KLM laptop strategy is not a workable IT
policy
Nicholas Bishop, IS/IT manager UK, Volvo
Construction
Nice article on the
steps by KLM to provide users with the power to purchase and
support their own laptops. What I find hard to understand is how
they are going to save money. The IT department is still there, but
now cannot centralise procurement to reduce costs as the "user" has
the power of choice and will be purchasing the hardware.
Whose asset is it? If it is the user's, then any software has to
be licensed to them, and again we lose the buying power and
licensing power of the company. And who will make sure that all
software is licensed, as "cracked" software is plentiful on the
internet.
Some users are very IT literate, but these users are often the
biggest overhead. Now they have their own laptops, where they are
the administrators, they will be able to change all sorts of
settings and cause all sorts of issues, and may even lose data. How
will KLM standardise on the set-up of the laptops? The user owns
the laptop, so how will KLM know which areas to back-up? Does the
user have a C, D and H drive, or just a C drive?
It is a shame that some of these counter opinions were not
mentioned, as this could spark a good debate on the way forward to
minimise the IT overhead on supporting laptops. My department
supports more than 300 laptops, and it is the biggest overhead I
have.
On the surface this all sounds very good and very "forward
thinking", but I have a feeling that KLM will be returning back to
the normal method of managing laptops in the not too distant
future.
Project managers need to have technical
knowledge
Chetan Bhatt
I was initially sympathetic when reading Alan Smith's
opinion piece about
constrictive recruitment requirements. However, my sympathy drained
away when he complained about project managers being expected to
have knowledge of Java, C#, SQL and UML, etc, claiming this should
not be necessary because, "As long as the manager has the capacity
to understand the technical issues to the point where they can make
informed decisions, then they should be able to fulfil their
responsibilities."
In more than 20 years working in IT in several companies, I have
served under dozens of project manager-type people, and I find that
while the technically conversant ones may sometimes get too
absorbed in the technology to think about delivery - a weakness
that can be cured - the alternatives can be much worse.
Too often, however, the ideal conditions do not exist and
project managers of the sort Smith advocates prove the adage that
"a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing".
Prince2 needs to be tailored to be
effective
John Edmonds
Alan Smith makes some excellent points in his article
(www.computerweekly.com/225545). I share his astonishment that many
organisations do not realise that a project manager's role is to
manage, not do. The demand for "industry-specific experience" that
he highlights is equally disturbing.
However, it is when Smith turns his attention to Prince2 that
our opinions differ. Phrases like "rigid adherence to the dictates
of Prince2" make me believe that there are many people out there
who do not understand Prince2 and its application.
In my experience, organisations that understand the key
principles of Prince2, and then determine to tailor the method in
an intelligent and thoughtful way, do see successful project
delivery. It is the tailoring rather than the rigid application of
Prince2 that is the key.
Prince2 was never designed to be used in an "untailored" manner,
and many organisations would do well to consider whether they are
truly using the principles of the method, or are using Prince2 in
name only.
Belgium can offer the UK a lesson on ID cards
plan
Derek Rocholl
In response to David Lacey's "perils of ID management"
blog posting, I
think it is instructive to look outside of the UK for examples of
how the technology envisaged for the UK ID cards scheme is being
used, to get a better understanding of the potential value.
The situation in Belgium with the BelPic scheme is particularly
interesting for a number of reasons, including:
● The high and increasing range of applications the card is used
for in everyday life.
● The strong level of voluntary take-up by the population, with
more than five million cards already issued and the whole
population on course to have a card by 2009.
● The fact that the Belgians seem to see an effective and secure
ID card scheme as helping to build trust between citizen and
government, by helping people exercise greater control over the way
their personal data is maintained and used.
It strikes me that if we were to apply some of these learnings
to our own scheme, and embrace the opportunities presented by the
technology, it would go some way towards addressing some of the
legitimate concerns of the privacy lobby.
The importance of e-mail cannot not be
overstated
Peter Bauer, Managing director, Mimecast
I read with interest Rebecca Thomson's
article on the impact
of the recent floods and the estimated 6,800 businesses that were
affected at a cost of up to £170m in IT insurance claims.
I can only echo the author's views on the need for this to
prompt companies, both small and large, to ensure that they have
adequate insurance and business continuity plans in place. E-mail
systems today are the single most important application in most
businesses.
It is also the case that up to 60% of intellectual capital for
the average business is held in e-mail communications and
attachments, so it has truly become the lifeblood of most
organisations.
Protecting your e-mail from disruption and ensuring continuity
does not have to cost the earth. Software as a service means that
it is within the grasp of the average SME. What is more, the cost
of insurance premiums can also be decreased significantly by being
able to demonstrate that you have systems in place to ensure that
e-mail - and all the vital information contained therein - is able
to continue to function even in the event of a disaster.
Another article in
the same edition quoted a survey stating that only 24% of companies
archive e-mail. Putting these two facts together indicates that for
many businesses not having a viable e-mail strategy in place in the
event of a disaster could have far-reaching and potentially ruinous
consequences.
I hope, therefore, that your readers will take a hard look at
the protection they have in place and not put it off for another
rainy day.
Recruitment consultants exacerbate the skills
gap
John Pether
I would like to put forward my experience of the IT market
recently after reading the "Skills threat to UK competitiveness"
article and the
"Companies are failing to invest in raw IT graduates"
letter.
After more than 15 years in commercial IT (and being made
redundant seven times) I had to take work out of the IT sector.
While I am trying to return to IT, I find the majority of the
vacancies are controlled by agencies who look at the top line on my
CV and immediately send a rejection e-mail because, for some
reason, my 15 years of experience and learning are no longer valid
or applicable. One "consultant" even told me that I could not
manage a project because I was not Prince2 qualified.
There is no skills shortage, just a group of people who place
themselves in between the job seekers and the companies who require
the experienced and skilled staff.
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