senior business and IT executives in performing high-level engagements focused on establishing current performance baselines, targeting future performance goals, and implementing the means to achieve them. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Bitterman was VP at Gartner, where he established their IT Transformation and IT Performance Management practices. Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior management positions within both user and vendor IT organizations.
|  |
...often being relegated to “order takers” rather than being respected as strategic contributors.
Has this happened to you? What’s the problem? Where should an IT leader focus in order to be truly strategic and successful? In this webinar, TAC Expert Craigg Ballance will share his insights into this critical question. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the key areas of IT leadership failure?
- Why are these areas so important yet so elusive?
- How can IT leaders build better skills and create positive outcomes?
- What specific actions should be taken to initiate the right kind of change?
Craigg Ballance, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of experience managing and leading advanced IT initiatives and teams, and is the designer and program director of The CIO Summit® IT Executive Leadership Program — delivered through a unique partnership between Ryerson University and The CIO Summit. He has spent much of the past decade researching and developing targeted programs — and specific content — to enable IT leaders to be more effective in their roles. He has also personally coached and counseled almost 300 graduates of the IT Executive Leadership Program, many of whom have attained success as strategic members of their executive teams. Craigg’s pragmatic and candid approach promotes the development of greater understanding between business and technology leadership. He is a recognized expert in the setting up of IT infrastructures in emerging nations, and is the co-author of On-Line Profits: A Manager’s Guide to Electronic Commerce and two other books.
|  |
If you are thinking about or involved in developing a BI dashboard for your organization, you’ll want to attend this TAC webinar. TAC Executive Consultants Charlie Ambuhl and Mike Bitterman will share their advice from many years of performance management system and BI dashboard development. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What major steps are involved in BI dashboard design and development?
- What pitfalls need to be avoided?
- What hurdles need to be overcome?
- What are the critical “dos and don’ts” in dashboard design, development and deployment?
Charlie Ambuhl, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 25 years of experience in IT benchmarking, with the past 12 years focused on increasing the business benefit from IT investments. He has designed and implemented innovative approaches to performance measurement, benchmarking, and alignment of technology for increased effectiveness. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Ambuhl was VP, EMEA benchmarking for Meta Group, VP, North American client services for Gartner Measurement, and spent 14 years at Real Decisions prior to their acquisition by Gartner. There he was instrumental in launching several IT benchmarking services still in use today.
Michael Bitterman, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 25 years of information technology experience. He works with senior business and IT executives in performing high-level engagements focused on establishing current performance baselines, targeting future performance goals, and implementing the means to achieve them. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Bitterman was VP at Gartner, where he established their IT Transformation and IT Performance Management practices. Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior management positions within both user and vendor IT organizations.
|  |
The stakeholders often don’t really know what the project success criteria are, or they have conflicting success criteria. In either case, the project and the project manager are in big trouble.
In this webinar, TAC Expert Alan Gopin will provide practical tips for project managers to help improve the success rate of their projects by gaining alignment among the project stakeholders. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How can you identify the real success criteria of the stakeholders?
- How should you deal with conflicting success criteria?
- How can you gain consensus among the stakeholders on what project success means?
Alan Gopin, PMP, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years in IT and business development, including over 20 years in project management and seven years teaching project management at the graduate level. He has been certified as a PMP since 1998. He has experience in several industries, including telecommunications, pharmaceutical, and finance. Alan has worked in complex system environments, and has hands-on experience as a software developer, system tester, and systems engineer. He leverages that experience as an IT project manager. He is an expert at all phases of the project management process and is a skilled project management trainer with strong organizational, leadership, and management skills. He has authored two published papers on project management methodology and has presented at the Lucent Project Management Conference and the PMI/NJ Symposium.
|  |
Many enterprises use benchmarking to help answer these questions, minimize risk, and maximize results from IT decisions. Using IT benchmarking, businesses can see comparative cost measurements relative to peer organizations.
This webinar, presented by TAC Executive Consultants Charlie Ambuhl and Michael Bitterman, will provide two case studies of the real-world benefits of benchmarking. The case studies will cover (1) a large IT organization looking to find where costs are excessive, and (2) an organization looking to confirm that outsourced IT costs are within market norms. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the challenges facing today’s CIO/CTO in understanding IT infrastructure costs and efficiency?
- How appropriate are IT costs compared to peer organizations performing the same type of work?
- How appropriate are IT costs compared to industry peers relative to efficiency?
- How much difference can benchmarking really make for a company trying to gain control over costs?
Charlie Ambuhl, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 25 years of experience in IT benchmarking, with the past 12 years focused on increasing the business benefit from IT investments. He has designed and implemented innovative approaches to performance measurement, benchmarking, and alignment of technology for increased effectiveness. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Ambuhl was VP, EMEA benchmarking for Meta Group, VP, North American client services for Gartner Measurement, and spent 14 years at Real Decisions prior to their acquisition by Gartner. There he was instrumental in launching several IT benchmarking services still in use today.
Michael Bitterman, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 25 years of information technology experience. He works with senior business and IT executives in performing high-level engagements focused on establishing current performance baselines, targeting future performance goals, and implementing the means to achieve them. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Bitterman was VP at Gartner, where he established their IT Transformation and IT Performance Management practices. Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior management positions within both user and vendor IT organizations.
|  |
...platforms in favor of other hardware and OS platforms that are more consistent with their long-term goals and budget.
The major drivers for these migration plans include:
- Oracle’s punitive policies toward self maintainers and those using independent service providers (ISPs)
- Restricted service offerings which may impact system restoration and uptime expectations of the end user community
- Increased costs
- Reduction in service options
In this case study webinar, TAC Expert Randy Henniger will draw from his personal experience in the ISP environment including his current role as chair of the Service Industry Association’s Restrictive Trade Practices Working Group. Mr. Henniger has participated successfully in the definition of service solutions which eliminate the confusion and resolve the issues raised by Oracle’s new support policies, leading to the successful implementation of service programs and equipment migration plans valued in the tens of millions of dollars.
Randy Henniger, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years experience in technology executive management positions. Mr. Henniger has designed IT support strategies, and brought leadership and successful execution to all facets of IT service and support including development of ISP partnering agreements, contracts, and SLA achievement planning for mission critical enterprise IT environments.
|  |
The major drivers for consolidation include:
- Cost reduction and competitive advantage
- Improved overall security
- Better processes, uptime and accreditations
- New and more effective disaster recovery
In this case study webinar, TAC Expert Renato Crocetti will draw from his personal experience in stating, promoting and getting accepted the business case for data center consolidation, and designing and successfully executing the consolidation, which achieved and surpassed all objectives.
Renato Crocetti, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years experience in IT executive management positions. Renato has designed IT strategies, and brought leadership and successful execution to all facets of IT including development, infrastructure, data center engineering and operations, technology procurement, and enterprise security. He has successfully delivered many major programs with substantial financial impact and competitive advantage, most recently: the consolidation of multiple data centers into two tier-4, energy efficient scalable centers; ISO 9001 and 27002 certification; promotion, identification and usage of “green” technology and virtualization; championing and leading a new corporate initiative on enterprise security and risk mitigation; and the design and deployment, in partnership with the Wharton Institute, of an IT executives development program to maximize personal and business value. In his recent consulting activity, he has been engaged to develop the long-term IT strategy for a major technology institute.
|  |
Although these areas are important and should be addressed, a lack of detailed management of the application portfolio can expose an organization to virus attacks or costly server hardware maintenance costs. Instituting an Application Portfolio Management office is the first step in providing total management of an organization’s application portfolio.
This webinar, presented by TAC Expert Stephen Rood, will explore the role of the APM office in providing total management of an organization’s installed based of applications. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What IT management problems are best addressed by an APM?
- What should APM include, what data needs to be collected, and how often?
- How does an APM office measure the “health” of applications?
- How does an APM office help focus management attention?
Stephen Rood, TAC Expert, has more than 32 years experience in the information technology field specializing in developing and implementing strategic technology plans for organizations as well as senior project management and help desk operations review. He has recently implemented an APM office for a major package goods firm. His consulting experience has included designing and implementing a state-of-the-art emergency 911 call center for the city of Newark, NJ, managing technology refreshes for a major non-profit entertainment organization as well as a large, regional food broker. Prior to his consulting work, he was Director, Information Technology for Coopers & Lybrand, Manager, End User Support at General Foods Corporation, and Manager, Data Processing at Survey Research. He is the author of the book Computer Hardware Maintenance: An IS/IT Manager’s Guide that presents a model for hardware maintenance cost containment.
|  |
Just because your project dashboard is green, doesn’t mean you don’t have to:
- Find out about problems lurking under the covers
- Measure success and failure
- Understand what’s driving your staff
- Know how a PMO can make things worse instead of better
In this case study webinar, TAC Expert Todd Werden will draw from his personal experience in planning and managing large-scale projects, to share some management techniques that have proved successful in improving project team performance and increasing communication with top executives.
Todd Werden, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years experience in the retail industry, focused around technology and business operations. A certified Project Management Professional, he is currently the CEO of Jade Group, a consulting company specializing in project management and IT strategy for the retail industry. Previously, he served as the retail and consumer packaged goods industry expert for IBM Research. He has been the CIO of Women’s Specialty Retail Group, a multi-billion dollar division of U.S. Shoe, as well as VP of IT at United Retail Group, a medium-sized specialty apparel retailer. As VP of software development and technical support at Intrepid Systems, Mr. Werden led the development of a leading retail ERP and decision support solution still in use at major retail companies. Todd has served on the Board of Directors for Retex, a retail industry consortium, has published several articles on retail technology, and been a presenter at industry events and user groups.
|  |
Learn how to avoid the pitfalls that result in a valuable asset being relegated to the back shelf, or the procurement department threatening to drop maintenance payments due to lack of use.
Join TAC Expert Frank Castellucci for this webinar, and understand why it’s important to focus on these critical areas to ensure technology adoption in your organization:
- Communicating expectations and accountability
- Creating meaningful standards and governance
- Defusing culture/workforce issues
- Executing a successful rollout
Frank Castellucci, TAC Expert, and Managing Partner of Axiom:1, Inc., has more than 25 years of IT technical leadership, including extensive hands-on experience in all functions of IT program life cycle management. A significant portion of Frank’s career included the analysis and tailoring of processes to exact the most efficiency and savings. Frank’s most recent position as CTO in ADP included responsibilities for process assessment and improvement, R&D portfolio management and the institutionalization of application usability. In addition, Frank’s seasoned enterprise and application architecture experience was key to ADP’s SOA initiative. Prior to ADP, Frank was CEO of C.O.L. Consulting for 15 years, a firm focused on process improvement and implementation, architecture and development. Frank had a significant role in delivering large-scale SOA and SaaS systems, B2B catalog and transaction management systems as well as waterfall, RUP and agile process tailoring and implementation.
|  |
Alan Guibord, Founder of The Advisory Council, will present the first in a series of follow-up workshops to address the issues raised at the CIO Forum & Executive IT Summit events held in several major U.S. cities. During panel discussions, organizational transformation was seen as a critical need. Among the questions raised were, “How should I be transforming my IT organization?” and “Where do I start?”
We need to get started, but we also need to know where we are going. This workshop is designed to provide a roadmap of the critical steps necessary to begin the organizational transformation process.
This series of web-based workshops is by invitation only and has been extended to CIO Forum & Executive IT Summit attendees exclusively.
Alan Guibord, TAC Founder and Chairman, is one of the top experts in the area of IT career and leadership development. He has more than 25 years of experience leading IT organizations as CIO with both Fortune 100 companies and small-to-midsize businesses. He was most recently CEO of Computerworld, and has served as VP and CIO of Fort James Corp., VP Information Technology at RR Donnelley & Sons, CIO of PictureTel, and VP MIS and Administrative Services at Timeplex. He is considered a visionary in the field, and is a sought after speaker in the United States and around the world. His areas of expertise include senior corporate management, organization-building, management/ business alignment, building investment strategies, linking IT with business management, large-scale project management, manufacturing efficiencies, and acquisition and merger integration.
|  |
Join TAC Founder Alan Guibord for this webinar to understand what companies are expecting from the new generation of IT leaders. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How have business expectations of IT changed?
- What leadership skills must CIOs develop to succeed?
- What IT organizational structures are best adapted for change?
- How should CIOs manage the balance between business demands and IT cost?
Alan Guibord, TAC Founder and Chairman, is one of the top experts in the area of IT career and leadership development. He has more than 25 years of experience leading IT organizations as CIO with both Fortune 100 companies and small-to-midsize businesses. He was most recently CEO of Computerworld, and has served as VP and CIO of Fort James Corp., VP Information Technology at RR Donnelley & Sons, CIO of PictureTel, and VP MIS and Administrative Services at Timeplex. He is considered a visionary in the field, and is a sought after speaker in the United States and around the world. His areas of expertise include senior corporate management, organization-building, management/ business alignment, building investment strategies, linking IT with business management, large-scale project management, manufacturing efficiencies, and acquisition and merger integration.
|  |
In many organizations, contracts receive little or no attention once they have been negotiated and signed; contracts are filed somewhere and never referred to again. And, the related invoices — an extension of the contract — are not properly verified to ensure consistency with the contract terms, often resulting in over-payments.
Based on a compilation of personal and client experience, TAC Expert Sherry Irwin will discuss the many factors that need to be considered in managing the contract lifecycle. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- Why is contract lifecycle management necessary?
- How does contract lifecycle management fit into an overall IT asset management program?
- What are the core components of contract lifecycle management?
- What are the recommended best practices for contract lifecycle management?
Sherry Irwin, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience in information technology (IT) asset management across a broad spectrum of industries. An evangelist and recognized expert in ITAM best practices, based on years of personal and client experience. Founder and chair of the Canadian IT Asset Management Users’ Group (1992), and an instructor for the Certified Software Manager (CSM) course developed by the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA). Developed a series of educational seminars on ITAM, as well as related contract and vendor management. Mentor to numerous IT Asset Managers in defining, learning, and executing their ITAM accountabilities.
|  |
Formal project management training is not enough to succeed. You need to learn the practice of project management.
In this webinar, TAC Expert Alan Gopin will provide practical tips for project managers. Hot issues to be discussed include:
- How can you ensure visibility into what is really going-on with a project?
- How should you manage the expectations of business management?
- How can you maintain project momentum in the face of inevitable “surprises”?
Alan Gopin, PMP, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years in IT and business development, including over 20 years in project management and seven years teaching project management at the graduate level. He has been certified as a PMP since 1998. He has experience in several industries, including telecommunications, pharmaceutical, and finance. Alan has worked in complex system environments, and has hands-on experience as a software developer, system tester, and systems engineer. He leverages that experience as an IT project manager. He is an expert at all phases of the project management process and is a skilled project management trainer with strong organizational, leadership, and management skills. He has authored two published papers on project management methodology and has presented at the Lucent Project Management Conference and the PMI/NJ Symposium.
|  |
Social software technology provides opportunities for individuals to maintain multiple electronic personas which can be linked to the organizations themselves, providing both good and bad consequences, depending on the nature of that link. While the authoring of content is relatively easy, the proper management of that content through social software outlets can be difficult and onerous.
Join TAC Expert Darnee Phipps for this case study webinar about how enterprises are seeing measurable ROI from the use of social networking and social media to improve delivery of business knowledge, and hence business execution. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the key areas in the enterprise where social networking/media can have measurable impact on business execution?
- How can social networking/media be used to reduce enterprise costs?
- What impact does social networking/media have on organizational dynamics?
- Which enterprise social networking technologies will have staying power as they evolve?
Darnee Phipps, TAC Expert, has more than 28 years experience as an IT executive with a proven track record in effective management of tactical and strategic business performance and profitability. Current and recent assignments include work for RVI Network Connections, Orange Business Services, Niteo Partners, the World Economic Forum, and the World Bank. Phipps has worked in executive and senior roles in both public and private organizations including Gartner, AT&T Bell Laboratories, and ITT. He is global specialist in social media for the enterprise, enterprise IT architecture and infrastructure, and IT strategic planning and governance.
|  |
akin to opening Pandora’s Box. Enterprises are looking for ways to extend the life of these applications, and begin to develop the roadmap to evolve or re-architect them, but first they need to have a solid understanding of the systems so they can progress in an orderly fashion, while minimizing risk.
TAC Expert Kenny Lew will present a case study regarding a client who successfully deployed three major subsystems by developing and adopting a software framework and standardizing on tools to modernize an aging software system. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How can we respond faster to changing business and economic demands?
- How can we bring our legacy business processes into regulatory compliance?
- How can we make our organization more flexible and agile?
- How can we most effectively replace “green screen” applications with web-based applications?
Kenneth Lew, TAC Expert, has more than 23 years of experience in the IT Industry, and is dedicated to researching
and packaging new, innovative solutions and products to meet clients’ ever-changing
needs in a climate where they are looking for ways to optimize their investment
in information technology and seek cost efficiencies in their execution of business
processes. Kenneth is deeply involved with clients’ needs and solutions, keeping
him abreast of the latest trends, methods, and issues facing executives. He is an
active member of various professional organizations including Monte Jade Science
and Technology Association, the Project Delivery Special Interest Group, the International
Human Resource Information Management, and the PeopleSoft Mid-Atlantic User Group.
|  |
Using a real-life case study of a global medical technology company that used a confusing assortment of project management methodologies — with widely varying degrees of success — TAC Expert Mary Ann McIlraith will describe how their shared-services applications-support organization was able to reduce project budgets by as much as 75% while still achieving business-unit objectives. Hot issues to be addressed by this webinar include:
- How does one ensure that business-unit requirements are accurately reflected in project goals, even as the business situation changes?
- What training is required to ensure consistency of execution across projects?
- What tools are most appropriate to support these project management processes?
- How can such dramatic cost reductions be achieved?
Mary Ann McIlraith, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience in information technology, human resources, and organizational development. She covers the complete human capital management (HCM) implementation project and leadership life-cycle. Mary Ann is on the Technical Advisory Council for Human Capital Management and the Software Industry, past board member and author for IHRIM, and past board member of ASTD. She is the developer of the Rapid Implementation Methodology (RIM).
|  |
In addition to unbudgeted penalty and license true-up fees, license compliance audits can be time and resource consumptive, disrupting business and affecting employee morale; in a worst case scenario, the organization faces public disclosure and reputational damage.
Based on a compilation of audit experiences, TAC Expert Sherry Irwin will discuss the many factors that need to be considered when an audit request is received. Issues to be addressed include:
- Why Us? What Prompts an Audit
- Common Audit Approaches
- Audit Impacts
- Responding to an Audit: Do’s and Don’ts
- Toolkit: Audit Response Plan and Audit Agreement
Sherry Irwin, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience in information technology (IT) asset management across a broad spectrum of industries. An evangelist and recognized expert in ITAM best practices, based on years of personal and client experience. Founder and chair of the Canadian IT Asset Management Users’ Group (1992), and an instructor for the Certified Software Manager (CSM) course developed by the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA). Developed a series of educational seminars on ITAM, as well as related contract and vendor management. Mentor to numerous IT Asset Managers in defining, learning, and executing their ITAM accountabilities.
|  |
Using a case study of a health-care provider which was losing market share to a new competitor, we will learn how they incorporated social media into their marketing and IT operations, what challenges they faced, what policies they needed to implement, and the success they are achieving as a result of their adoption of social media solutions. As we delve further into understanding this new technology, we will highlight some of the lessons learned that can be applied in any business as they plan to integrate social media into their organization. TAC Expert Tim Pacileo will explore the many facets of social media that need to be taken into consideration. Hot issues that will be addressed during this teleconference include:
- What should we be doing to protect our corporate name and products?
- How do we find out what is being said about our products and/or services?
- What policies do we need to have in place for communicating about our products and services?
- Do we block employee access to inappropriate sites?
- How should our marketing team integrate with our IT team?
Tim Pacileo, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of diversified domestic/international executive, IT management and consulting experience with Fortune 500, government and smaller companies in multiple industries. Specializing in developing and implementing strategic IT plans for organizations, as well as acting as a senior project management. His experience includes marketing, sales, planning, IT and business operations, business development, mergers and acquisitions, general management, systems/network integration/outsourcing, e-commerce, social media, e-business, direct marketing, IT strategy and governance. He is a leading business and IT change management consultant, specializing in assisting organizations in reducing costs, improving efficiencies, and integrating IT operations.
|  |
Using a case study of a company which had serious issues with their cloud implementation, to highlight some of the issues that need to be addressed if you plan to move your business and data to a cloud infrastructure, TAC Thought Leader Beth Cohen will explore the many factors that need to be taken into consideration.
Cloud computing security concerns can be divided into three major categories: business, regulatory and technical. Hot issues that will be addressed during this teleconference include:
- Who is responsible for ensuring information lifecycle management (ILM), data integrity and availability?
- How does the difficulty of establishing end-to-end data validation on the cloud affect regulatory risk?
- What are some of the risks due to complex vendor relationships?
- What tips can improve cloud computing security implementations and data management?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only understands where technology is today but where it’s heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scalable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
Most of us know, however, that when you build something or cook a dish, it is a lot easier when you have plans or a recipe. Most builders and cooks have the right tools and ingredients, but without that plan or recipe, the chances are they aren’t going to produce the best result.
In this webinar, presented by TAC Executive Consultant Michael Bitterman, we will provide you with a set of concrete, actionable guidelines for developing and implementing your BI strategy. You will be given an outline for:
- Development of your BI strategy
- Development of your BI application architecture
- Deployment of BI in your enterprise
Michael Bitterman, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 30 years experience on the user and consulting sides of IT. His primary focus is in the areas of IT performance management and business process. Mike has conducted numerous senior-level consulting engagements focused on optimizing IT performance and increasing IT value to the business.
|  |
This webinar is the first of two which will help you to better realize the value of your investment in BI, or get you on the right road to introducing BI to your organization. This webinar, presented by TAC Executive Consultant Michael Bitterman, will:
- Reveal the common pitfalls that occur in the introduction of BI, and trying to measure and manage organizational performance
- Provide concrete techniques which will help guide you in paving the way for the introduction (or re-introduction) of BI
- Help establish you as an “enterprise expert” in bringing the value of BI to the rest of the business
Michael Bitterman, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 30 years experience on the user and consulting sides of IT. His primary focus is in the areas of IT performance management and business process. Mike has conducted numerous senior-level consulting engagements focused on optimizing IT performance and increasing IT value to the business.
|  |
In this case-study webinar, TAC Expert Michael Schneider, Ph.D. will draw on his experience developing enterprise technology strategies to describe the steps in the development of a corporate technology, successful techniques for each stage, and the impact of the strategy on the successful management of the technologies. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What must you do to ensure buy-in by management and users of technology?
- How does a technology or application contribute to the bottom line?
- How do you develop a comprehensive strategy across multiple lines of business and business units?
- What technologies are essential to keep your business competitive today and tomorrow?
Michael Schneider, Ph,D. has more than 30 years experience in the computer and telecommunications industries. Dr. Schneider was the CTO at iFrame, a web development company, following seven years as Vice President at Gartner Group. He established Gartner’s Advanced Technology practice area. Prior to that, he was the Vice President responsible for technology research, at Manufacturers Hanover Corporation, after holding similar positions at Sperry Corporation and ITT Corporation. These positions involved managing team members in Europe and Asia. Dr. Schneider served on the board of the ACM Computer Human Interaction SIG, and was founder of the annual ACM CHI conference. His academic teaching experience includes positions at McGill University, Florida Atlantic University and the University of San Francisco.
|  |
This case-study webinar, presented by TAC Expert Stuart Harris, will describe how a client organization, nearing the end of a five-year contract, decided what was reasonable to ask of the incumbent vendor, and how to maximize their chances of getting it. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What service improvements should one ask for?
- How does one compare existing-contract prices to the current outsourcing marketplace?
- How real is the leverage one might gain from the threat of competition?
- What should one ask in-total from an incumbent vendor?
Stuart Harris, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of international experience in the IT outsourcing industry, initially as a client, later as a service provider, and for seven years as a Partner at TPI, a leading sourcing advisory firm. His experience includes extensive service delivery and management while at a provider, and comprehensive sourcing life cycle advice while as a consultant. Stuart has advised clients on sourcing and renegotiation strategies while at TPI, and taken them through complex international outsourcing deals. Stuart’s specialty is in understanding outsourcing market prices and benchmarking; while at TPI Stuart developed their Mark to Market price assessment capability.
|  |
Drawing on his experience in moving application support and development to India, and in working with several Indian outsoucing firms, TAC Expert Del Dunham will describe how this work was moved, where the cost benefits were realized, and what the problems were. Hot issues to be addressed by this webinar include:
- What types of applications are a good fit for offshore support? Development?
- What cost savings are reasonable to expect, and when?
- What cultural issues must be dealt with when offshoring to India?
- What are the critical factors for success in planning and execution?
Del C. Dunham, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of experience in information technology and financial services application development. His accomplishments have included the successful implementation of numerous large business applications projects. He specializes in large program planning and management, resource optimization, application development methodologies, and financial services application planning and development. Del is also a member of the Board of Trustees for Illinois College, a historic liberal arts college.
|  |
Whether competing globally or locally, an agile, appropriately skilled workforce will not only provide a significant return on investment, but also stimulate people to be more motivated, productive and fulfilled. And, most importantly, talent will be available to capitalize on growth opportunities. In addition, it is found that a cross-trained staff is more nimble, competitive, and efficient than a staff composed of specialists who each have a single skills set.
This webinar, presented by TAC Expert Steven Venokur, will identify the “do’s and don’t’s” when implementing and deploying a skills/competency program. Actual examples of the use, or failure to use, best practices are presented. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How does skills management fit into an overall human resources program?
- What is the value proposition for skills management?
- What are the best practices for planning and implementing skills management?
- What is the most appropriate “skillware” for your business?
Steven Venokur, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience with the implementation and deployment of skills management, career development, and performance management programs for many industries and functions. Founder of People Sciences, Inc., he is a leading international skills-based management strategist, and has developed the software tools, skills libraries and methodologies to help companies identify, assess, track and manage their skills and competencies in a way which maximizes talent and resources. He has worked with scores of organizations to solve the problems associated with movement to new technologies and tools, addressing the issues regarding organizational staffing and individual development and training. Mr. Venokur designed the highly-acclaimed SkillQuest, a skills assessment, tracking and reporting system, and was instrumental in establishing SkillsPlex, a skills library with more than 10,000 skills and proficiency definitions.
|  |
Using a real-life case study of a global medical technology company that used a confusing assortment of project management methodologies — with widely varying degrees of success — TAC Expert Mary Ann McIlraith will describe how their shared-services applications-support organization was able to reduce project budgets by as much as 75% while still achieving business-unit objectives. Hot issues to be addressed by this webinar include:
- How does one ensure that business-unit requirements are accurately reflected in project goals, even as the business situation changes?
- What training is required to ensure consistency of execution across projects?
- What tools are most appropriate to support these project management processes?
- How can such dramatic cost reductions be achieved?
Mary Ann McIlraith, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience in information technology, human resources, and organizational development. She covers the complete human capital management (HCM) implementation project and leadership life-cycle. Mary Ann is on the Technical Advisory Council for Human Capital Management and the Software Industry, past board member and author for IHRIM, and past board member of ASTD. She is the developer of the Rapid Implementation Methodology (RIM).
|  |
- Cost overruns and late projects
- Insufficient IT resources
- Unpredictable IT performance
- Conflicting priorities
- IT not aligned with the business
- Questionable business value from IT
This webinar, presented by TAC Founder Alan Guibord and TAC Expert Bob Bruce, will describe how CIOs and IT leaders can most effectively address these issues, take control of the demand for IT projects and services, and balance it with the resources and delivery capabilities of the enterprise.
Alan Guibord, TAC Founder and Chairman, is one of the top experts in the area of IT career and leadership development. He has more than 25 years of experience leading IT organizations as CIO with both Fortune 100 companies and small-to-midsize businesses. He was most recently CEO of Computerworld, and has served as VP and CIO of Fort James Corp., VP Information Technology at RR Donnelley & Sons, CIO of PictureTel, and VP MIS and Administrative Services at Timeplex. He is considered a visionary in the field, and is a sought after speaker in the United States and around the world. His areas of expertise include senior corporate management, organization-building, management/ business alignment, building investment strategies, linking IT with business management, large-scale project management, manufacturing efficiencies, and acquisition and merger integration.
Bob Bruce, TAC Expert, is a leading technology executive, with expertise in enabling technology organizations to achieve high performance and increase revenue, profitability and quality. As president of ClayPoint, Inc. (a TAC affiliate), Bob works with senior business and IT leaders on improving business and IT operations. Prior to founding ClayPoint, Bob was President of Fiserv Property & Casualty Solutions, providing leading edge software applications, consulting and outsourcing services to the insurance industry. Previously, Bob was the Chief Information Officer at Allmerica Financial Corporation, where he was recognized by Computerworld as one of the Premier 100 IT Leaders in the country. Bob joined Allmerica after sixteen years with Digital Equipment Corporation, rising to the position of CIO for Digital’s $7 billion worldwide Computer Services business.
|  |
Using a real-life case study of a company that had serious problems with their help-desk / technical-support delivery function, TAC Thought Leader Beth Cohen will explore how to improve processes, reduce costly customer touch without reducing the quality of the customer experience, and improve the bottom line. Hot issues to be addressed by this webinar include:
- How can you get the most out of your call center, help desk, and technical support spending?
- Which parts of these functions lend themselves to outsourcing, and which don’t?
- What process improvements really work?
- How can you improve help desk and call center service management?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only understands where technology is today but where it’s heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scalable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
You do not need to be based or have offices in Massachusetts to be included in this law’s requirements. Other state statutes are similar.
Particularly noteworthy is that the Massachusetts law is enhanced by an operational regulation that prescribes specific procedures, technologies and breach actions that must be implemented by all size organizations from “mom and pop” shops to multinational enterprises. Failure to demonstrate compliance with this regulation can result in fines and penalties that can exceed $5,000 per violation.
During this webinar, TAC Expert Michael Corby, a leader in developing practical, affordable information security guidelines and procedures, will describe in non-technical language all you will need to do to prepare for this new wave of regulation regardless of what state your company resides in. Hot issues to be discussed include:
- How can one ensure compliance with the diversity of state privacy laws?
- Which privacy regulations specifically affect IT?
- How can businesses minimize the cost of compliance?
- What management processes are needed to ensure ongoing compliance?
Michael Corby, TAC Expert, has more than 40 years of experience in IT strategy, operations, development and security. He has successfully managed large projects, developed flexible IT infrastructures and sound security organizations for hundreds of the world’s most successful organizations, as a senior member of the Marsh & McLennan, Gartner, META Group, and Ernst & Young consulting divisions. He is also the founder of (ISC)2, Inc. the organization that established the CISSP credential. In 1992, Mike was named the first recipient of the Computer Security Institute’s “Lifetime Achievement Award”. He was also formerly CIO for a division of Ashland Oil and for Bain & Company. Mike has established a reputation for creativity and excellence in technology and its application to business needs.
|  |
Popular risk analysis and risk management methods used throughout business and government are unscientific, are known to have fundamental flaws, and do not improve decision making.
Douglas Hubbard, TAC Thought Leader and author of the #1 bestseller in business math, How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of “Intangibles” in Business, will discuss the topic of his new book The Failure of Risk Management: Why It’s Broken and How to Fix It. He will reveal some surprises about:
- Known problems with some popular methods for assessing risk
- How industries such as nuclear power and petroleum do it right
- The track records of methods that work
- Big risks that are continually underestimated
- Telling the difference between valid tools and fluff
Doug Hubbard, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years experience
in IT management consulting, including 12 years experience in
teaching organizations to use his Applied Information Economics
(AIE) method. He invented AIE to quantify the value and
risk of IT in a mathematically and scientifically sound manner,
and this methodology has been used in a variety of Fortune 500
companies and major government agencies (civilian and military).
He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of IT
value and is a popular speaker at numerous conferences.
Doug is the author of How to Measure Anything: Finding the
Value of “Intangibles” in Business and The Failure of Risk Management: Why It’s Broken and How to Fix It.
He was formerly with Coopers & Lybrand, and has an MBA in Management
Information Systems from his home state at the University of
South Dakota.
|  |
Few, if any, of these problems have been resolved. If not Jurassic Park, it is certainly “Déjà vu all over again.”
With a cynical eye, TAC Expert Gay Gordon-Byrne will discuss the good and the bad of the mainframe era, and compare it with current trends in server virtualization. Why? Because, “History is a race between education and catastrophe.” Hot issues to be discussed include:
- What strategies for platform and product selection provide optimum results?
- What are the hidden costs of virtualization and server consolidation?
- What are the limitations of hardware redundancy?
Gay Gordon-Byrne, TAC Expert, is a 30 year veteran of the equipment sales and leasing world. Co-founder (with TAC Expert Susan Gaines) of TekTrakker Information Systems, LLC, she spent most of her career in the front lines representing major IT vendors to major corporations. Her particular experience gives her comprehensive insight into marketing and pricing practices for both equipment and associated break-fix.
|  |
At the same time, the opportunity for savings is enormous. It has been estimated that the savings can be up to a 30% reduction in costs the first year, with continued savings of 5–10% for the next five years. The challenge is to understand the current level of your organization’s software management effectiveness and efficiency. Do you know how effective your program is today?
This webinar, presented by TAC Expert Irv Brownstein, will provide a better understanding of how software management would work in your environment, by reviewing our recommended approach, key factors, scoring and assessment. Hot issues to be discussed include:
- How efficient are your software management processes?
- How well staffed and trained is your software management team?
- How do you know what software products are being used? By whom? When? How much?
- What is your software contract compliance exposure? How well prepared are you for contract negotiations?
Irv Brownstein, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years experience in the IT industry. He has particular expertise in metrics, process engineering, skills management, software tool evaluation and installation, productivity improvement and cost reduction, quality assurance, and project management. Irv has created and conducted software compliance audits and readiness assessments to determine planning and performance gaps, as well as conducting productivity and quality benchmark studies for both IT and business functions. He is the author of Guidelines for Evaluating and Selecting Software Packages and 26 articles.
|  |
...which do not support the wholesale use of offshoring or distributed development practices. A fresh look at actual team metrics demonstrates that co-located Lean-Agile teams deliver substantially higher ROI than either distributed teams using other methodologies or distributed teams using Agile.
This webinar, presented by TAC Thought Leader Beth Cohen, will offer practical recommendations — based on actual case studies — for successfully implementing co-located development teams using Lean-Agile practices. Businesses should consider co-located project teams for delivering greater value from their IT project expenditures. Hot issues to be addressed by this webinar include:
- What’s wrong with offshoring and distributed teams?
- Where are the real costs, and where are the hidden dangers?
- What is Lean-Agile software development, and what are its benefits?
- How should one successfully manage Lean-Agile implementation projects?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only understands where technology is today but where it’s heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scalable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
After all, if you aren’t measuring it, you can’t manage it.
This webinar, presented by TAC Executive Consultant Michael Bitterman and Expert Ray Pfeifer, will discuss the use of a wireless infrastructure as the nerve center for energy management of the data center. Hot issues to be discussed include:
- Why is greening the data center important to reducing overall enterprise energy costs?
- What level of savings can one expect to achieve?
- How does energy measurement and management fit into data center operations?
- Why is wireless measurement more effective at reducing energy consumption?
Michael Bitterman, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 30 years experience on the user and consulting sides of IT. His primary focus is in the areas of IT performance management and business process. He Mike has conducted numerous senior-level consulting engagements focused on optimizing IT performance and increasing IT value to the business.
Ray Pfeifer, TAC Expert, is the co-chair of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group’s data center initiatives, and is overseeing the Energy Efficient Data Center Demonstration Project. Ray is also a research consultant for Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, leading their California Energy Commission-funded “Data Centers 21 Environmental Performance Criteria” project.
|  |
In a previous webinar on IT performance management, we discussed the need to measure performance, but the key is to measure the right things and get value for what you measure. One of the areas where companies are getting value from measuring IT performance is the ability to reduce IT costs on a targeted, sustainable basis. The first round of cuts were typical achieved by getting the low hanging fruit — hiring freeze, cut consultants, reduce travel, etc. But additional cost reduction is likely in 2009, and will be more difficult to achieve.
A few questions that you need to address include:
- Where can you surgically cut costs in areas that provide less value to the business?
- Where will you find additional savings in 2009 and beyond if you need them?
- Does your staff fully understand all the IT cost drivers?
- How will you support the business to participate in IT-enabled business cost reduction initiatives?
In this webinar, three Experts in IT transformation and cost reduction methods will examine a comprehensive framework for achieving sustainable cost reduction in IT. In this framework we will discuss a variety of perspectives on what it takes to successfully achieve a more cost effective IT function. This includes a review of five key cost reduction strategies:
- Initial Cost Cutting
- Brute Force
- Demand Management
- Structural Cost Transformation
- Lean IT
They will also describe a process for identifying and achieving cost reduction actions that will ensure that you continue to support the business as required, and can continuously improve cost effectiveness for IT. The process is a full life-cycle which starts with identifying proposed cost reduction initiatives and ends with realizing fully monetized benefits.
Rick Belmonte, Steve Rothman and Rich Murray, TAC Experts, have collectively more than 90 years of experience in the IT industry. Rick has been a both CIO and a consultant in both large and boutique firms. They have performed financial analysis on more than 30 IT organizations. Rick founded Synergy Solutions and managed the IT strategy and transformation group for Gartner Consulting. Steve Rothman and Rich Murray have led numerous IT cost reduction projects for Fortune 1000 companies. They both have deep expertise in IT performance management, benchmarking, strategy and transformation. Steve is a former Accenture partner, and has had senior positions in a variety of management consulting firms focused on IT strategy and transformation. Rich was a former partner with KPMG/Nolan Norton, where he managed their benchmarking practice. He was also the West Region leader for PricewaterhouseCoopers strategic IT change practice. He has recently held senior IT management positions in large organizations.
|  |
IT governance is the responsibility of the board of directors and executive management. It is an integral part of enterprise governance, and consists of the leadership and organizational structures and processes that ensure that the enterprise’s IT sustains and extends the enterprise’s strategies and objectives. Effective IT governance enables management to answer “yes” to questions such as:
- Are IT and business strategies aligned?
- Are IT risks understood and being managed?
- Is there a sound business case for each IT investment?
- Are responsibilities and accountabilities assigned for IT investments?
- Will the new systems work properly when implemented?
- Is the enterprise in compliance with regulatory requirements?
Ineffective IT governance increases an enterprise’s risk, decreases its profitability, and can greatly reduce its access to capital. Join TAC Expert Charles Bennett for a discussion of how IT governance, risk and compliance should be addressed as a key management strategy, and not just a black hole of costs. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the key processes that define IT governance, risk and compliance?
- What are the key areas of opportunity?
- What are the common roadblocks, and ways to resolve them?
Charles Bennett, TAC Expert, has more than 35 years experience across a wide range of organizations in the areas of IT strategic planning, IT governance, risk and control, supply chain risk assessment, ERP evaluation, process improvement, IT internal control enhancement, and compliance. Prior to his career in public accounting and consulting, Charles held executive management positions in aerospace, textile and apparel manufacturing companies.
|  |
This webinar, presented by TAC Expert Alok Jain, will provide a blueprint for how to achieve this using a performance-based consolidation strategy. Hot issues that will be addressed by this webinar include:
- How to baseline current performance profiles for storage arrays
- How to define consolidation strategies using performance and capacity as criteria
- How to apply performance and capacity trends to minimize problems
- How to use application tiering as a consolidation strategy
Alok Jain, TAC Expert, has more than 22 years experience providing performance analysis and capacity planning for systems and storage-area networks. He developed the “Perfonics” tool to provide services such as baseline performance analysis, consolidation planning, performance troubleshooting, application tiering analysis, and replication bandwidth analysis. He has held leadership technical roles at NCR and AT&T, and worked with leading Wall Street companies implementing large storage-related projects, including migrations and disaster recovery planning. Alok has provided his services to companies such as Goldman Sachs, Bank of NY, Citigroup and EMC.
|  |
In a parallel development, more IT managers are turning to software-as-a-service (SaaS) and virtualization, as ways of cutting data center costs and simplifying infrastructure.
Under the umbrella of “cloud computing,” these and other newer architectures finally have the potential to deliver on the promise of completely transparent, cost effective, and flexible IT infrastructure and services.
Join TAC Thought Leader Beth Cohen for a discussion of what’s real, and what’s hype, when it comes to cloud computing. Hot issues that will be addressed by this webinar include:
- What is cloud computing — next revolution, or latest fad?
- What services are available now, and how can they be leveraged to deliver value for your business?
- Where are the real cost savings, and are there any hidden dangers to trip you up?
- What tips can help with cloud computing implementation and service management?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only understands where technology is today but where it’s heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scalable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
...as well as translating technology projects into terms easily understood by the business.
Please join us for this presentation by Fran Daly, VP IT Business Relationship Management at Revlon, to learn practical steps fo aligning business and IT. Hear about real-world experiences with issues such as:
- IT-Business Relationship Responsibilities
- Identifying and Demonstrating Business Value
- Skills Required for Business Relationship Managers
- Managing the IT Demand Pipeline
Fran Daly, Revlon VP IT Business Relationship, has 25 years in IT customer facing roles, working with business and IT people to deliver effective solutions to business problems. Fran’s experience spans most major business functions, including supply chain, finance, sales, marketing, HR, legal and R&D. Fran currently leads the IT Business Relationship function at Revlon, where he focuses on IT business strategy, alignment, planning, governance, and business process improvement. He is a CPA and holds an MBA degree from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
|  |
There are any number of questions that your CFO or CEO might ask in light of today’s economy, lower revenues, shrinking margins, tight credit markets, and increasing competition. Are you in a position to answer questions like these?:
- How do our IT operation’s costs compare to the competition?
- We need to reduce headcount; can you cut 15% of the IT staff?
- We’ve reduced headcount by 10% and closed three locations; what are the IT savings going to be in response?
Uncertain times put an increasing spotlight on major enterprise expenditures, and IT is among the largest. When you are in the spotlight, your choices are to shine or to run toward the shadows hoping to avoid the glare. In most situations that offer adversity to some, there is the opportunity for others to step up and move forward.
The Advisory Council has presented the basics of IT benchmarking in the past. You can review those presentations — IT Benchmarking — 30+ Years Old and Still Relevant? and IT Benchmarking — Does It Make Sense for You? — on our web site. This webinar will focus on answering specific questions about TAC’s IT Benchmark Services. We will provide the information you would need to propose an IT benchmark to your senior IT or corporate management.
TAC Executive Consultants Charlie Ambuhl and Michael Bitterman will tell you:
- What it will cost, based on the configuration of “towers” you want to baseline and compare
- What level of resource commitment would be needed on your part
- What data needs to be collected, and how it is done
- What the results look like
- What you can expect to save if you do a TAC IT benchmark
Charlie Ambuhl, TAC Executive Consultant, has more than 25 years of experience in IT benchmarking, with the past 12 years focused on increasing the business benefit from IT investments. He has designed and implemented innovative approaches to performance measurement, benchmarking, and alignment of technology for increased effectiveness. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Ambuhl was VP, EMEA benchmarking for Meta Group, VP, North American client services for Gartner Measurement, and spent 14 years at Real Decisions prior to their acquisition by Gartner. There he was instrumental in launching several IT benchmarking services still in use today.
Michael Bitterman, TAC Executive Consultant, has more that 25 years of information technology experience. He works with senior business and IT executives in performing high-level engagements focused on establishing current performance baselines, targeting future performance goals, and implementing the means to achieve them. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Bitterman was VP at Gartner, where he established their IT Transformation and IT Performance Management practices. Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior management positions within both user and vendor IT organizations.
|  |
55% of employees are not engaged in their work.
16% are actively not engaged.
19% are actively sabotaging their company.
74% do not support company goals and practices.
Research has shown that leaders with a deep understanding of who they are, and a clear vision of their future greatness, are much more effective at leading and engaging others. In addition, leaders who can connect with the hearts, minds and spirits of employees give their businesses a clear competitive advantage. To achieve improved business performance, leaders have to be fully engaged in their own self-mastery and continually open to self-development. It is only from this starting point that they can engage others in inspired, aligned and effective action to manifest shared vision and goals, and achieve business results.
In this webinar TAC Expert Kathleen Sullivan, a former corporate IT leader, will discuss:
- Leadership and employee engagement
- Authentic relationships and business results
- New leadership principles for the future
Kathleen Sullivan, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years of diverse management and leadership experience in information technology, customer service, business operations, and engineering. She previously worked for Unilever, a global consumer products industry leader, where she was a member of the executive team for Unilever’s North American and European Global Infrastructure Organization. Kathleen was responsible for the delivery of IT support services to over 100 Unilever businesses across North America and Europe. Kathleen has designed and implemented organizational structures, established global service excellence standards, trained and developed employees, and led global teams.
|  |
Instead, users will pay only for metered usage, and service-level agreements will deliver added value. But are SaaS subscriptions really a better investment than software? Not yet.
This webinar, by TAC Expert Eric Esperne, will address the critical issues that businesses should ask when considering SaaS:
- What makes a subscription a better value than a license?
- What makes a subscription a lesser value than a license?
- What should a SaaS service-level agreement guarantee?
- How is the ownership, care and disposition of data addressed?
- What are the prominent SaaS platforms on the market today?
Eric Esperne, TAC Expert, has more than 15 years experience as an in-house lawyer specifically
in contract negotiation and management. Eric offers innovative
methodologies for developing and implementing IT sales contracts
processes that minimize costs of negotiation and disputes, and
for realizing complete value from SaaS, IT outsourcing and other
technology vendor relationships. He introduces new concepts
to the old, traditional way that businesses contract with each
other, such as utilizing contracts to achieve better governance-risk
compliance, electronic contracting for business services, and
purpose-driven outsourcing.
|  |
Join us for the next in our series of events designed specifically to help IT leaders improve their leadership skills, build more effective organizations, and prepare for the future challenges in their roles and careers. Learn first-hand from TAC Founder Alan Guibord about the issues, challenges and requirements that are driving the market. Hot issues to be covered include:
- How do I better position myself for the next role?
- What are the hot skills in the market?
- What are the most important attributes companies are looking for?
- How do I get on the radar screen of the top search firms?
- Why do CIOs lose their jobs?
Alan Guibord, TAC Founder, Chairman and CEO, is one of the top experts in the area of IT career and leadership development. He has more than 25 years of experience leading IT organizations as CIO with both Fortune 100 companies and small-to-midsize businesses. He was most recently CEO of Computerworld, and has served as VP and CIO of Fort James Corp., VP Information Technology at RR Donnelley & Sons, CIO of PictureTel, and VP MIS and Administrative Services at Timeplex. He is considered a visionary in the field, and is a sought after speaker in the United States and around the world. His areas of expertise include senior corporate management, organization-building, management/ business alignment, building investment strategies, linking IT with business management, large-scale project management, manufacturing efficiencies, and acquisition and merger integration.
|  |
The core question really is “How good is good?” Is hardware made today any more reliable than older products? Are new architectures fulfilling the promises of quality and reduced costs made by vendors? Are there meaningful differences between competitive options? This webinar, led by TAC Experts Gay Gordon-Byrne and Susan Gaines, will discuss how to use failure rate data to evaluate new architectures, determine refresh cycles, and improve control over rising hardware maintenance costs. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- Do new hardware technologies really offer an improvement in TCO?
- How does one determine the optimal hardware replacement cycle?
- What reliability criteria should be included in a hardware acquisition decision?
- Where can one find the information needed to make sound hardware decisions?
Gay Gordon-Byrne, TAC Expert, is a 30 year veteran of the equipment sales and leasing world. Co-founder (with TAC Expert Susan Gaines) of TekTrakker Information Systems, LLC, she spent most of her career in the front lines representing major IT vendors to major corporations. Her particular experience gives her comprehensive insight into marketing and pricing practices for both equipment and associated break-fix. Gay graduated Cum Laude from Colgate University.
Susan Gaines, TAC Expert, is a 25 year veteran of the IT industry. Co-founder (with TAC Expert Gay Gordon Byrne) of TekTrakker Information Systems, LLC, her career has encompassed the wholesale, retail and leasing sides of the industry. She has also been President of Gaines Capital Corporation, a technology sales and leasing company, since 1994. This broad experience gives her insight into many facets of the equipment world including the pricing, maintenance and reselling of technology. Sue is a member of the National Association of Professional Women and is included in the Who's Who of American Women.
|  |
Popular risk analysis and risk management methods used throughout business and government are unscientific, are known to have fundamental flaws, and do not improve decision making.
Douglas Hubbard, TAC Thought Leader and author of the #1 bestseller in business math, How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of “Intangibles” in Business, will present a sneak preview on the topic of his next book The Ultimate Risk. He will reveal some surprises about:
- Known problems with some popular methods for assessing risk
- How industries such as nuclear power and petroleum do it right
- The track records of methods that work
- Big risks that are continually underestimated
- Telling the difference between valid tools and fluff
Attendees will participate in an online survey that will be part of the research Hubbard is using in the next book.
Doug Hubbard, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years experience
in IT management consulting, including 12 years experience in
teaching organizations to use his Applied Information Economics
(AIE) method. He invented AIE to quantify the value and
risk of IT in a mathematically and scientifically sound manner,
and this methodology has been used in a variety of Fortune 500
companies and major government agencies (civilian and military).
He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of IT
value and is a popular speaker at numerous conferences.
Doug is the author of How to Measure Anything: Finding the
Value of “Intangibles” in Business.
He was formerly with Coopers & Lybrand, and has an MBA in Management
Information Systems from his home state at the University of
South Dakota.
|  |
...do these measures adequately address the effectiveness of IT as viewed by the business, and if not, why not? We have characterized this issue of IT measurement as The Measurement Paradox.
In this teleconference, two leading experts in IT performance management and measurement will discuss what can and should be measured within IT, and how to accomplish these measures. They will also give you the tools necessary to evaluate your existing measures in order to determine their validity and value to both IT and stakeholders:
- Determining what are “the right things” to be measured
- Explaining the structure and building blocks of measurement
- Evaluating what is currently being measured in order to determine whether to keep those measures or replace them with others
- Communicating your measures effectively to the business
Charlie Ambuhl, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience
in IT benchmarking, with the past 12 years focused on increasing
the business benefit from IT investments. He has designed
and implemented innovative approaches to performance measurement,
benchmarking, and alignment of technology for increased effectiveness.
Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a
TAC affiliate), Mr. Ambuhl was VP, EMEA benchmarking for Meta
Group, VP, North American client services for Gartner Measurement,
and spent 14 years at Real Decisions prior to their acquisition
by Gartner. There he was instrumental in launching several
IT benchmarking services still in use today.
Michael Bitterman, TAC Expert, has more that 25 years of information
technology experience. He works with senior business and
IT executives in performing high-level engagements focused on
establishing current performance baselines, targeting future
performance goals, and implementing the means to achieve them.
Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a
TAC affiliate), Mr. Bitterman was VP at Gartner, where he established
their IT Transformation and IT Performance Management practices.
Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior management positions
within both user and vendor IT organizations.
|  |
This teleconference will discuss the challenges in protecting sensitive data in an ever-evolving, hostile networked world. Topics to be addressed include:
- What types of data are particularly vulnerable to attack?
- How can you proactively identify data leaks?
- How should you mitigate the potential harm from data leaks?
- What regulatory and legal issues can affect your data?
- How can you meet PCI compliance requirements, and is that enough?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only understands where technology is today but where it’s heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scalable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
Join us for a practical introduction to the what and how of software contract negotiations, and learn how to save your organization tens/hundreds of thousands of dollars and minimize risks of non-compliance. Topics to be addressed include:
- The negotiations team
- Negotiating leverage
- Whose contract — yours or theirs?
- Key terms and conditions
- Negotiating tips and strategies
Sherry Irwin, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience
in information technology (IT) asset management across a broad
spectrum of industries. She is an evangelist and recognized
expert in ITAM best practices, based on years of personal and
client experience. Sherry is founder and chair of the
Canadian IT Asset Management Users’ Group (1991) and
sponsor of an annual ITAM conference (Toronto). She developed
a series of educational seminars on ITAM, as well as related
contract and vendor management, and is mentor to numerous IT
asset managers in defining, learning, and executing their ITAM
accountabilities.
|  |
Join TAC Expert Vanessa DiMauro as she explores best practices and common pitfalls in building an online community for business. You will learn more about whether your organization is ready to take the step toward social media, and gain exposure to the key factors in determining whether social networking makes sense for your company. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the main differences between consumer and business-focused communities?
- What are the critical success factors for a professional network?
- What business benefits should (or shouldn’t) you expect?
Vanessa DiMauro, TAC Expert, has more than 15 years experience building virtual communities, and a recognized expert in online community building, social networking, and digital customer care. Vanessa is Principal of Leader Networks – a consulting company which helps companies strengthen the connection to customers, business partners, and employees through virtual communities and social media. She frequently gives talks on the reality of building and sustaining online communities, has served as a community judge for the Global Information Infrastructure awards, and has authored numerous academic research and general articles on community building. Women in Technology International (WITI) named her one of Boston’s Most Influential Women in Technology.
|  |
With such empirical evidence before them regarding the probable benefits associated with the use of performance management and measurement, these same IT executives have resisted putting programs in place and limit the use of measures and metrics to financial and operational performance. Why is this and what can be done about?
In this teleconference a leading expert in IT performance management and measurement will show you how to identify and overcome the impediments to adopting measurement as a management tool for your organization. Hot issues to be discussed include:
- Identifying the rationale and/or value proposition for performance management and measurement for your organization
- Testing your organization’s probability for success in putting performance management and measurement in place
- Identification of the major steps involved in building a performance management program
Michael Bitterman, TAC Expert, has more that 25 years of information
technology experience. He works with senior business and
IT executives in performing high-level engagements focused on
establishing current performance baselines, targeting future
performance goals, and implementing the means to achieve them.
Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a
TAC affiliate), Mr. Bitterman was VP at Gartner, where he established
their IT Transformation and IT Performance Management practices.
Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior management positions
within both user and vendor IT organizations.
|  |
Nonetheless, many IT organizations have been reluctant to implement SOA for a variety of reasons, such as intangible benefits, limited budgets, perceived risk, or lack of appropriate skills.
Join TAC Expert Clyde Musgrave for a practical presentation of why, where and how to initiate an SOA project. Hot issues to be discussed include:
- What are appropriate high-level goals and objectives for an SOA project?
- How does one determine the return-on-investment of SOA?
- What are the best practices for SOA development?
- What five key architectural components of an SOA facilitate its adoption?
Clyde Musgrave, PhD, TAC Expert, has more than 17 years experience in various management and engineering positions. Dr. Musgrave holds nine patents in the areas of insured electronic transactions, digital watermarking in MPEG 2 video, digital certificates, and biometrics and has many patents pending in the areas of xDSL, XML/SOA services, a transaction model for telecomm services, electric power utilities, non-traditional financial services, passport/visa fraud protection, HomePlug, RFID tagging and others. He has served on the ARPANET Executive Committee with Vint Cerf, and on the 1985 Presidential Inaugural Committee. His strengths include managing teams, building collaborative environments, business development, value creation, managing risks associated with innovation and high tech ventures, strategic business planning, private funds placement, high tech licensing, information technology/systems, R & D management, electronic commerce, and network security.
|  |
With the rise in regulatory compliance and litigation discovery requirements, it is more important than ever to have an appropriate document management system (DMS) to properly protect your company and your data.
Join TAC Thought Leader Beth Cohen for a discussion of the challenges and opportunities to be considered in a document management system implementation. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What regulatory and legal issues can affect your data?
- What features are essential for a successful DMS project?
- Who are the key vendors in this market?
- How is the rise in collaborative software changing the industry?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only understands where technology is today but where it’s heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scalable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
Many maintenance contracts are 85–95 percent unused, but remain unchallenged due to lack of empirical data.
Join TAC Expert Gay Gordon-Byrne in a discussion of how to regain control of the services negotiation, and open the door to practical savings of 30 percent and more. The presentation will include:
- How internal incident tracking systems can be used to their full potential
- How to benchmark your hardware experiences
- How to evaluate the “insurance value” of a break-fix contract
- How to find savings opportunites in contracts for both new and old equipment
Gay Gordon-Byrne, TAC Expert, is a 30 year veteran of the equipment sales and leasing world. Co-founder (with TAC Expert Susan Gaines) of TekTrakker Information Systems, LLC, she spent most of her career in the front lines representing major IT vendors to major corporations. Her particular experience gives her comprehensive insight into marketing and pricing practices for both equipment and associated break-fix. Gay graduated Cum Laude from Colgate University.
|  |
Furthermore, not all innovation investments have equal return, and limited resources often force prioritization choices.
In this sixth in a series of teleconferences about measurement, TAC Expert Doug Hubbard will discuss how to use his Applied Information Economics (AIE) method to measure and forecast innovation and its value. The presentation will include:
- What innovation really means, and how it can be observed
- What general categories of methods are applicable for measuring innovation
- How measurements of innovation might have bearing on major policy and investment decisions
Doug Hubbard, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience in IT management consulting, including 12 years experience in teaching organizations to use his Applied Information Economics (AIE) method. He invented AIE to quantify the value and risk of IT in a mathematically and scientifically sound manner, and this methodology has been used in a variety of Fortune 500 companies and major government agencies (civilian and military). He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of IT value and is a popular speaker at numerous conferences. Doug is the author of How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of “Intangibles” in Business. He was formerly with Coopers & Lybrand, and has an MBA in Management Information Systems from his home state at the University of South Dakota.
|  |
Join us for the next in our series of events designed specifically to help IT leaders improve their leadership skills, build more effective organizations, and prepare for the future challenges in their roles and careers. Learn first-hand from TAC Founder Alan Guibord about the issues, challenges and requirements that are driving the market. Hot issues to be covered include:
- How do I better position myself for the next role?
- What are the hot skills in the market?
- What are the most important attributes companies are looking for?
- How do I get on the radar screen of the top search firms?
- Why do CIOs lose their jobs?
Alan Guibord, TAC Founder and Chairman, is one of the top experts in the area of IT career and leadership development. He has more than 25 years of experience leading IT organizations as CIO with both Fortune 100 companies and small-to-midsize businesses. He was most recently CEO of Computerworld, and has served as VP and CIO of Fort James Corp., VP Information Technology at RR Donnelley & Sons, CIO of PictureTel, and VP MIS and Administrative Services at Timeplex. He is considered a visionary in the field, and is a sought after speaker in the United States and around the world. His areas of expertise include senior corporate management, organization-building, management/business alignment, building investment strategies, linking IT with business management, large-scale project management, manufacturing efficiencies, and acquisition and merger integration.
|  |
Join TAC Expert Sherry Irwin for a practical introduction to SAM, and learn how to save your organization tens/hundreds of thousands of dollars while maintaining compliance with license agreements. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What are the benefits of SAM?
- What are the key concepts and program components of SAM?
- How should one plan and develop a SAM program?
- How should one manage software license agreements to ensure compliance?
Sherry Irwin, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience in information technology (IT) asset management across a broad spectrum of industries. She is an evangelist and recognized expert in ITAM best practices, based on years of personal and client experience. Sherry is founder and chair of the Canadian IT Asset Management Users’ Group (1991) and sponsor of an annual ITAM conference (Toronto). She developed a series of educational seminars on ITAM, as well as related contract and vendor management, and is mentor to numerous IT asset managers in defining, learning, and executing their ITAM accountabilities.
|  |
TAC Expert Sue-Rae Rosenfeld will discuss change management processes and techniques which can assure that the right changes are implemented, and that they are delivered when needed and as promised. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- How can one reduce the “understanding gap” between IT and the business it supports?
- What should be included in an enterprise strategy for managing current and future IT and business changes?
- What methods make a change control board effective?
Sue-Rae Rosenfeld, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience as an IT project manager and business analyst, primarily in the financial industry. She has special expertise in data analysis, data modeling, and converting systems into new platforms, including mainframe to Internet and intranet server environments. In addition, she trains IT professionals in project management fundamentals and Project Management Professional exam prep. She is an active member and volunteer for the Project Management Institute.
|  |
TAC Experts Bart Bolton and Bob Rouse will discuss why these relationships are so important, today and in the future, what kinds of relationships need to exist, what ingredients are critical for viable relationships, and some ideas on how to make relationships bloom. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What provides the necessary leadership capability so needed in today’s world?
- What does it take to succeed not only in one’s work, but in life?
Bart Bolton, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 30 years experience
leading the consulting arm of a major IT equipment manufacturer.
building effective organizations. His specific areas of expertise
include development and documentation of “Best Practices”,
individual and organizational development, and change management.
Bob Rouse, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of experience
with personal and professional coaching and education of senior
managers in succession programs for large corporations. He has
wide experience in building corporate universities and leadership
development programs. Bob has extensive practice in health care
computing (administrative and research). He is an international
speaker and consultant for online-interactive media education.
|  |
...however virtualization is not a panacea for all server consolidation projects, nor is it appropriate in all situations. TAC Thought Leader Beth Cohen will discuss the challenges and opportunities in considering a conversion to a virtual architecture. Hot issues to be addressed include:
- What is the difference between consolidation and virtualization?
- How should one identify systems that will benefit from virtualization?
- What are the best architectures to achieve the desired results?
- What changes should one expect in the market as competitive pressures mount?
- How should one develop an integrated consolidation roadmap and action plan for their organization?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only understands where technology is today but where it's heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scalable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
In this teleconference, life-time networkers Adrie Reinders and Marion Freijsen — authors of The N Factor — will share thoughts, give ideas, and offer practical tips about how you can apply networking proactively in any scenario. The presentation will include:
- How to build a network internationally
- How to maintain a network of thousands of contacts
- How to use technology to avoid losing track
Adrie Reinders and Marion Freijsen have had extensive experience working and networking globally. They have founded several companies, mostly in IT, over the course of three decades, and worked with Global 2000 companies for many years. They are recognized internationally as experts in the fields of business development and networking. Working and living between the Netherlands and the U.S., they speak at universities worldwide on the topic of networking.
|  |
Furthermore, knowing the risk and return of various components of the EA will have a significant impact on which parts of the EA IT should model, to what level of detail, and in what order. In this fifth in a series of teleconferences about measurement, TAC Expert Doug Hubbard will discuss how to use his Applied Information Economics (AIE) method to measure and forecast the value of EA. The presentation will include:
- How to quantify the benefits of EA
- How to approach EA as a portfolio prioritization problem
- How to measure the main uncertainties about the value of EA
Doug Hubbard, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience
in IT management consulting including 12 years experience in
teaching organizations to use his Applied Information Economics
(AIE) method. He invented AIE to quantify the value and
risk of IT in a mathematically and scientifically sound manner
and this methodology has been used in a variety of Fortune 500
companies and major government agencies (civilian and military).
He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of IT
value and is a popular speaker at numerous conferences.
Doug is the author of How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of “Intangibles” in Business. He was formerly
with Coopers & Lybrand, and has an MBA in Management Information
Systems from his home state at the University of South Dakota.
|  |
TACometer is a quick, economical approach for prioritizing IT projects based on Hubbard’s Applied Information Economics (AIE) method. TACometer incorporates several methods that have been used and proven for decades outside of IT. The presentation will address:
- What types of prioritization errors managers make, and how to correct for them
- How to prioritize investments without necessarily creating a detailed business case for each one
- How to decide when a more detailed analysis is required for a single big investment before it is prioritized
Doug Hubbard, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience
in IT management consulting including 12 years experience in
teaching organizations to use his Applied Information Economics
(AIE) method. He invented AIE to quantify the value and
risk of IT in a mathematically and scientifically sound manner
and this methodology has been used in a variety of Fortune 500
companies and major government agencies (civilian and military).
He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of IT
value and is a popular speaker at numerous conferences.
Doug is the author of How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of “Intangibles” in Business. He was formerly
with Coopers & Lybrand, and has an MBA in Management Information
Systems from his home state at the University of South Dakota.
|  |
In this third in a series of teleconferences about measurement, TAC Expert Doug Hubbard, author of How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of “Intangibles” in Business, will discuss how to use Applied Information Economics (AIE) to measure and forecast the value of security with a real-life case study. The presentation will include:
- How to define security in a way that can be quantified
- How to structure a business case for the value of security
- How to think about security as a form of actuarial risk mitigation
Doug Hubbard, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience
in IT management consulting including 12 years experience in
teaching organizations to use his Applied Information Economics
(AIE) method. He invented AIE to quantify the value and
risk of IT in a mathematically and scientifically sound manner
and this methodology has been used in a variety of Fortune 500
companies and major government agencies (civilian and military).
He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of IT
value and is a popular speaker at numerous conferences.
Doug is the author of How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of “Intangibles” in Business. He was formerly
with Coopers & Lybrand, and has an MBA in Management Information
Systems from his home state at the University of South Dakota.
|  |
...and it happens in our personal lives. Not meeting our commitments has far reaching consequences, not only for our effectiveness, but also for our personal reputation and credibility. In this teleconference, TAC Thought Leaders Bart Bolton and Bob Rouse will discuss...
- What is commitment?
- How does one know when to compromise?
- What are your responsibilities to communicate with others when you can’t meet your commitments, or you have to choose between competing alternatives?
- On what basis should you make these choices?
- Just how can you use commitment to be successful in your own personal style?
Bart Bolton, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 30 years experience leading the
consulting arm of a major IT equipment manufacturer. He is recognized as one
of the country's leading experts on building effective organizations. His specific
areas of expertise include development and documentation of “Best Practices”,
individual and organizational development, and change management.
Bob Rouse, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of experience with personal and
professional coaching and education of senior managers in succession programs
for large corporations. He has wide experience in building corporate universities
and leadership development programs. Bob has extensive practice in health care
computing (administrative and research). He is an international speaker and
consultant for online-interactive media education.
|  |
This teleconference, presented by TAC Experts Charlie Ambuhl and Michael Bitterman, will help you decide if an IT benchmark is right for your organization. The current state of IT benchmarking will be reviewed, including:
- What different types of benchmarks are available?
- What is the true cost of benchmarking?
- What kinds of results can one expect?
This teleconference will give you the necessary information to:
- Decide if you want to propose a benchmark for your organization
- Estimate how long it should take to complete the benchmark
- Estimate what your investment in resources and dollars will be
- Understand the results you should expect to see
- Understand the benefits you should expect to gain
Charlie Ambuhl, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience in IT benchmarking, with the past 12 years focused on increasing the business benefit from IT investments. He has designed and implemented innovative approaches to performance measurement, benchmarking, and alignment of technology for increased effectiveness. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Ambuhl was VP, EMEA benchmarking for Meta Group, VP, North American client services for Gartner Measurement, and spent 14 years at Real Decisions prior to their acquisition by Gartner. There he was instrumental in launching several IT benchmarking services still in use today.
Michael Bitterman, TAC Expert, has more that 25 years of information technology experience. He works with senior business and IT executives in performing high-level engagements focused on establishing current performance baselines, targeting future performance goals, and implementing the means to achieve them. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Bitterman was VP at Gartner, where he established their IT Transformation and IT Performance Management practices. Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior management positions within both user and vendor IT organizations.
|  |
But, what does any of the web 2.0 craze have to do with the enterprise, anyway?
This teleconference, presented by TAC Expert Vanessa DiMauro, will examine the realistic opportunities that web 2.0 initiatives have to offer business today. We will describe web 2.0 in a context that is relevant to the enterprise, examine the business processes to effectively integrate a strategy which leverages web 2.0 into organizational goals, and offer lessons learned from enterprise web 2.0 deployments. This session will provide a framework for developing a robust web 2.0 strategy, and enable you to sift the consumer hype from the enterprise opportunity.
Vanessa DiMauro, TAC Expert, has more than 15 years experience building virtual communities, and a recognized expert in online community building, social networking, and digital customer care. Vanessa is Principal of Leader Networks – a consulting company helps companies strengthen the connection to customers, business partners, and employees through virtual communities and social media. She frequently gives talks on the reality of building and sustaining online communities, has served as a community judge for the Global Information Infrastructure awards, and has authored numerous academic research and general articles on community building. Women in Technology International (WITI) named her one of Boston’s Most Influential Women in Technology.
|  |
Has IT benchmarking kept up with this revolution? Has IT changed enough to render IT benchmarks obsolete or irrelevant? We will address and answer these and other questions during this teleconference.
TAC Experts Charlie Ambuhl and Michael Bitterman will provide you with a brief history of IT benchmarking. At the conclusion of this teleconference, you should be able to decide whether your organization would benefit from an IT benchmark, if your...
- Infrastructure is outsourced
- Infrastructure is insourced
- Organization is considering outsourcing
Charlie Ambuhl, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years of experience in IT benchmarking, with the past 12 years focused on increasing the business benefit from IT investments. He has designed and implemented innovative approaches to performance measurement, benchmarking, and alignment of technology for increased effectiveness. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Ambuhl was VP, EMEA benchmarking for Meta Group, VP, North American client services for Gartner Measurement, and spent 14 years at Real Decisions prior to their acquisition by Gartner. There he was instrumental in launching several IT benchmarking services still in use today.
Michael Bitterman, TAC Expert, has more that 25 years of information technology experience. He works with senior business and IT executives in performing high-level engagements focused on establishing current performance baselines, targeting future performance goals, and implementing the means to achieve them. Prior to co-founding the IT Performance Management Group (a TAC affiliate), Mr. Bitterman was VP at Gartner, where he established their IT Transformation and IT Performance Management practices. Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior management positions within both user and vendor IT organizations.
|  |
TAC Expert Doug Hubbard will discuss how to use Applied Information Economics (AIE) to measure and forecast the value of Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity. The presentation will include:
- How to think about risk mitigation like an actuary
- Practical ways to determine the odds of unlikely but potentially catastrophic events
- Factors to include in a risk assessment model
- How to compute a value for risk mitigation
Doug Hubbard, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience in IT management consulting including 11 years experience in teaching organizations to use his Applied Information Economics (AIE) method. He invented AIE to quantify the value and risk of IT in a mathematically and scientifically sound manner and this methodology has been used in a variety of Fortune 500 companies and major government agencies (civilian and military). He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of IT value and is a popular speaker at numerous conferences. Doug is the author of How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of
"Intangibles" in Business. He was formerly with Coopers & Lybrand, and has an MBA in Management Information Systems from his home state at the University of South Dakota.
|  |
They are, however, very different subjects, and just changing the name from “Management Team” to “Leadership Team” doesn’t bring any change. In this teleconference, TAC Thought Leaders Bart Bolton and Bob Rouse will debate...
- What are the differences?
- Which one is more important?
- Does an organization need both?
- Can one person be both a manager and a leader?
- How do you develop as or become either or both?
Bart Bolton, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 30 years experience leading the
consulting arm of a major IT equipment manufacturer. He is recognized as one
of the country's leading experts on building effective organizations. His specific
areas of expertise include development and documentation of “Best Practices”,
individual and organizational development, and change management.
Bob Rouse, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of experience with personal and
professional coaching and education of senior managers in succession programs
for large corporations. He has wide experience in building corporate universities
and leadership development programs. Bob has extensive practice in health care
computing (administrative and research). He is an international speaker and
consultant for online-interactive media education.
|  |
...and the method the U.S. Marine Corps uses to forecast fuel for battlefield operations. He asserts that the idea that some things are immeasurable is based on a set of misconceptions about statistics and measurement in general or, in many cases, a lack of a clear definition of what the proposed “intangible” really is. Whatever is relevant to business must have observable consequences. The presentation will include:
- The three reasons why anything is ever (incorrectly) thought to be immeasurable
- Quick and simple methods for measuring any uncertain quantity
- Interesting examples of where “impossible” measurements had clever solutions
Doug Hubbard, TAC Expert, has more than 18 years experience in IT management consulting including 10 years experience in teaching organizations to use his Applied Information Economics (AIE) method. He invented AIE to quantify the value and risk of IT in a mathematically and scientifically sound manner and this methodology has been used in a variety of Fortune 500 companies and major government agencies (civilian and military). He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of IT value and is a popular speaker at numerous conferences. Doug is the author of How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of
"Intangibles" in Business. He was formerly with Coopers & Lybrand, and has an MBA in Management Information Systems from his home state at the University of South Dakota.
|  |
Don’t confuse telecommunications expense management (TEM) with getting the bills paid or an annual audit. These are small components of managing expenses. TAC Expert Michael Bodetti will explain how the full life-cycle of wireline and wireless TEM includes:
- Invoice processing and audit
- Inventory management
- Centralized provisioning
- Contract management
- Call accounting
Michael Bodetti, TAC Expert, has more than 25 years experience in the telecommunications and technology industries from start ups to Fortune 500 companies. He is also CEO of TnT Partners LLC, in Sandy Hook, CT, which specializes in telecom expense management services including auditing and bill processing, wireless management, network provisioning, contract negotiations and telecom project management. Prior to establishing TnT Partners, he was the former Vice President of Telecommunications & Call Center Technology with Cendant Corporation. Michael has an MBA in Finance and is an adjunct professor at the graduate level.
|  |
Mark Polansky is managing director of Korn/Ferry’s Information Technology Center of Expertise. He has more than 25 years of executive search experience in technology, and has extensively recruited CIOs, CTOs and other senior IT leaders across a wide range of vertical industry sectors. Mark’s earlier background encompasses 11 years of hands-on computer programming, systems management, and business development experience at two large IT organizations.
|  |
The discipline of reading involves full contact engagement with the author and concepts, and encourages careful thought and debate with some of the important ideas of leadership, management and current events. First-hand knowledge, ideas and concepts can be integrated into one’s ability to deal with day-to-day opportunities and challenges. This teleconference, presented by TAC Thought Leaders Bart Bolton and Bob Rouse, will expand upon purposeful reading, and discuss some “must reads” for senior leaders.
Bart Bolton, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 30 years experience leading the
consulting arm of a major IT equipment manufacturer. He is recognized as one
of the country's leading experts on building effective organizations. His specific
areas of expertise include development and documentation of “Best Practices”,
individual and organizational development, and change management.
Bob Rouse, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of experience with personal and
professional coaching and education of senior managers in succession programs
for large corporations. He has wide experience in building corporate universities
and leadership development programs. Bob has extensive practice in health care
computing (administrative and research). He is an international speaker and
consultant for online-interactive media education.
|  |
In this teleconference, TAC Expert Mary Ann McIlraith will describe the “Rapid Engineered Mind” methodology she has developed to help clients succeed in their careers.
Hot Issues to be addressed include:
- How to design your personal road map to take your career to the next level
- How to map-out strategic mental models that move you forward on a consistent basis
- How to enhance your sphere of influence
- How to develop stronger leaders, stronger profit and stronger performance for your business
Mary Ann McIlraith, TAC Expert, has more than 20 years experience in information technology, human resources, and organizational development. She covers the complete human capital management (HCM) implementation project and leadership life-cycle. Mary Ann is on the Technical Advisory Council for Human Capital Management and the Software Industry, past board member and author for IHRIM, and past board member of ASTD. She is the developer of the Rapid Implementation Methodology (RIM).
|  |
Alignment is essential to accomplish those goals. It is a holistic endeavor, lived and acted on daily. When an organization is “out of alignment,” at best, it performs sub-optimally for its customers and stakeholders; at worst, it endangers the enterprise’s very survival. TAC Expert Art Costa will present a client case study addressing how the appropriate application of governance and portfolio management can provide a roadmap and basis for alignment, and IT total performance for the enterprise.
Hot Issues to be addressed include:
- How should the understanding of processes as corporate assets be considered with regard to governance and application portfolio management?
- Why has alignment been so elusive for IT?
- How can one best achieve portfolio management to support a sustainable alignment?
- Together, how does a holistic alignment and process-centric governance provide the optimal management of the IT portfolio?
Art Costa, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years experience (15 in the health-care domain) with Fortune 500 and smaller organizations. As a enterprise and process practitioner, his roles have included business and IT project management, management, executive positions with major health-care and insurance enterprises. His organization expertise includes IT organization development, building and growing enterprise-wide e-business to partner and support multiple product lines and across strategic business units. He has built and deployed e-business solutions to major Northeast hospital facilities and HMO/PPOs. Track record of performance results through alignment of people, processes and systems to an organization's strategic goals; and sustained results through operational metrics and measurements in multiple industry sectors.
|  |
...which are desperately needed to successfully deploy new technologies throughout the enterprise. This teleconference, presented by TAC Expert Ron Gandiza, will explain how to effectively plan, build and implement an enterprise learning strategy that helps an organization more quickly adapt to change, and reduce risk.
Hot Issues to be addressed include:
- What is the difference between training and education?
- How should an organization determine its critical training and education goals?
- Should training be done in-house or outsourced?
- What training options are available, and which work best?
- What are the best practices and critical success factors for an enterprise learning strategy?
Ron Gandiza, TAC Expert, has more than 15 years of IT and enterprise knowledge management experience as a senior learning strategist, certified trainer, consultant, professional speaker, and solution architect. He has designed, built and deployed global performance enhancement programs, as well as corporate universities, for Fortune 1000 companies and government agencies including Microsoft, Lockheed Martin, and the U.S. Air Force. He has also designed and implemented project management frameworks and training programs for enterprise IT organizations, with an emphasis on solid IT portfolio management and governance. His dynamic presentation skills and personality have made him a popular keynote speaker. He is executive VP of the Charlotte chapter of the Association of IT Professionals, and sits on the national Board of Regents of the Foundation for IT Education.
|  |
Not enough support, and business productivity can be adversely affected; but high-touch services such as desktop break-fix and help desks are expensive. This teleconference, presented by TAC Thought Leader Beth Cohen, will explain how to balance the requirements of delivering high customer satisfaction IT services vs. reducing service delivery costs.
Hot Issues to be addressed include:
- How can you create an efficient IT service delivery organization and technology framework that benefit you business?
- What methodologies (e.g., ITIL and ITSM) can I use to improve IT service delivery?
- What staff skills and training programs will produce effective IT service delivery results?
- How should you develop an integrated service delivery action plan for your organization?
Beth Cohen, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 20 years of experience building strong IT-delivery organizations from user and vendor perspectives. Having worked as a technologist for BBN, the company that literally invented the Internet, she not only knows where technology is today but where it's heading in the future. Her specific expertise includes building scaleable, robust IT architectures, operating systems, desktop support, process improvement, program management, IT/business alignment, security, and integration of networks, applications, and systems.
|  |
...can cause them to misjudge important factors about the time and place of accomplishing work.
While it is convenient to think of the world in cooperative, economic terms, the realities and risks of terrorism, religious conflicts, social and political upheavals intrude, and must be understood and managed. Clearly understanding the substantial educational, social and work-readiness differentials by nation is crucial to balancing short- and long-term payback, developing new markets for goods and services, and planning for reliable continuous operations. This presentation, by TAC experts Bart Bolton and Bob Rouse, will take a hard look at the mountains and valleys CIOs must cross on the way to globalized marketplaces.
Hot Issues to be addressed include:
- How to recruit and develop talent that matches today's intellectual demands
- How to create the flexible work and management practices tha capitalize on a multinational workplace
- How to develop effective communication styles that get the message across, not just connect electronically
- How to plan for continuity in the face of uncertain and diverse political, social and religious realities
- How to maintain ownership and responsibilities across vast time and place differences
Bart Bolton, TAC Thought Leader, has more than 30 years experience leading the
consulting arm of a major IT equipment manufacturer. He is recognized as one
of the country's leading experts on building effective organizations. His specific
areas of expertise include development and documentation of “Best Practices,”
individual and organizational development, and change management.
Bob Rouse, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of experience with personal and
professional coaching and education of senior managers in succession programs
for large corporations. He has wide experience in building corporate universities
and leadership development programs. Bob has extensive practice in health care
computing (administrative and research). He is an international speaker and
consultant for online-interactive media education.
|  |
Using data from 45 statistical case studies, with a total of more than 3,000 variables and hundreds of tracked forecasts, TAC Expert Doug Hubbard has found four key revelations that may profoundly affect what you measure, where you invest, and how you control risks.
Hot Issues to be addressed include:
- How much does actuarially sound risk analysis change IT priorities?
- What are really the highest-value measurements in IT?
- What is the true cost of scope creep?
- What four factors best predict the success of IT projects?
Douglas Hubbard, TAC Expert, has more than 18 years experience in IT management consulting including 10 years experience in teaching organizations to use his Applied Information Economics (AIE) method. He invented AIE to quantify the value and risk of IT in a mathematically and scientifically sound manner, and this methodology has been used in a variety of Fortune 500 companies and major government agencies (civilian and military). He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of IT value, and is a popular speaker at numerous conferences. His published articles have appeared in Information Week, CIO Enterprise, and DBMS Magazine. He was formerly with Coopers & Lybrand, and has an MBA in Management Information Systems from his home state at the University of South Dakota.
|  |
...depending on many variables, including the degree of process maturity within the client organization. Many CIOs wonder, “What about China, Russia, the Philippines and other countries?” This teleconference, presented by TAC Expert Dean Davison, will review the facts, the claims, the benefits, and the realities of offshore services.
Hot Issues to be addressed include:
- Are Indian companies ready to support “prime time” operations?
- How do domestic companies (e.g., CSC) compare in global delivery?
- Why is there such a large range in realized cost savings?
- What are the common mistakes and pitfalls of offshore outsourcing?
- How can my IT organization leverage the benefits and mitigate the risks?
Dean Davison, TAC Expert, brings more than 16 years of industry experience to our clients. He is a former Vice President and Research Lead for META Group's Outsourcing Practice. His work focuses on outsourcing industry dynamics, including the best practices for IT organizations to adopt and leverage outsourcing services and advising service providers on the development of solution offerings and pricing strategies. Mr. Davison is a widely-recognized authority on outsourcing and his experience includes hundreds of speaking engagements and facilitated strategy sessions.
|  |
This teleconference, presented by TAC Expert Gad Selig, will explain how to effectively employ three critical pillars – people, process and technology.
Hot Issues to be addressed include:
- Why has business/IT alignment and integration become more critical?
- What are the value and benefits of more effective alignment and integration?
- Which people, process and technology principles and practices are mandatory, and which are discretionary?
- What metrics should be used?
- What are the best practices and critical success factors?
Gad Selig, PhD, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years of diversified domestic/international executive, management and consulting experience with both Fortune 500 and smaller companies in multiple industries. His experience includes: marketing, sales, planning, operations, business development, mergers and acquisitions, general management (with full P&L responsibility), systems/network integration/outsourcing, CIO, the Internet, electronic commerce, product management, project management, process innovation, IT strategy and governance. His books include Strategic Planning for Information Resource Management: A Multinational Perspective. Dr. Selig is an Associate Professor of Management and Technology and the Director, Center for Business Information Technologies at the University of Bridgeport.
|  |
Alignment of IT is really more than simply getting on the same page regarding project prioritization. Business process management is a set of disciplines, methods and technologies which provide an essential framework. If introduced correctly, it can make the difference between business success and failure.
Hot Issues include:
- What are the imperatives driving process-centric performance?
- What is the alignment process and its intersection with business process management practices?
- What are the specific IT critical contributions to a successful BPM program?
- How would a business/IT model look if it were process-centric?
Art Costa, TAC Expert, has more than 30 years experience (15 in the health-care domain) with Fortune 500 and smaller organizations. As a enterprise and process practitioner, his roles have included business and IT project management, line management, and executive positions with major health-care and insurance enterprises. His organization expertise includes IT organization development, building and growing enterprise-wide e-business to partner and support multple product lines and across strategic business units. He has built and deployed e-business solutions to major Northeast hospital facilities and HMO/PPOs. He has a track record of performance results through alignment of people, processes and systems to an organization's strategic goals; and sustained results through operational metrics and measurements in multiple industry sectors.
|  |
However, like all outsourcing offerings, the devil is in the details. Despite the media hype, utility offerings are not appropriate for every organization.
By separating hype from reality, and understanding the differences between “utility” and “traditional” service offerings, organizations can make more informed outsourcing decisions.
Topics to be addressed:
-
Industry drivers for utility models…what has changed?
- A comparison of traditional price models and “new” utility offerings
- Which offerings work best for which environments?
- The pros and cons of going “utility”
Adam Strichman, TAC Expert, is an accomplished IT and BPO outsourcing consultant who maintains a successful record of optimizing and negotiating outsourcing arrangements for a wide base of clients. He is a recognized expert in the field of Benchmarking, rate structures, and pricing methodologies for Information Technology Services. He has held multiple positions at both vendors and consulting firms and has helped customize and manage vendor relationships over a wide base of industries.
|  |
But surprisingly often it is because they simply do not know the most effective methods for negotiation planning.
This teleconference will focus on a number of issues that should be addressed in preparing for any important negotiation. Hot issues include:
- Five accomplishments that proper preparation makes possible.
-
Eight areas of planning that must be addressed.
-
Utilizing the crucial pre-negotiation meeting with the other side.
-
Distinguishing goals from issues.
-
Understanding frames, i.e., how members of the other side “see” the negotiation.
Dr. Brooks Colburn, TAC Expert, was responsible for creating and teaching negotiation classes for IBM’s key contract managers, negotiators and executives across the U.S., Europe, Japan and China. Since 2002 he has been president of Negotiation Strategists, a company specializing in negotiation training and consulting. He teaches negotiation seminars regularly for the American Management Association, and is on the faculty of Fordham University School of Business.
|  |
This teleconference will provide a systematic outline appropriate to the needs of a midsize-business IT organization. Hot issues include:
-
What role should senior management have in establishing information security policies?
- What is often the weakest link in the information security chain?
-
What technologies are essential to information security?
-
What information security functions should be outsourced?
Peter Schay, TAC Executive VP & Chief Operating Officer, has more than 25 years of experience as a senior IT executive in IT vendor and research industries. He most recently was VP and chief technology officer of SiteShell Corp. Previously at Gartner, he was group VP of research infrastructure and support, and launched coverage of client-server computing in the early 1990s.
|
|
|
|
