ITtoolkit.com Articles for Managing IT Plans, Strategies and Support Services
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IT management articles are organized by subject according
to our Manage by Process Framework for IT Management.
Also see:
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IT Plans: Disaster
recovery, problem management....
IT Alignment: Matching IT to business
needs.....
IT Organizations: IT staffing, resources....
IT Policies: Policy planning and
implementation....
IT Strategies: Optimizing alternatives for
managing IT....
IT Services: Customer service, support....
IT PLANNING ARTICLES
Disaster Recovery Planning in IT:
Basics and Benefits
Disaster recovery planning and business continuity management is
essential to business security and survival.
more
Take a Team
Approach to Disaster Recovery Planning
Effective disaster recovery planning depends on the people involved.
The resulting strategies and procedures are born out of cooperation
and collaboration.
more
Easy Steps and
Strategies for DRP Activation
The disaster recovery plan is an insurance policy - you need it, and
hope you never have to use it. But, if the need should arise, you
must take action.
more
Test, Test and
Test Again: Testing for Disaster Recovery Plan Validation
Disaster recovery plans are essential to business continuity, but
these plans will quickly lose meaning and value if they are not
tested on a regular basis.
more
Proactive
Problem Management: Managing Problems as Projects
The best approach to solving complex technology problems is the
proactive approach - providing a pre-defined process roadmap so that
you are ready to respond as soon as problems occur.
more
Downtime: It
Will Cost You
Everyone knows that downtime is costly. Everyone also
knows that downtime is preventable (to a certain extent), and
certainly, what cannot be prevented, can be managed and mitigated. more
Is it Time for a
Technology Upgrade?
How can you tell if the time is right for yet another technology
upgrade? more
IT ALIGNMENT ARTICLES
top
Decision Making in IT: Anticipate
the Impact
On face value, technology decisions should rest solely on business
requirements, technical parameters and sound financial reasoning.
However, things are rarely that simple.
more
Setting
Standards for End-User Technology
To each his own - except when it comes to technology in the
workplace. Standards must set the stage for optimized support,
but must also provide flexibility to suit multiple needs.
more
Using Policies
and Procedures to Promote IT Services
Policies and procedures - oh no! Let's face the facts, policies and
procedures are often seen through negative eyes, commonly viewed as
an administrative burden, designed to limit creativity and impede
the need to "just get things done".
more
Caught in a Web
of Unrealistic Expectations
As a business imperative, technology end-users are entitled to the
highest quality of service that can be provided. But, in the
IT services realm, quality expectations are often confused with
substance expectations.
more
Crafting
Internal Policies for Email Etiquette
E-mail is a great tool for business communication - it's accessible,
fast and relatively easy. But, under certain circumstances,
e-mail can also be ineffective and inappropriate.
more
IT ORGANIZATION ARTICLES
top
IT Organizations: Models By
Design
There are only two rules to follow when it comes to choosing an
effective operational and reporting structure for your IT
organization.
more
Managing IT
Staff Burnout
Whether you work in technical support, applications development,
platform design, systems administration or project management, the
life of an informational technology professional is both challenging
and stressful.
more
Overcoming Internal Barriers to Workplace
Productivity
Technology is a key driver of productivity in the workplace, having
a significant impact on people, processes and results.
End-users are supposed to use technology to produce results and to
meet business objectives.
more
Strategies for Team Participation
When you work alone, you will most likely be judged by results.
When you lead a team, you will be judged not only by results, but
also by your management and leadership skills.
more
Hiring Temporary
Staff? Better Keep an Eye on Permanent Staff Morale
For your full time staff, external consultants can be both a
blessing and a curse. On one hand, long hours and heavy
workloads can be alleviated with one or more extra pairs of hands.
more
IT POLICY ARTICLES top
How to Perform the Asset Management Needs Assessment
While it is often assumed that technology asset management is only
worthwhile in the large, corporate environment, any business can
benefit from reasonable practices designed to streamline technology
usage and support.
more
Set Practical Policies for Desktop Moves,
Adds and Changes
Although not be particularly interesting or exciting, desktop moves,
adds and changes (MAC), can be a very demanding part of the IT
management function.
more
Planning Policies for Desktop Asset
Management
Desktop asset management policies provide a roadmap for the
selection, acquisition, implementation, and upkeep of desktop
hardware and software.
more
Easy Steps for System Change Control
Change is a fact of life in the IT environment. Technology changes
come at us at a fast and furious pace, for a variety of reasons, and
whether we are ready or not.
more
How to Document IT Policies and Procedures
In order to ensure that goals and objectives are met, IT management
policies and/or procedures must be produced in an appropriate
format, designed to achieve desired results.
more
Planning the IT Operations Audit
The mere mention of an internal audit is enough to make anyone
nervous. But, put in proper perspective, an audit of IT
operational policies and procedures will help you to assess IT
service relevancy and viability.
more
How to Keep Up With (Or
Stay Ahead of) IT
Documentation Requirements
Without meaningful documentation, IT staff may waste time repeatedly
researching and collecting information, and implementing different
flavors of the same technical solutions.
more
IT STRATEGY ARTICLES
top
Manage by Process Part 1: Concepts and Theories
In the IT environment, results are often achieved through the 'fly
by the seat of your pants' management methodology. It’s
understandable – time is short, requirements change and resources
are scarce. more
Manage by Process Part 2: Steps and
Strategies
Are you ready to create your own manage by process program to cover
projects, services and operations?
more
Do More with Less: IT Management for
Changing Times
When economic conditions or individual business circumstances take a
turn for the worse, IT groups are likely targets for budget cuts and
staff reductions.
more
Big Picture IT: Management Practices
for the Enterprise
IT management policies and procedures are meant to ensure that
critical systems stay current, reliable, secure, and that they
perform as needed. But, oh, it it were only that simple.
more
Managing IT in the Small Business Environment
Technology can be just as critical to the survival of a small
business as to the largest corporation. The trick is size - to
match IT practices with business needs.
more
Identifying IT Budget Priorities
Budgeting is perhaps one of the most difficult tasks facing the IT
manager. Business managers will expect a realistic, probably
"minimalist" IT budget.
more
IT SERVICE ARTICLES top
Problem Management: Coping with Crisis Perceptions
Downtime happens - hardware fails, software has bugs, and human
beings, even IT professionals, make mistakes.
more
Easy Strategies for
Optimized Support Services
A successful technical support encounter must be timely, responsive
to business circumstances, and must also instill confidence in IT
service capabilities.
more
Find the Meaning
Behind the Metrics
Service statistics are too often viewed as the first and last good
measure of IT performance... i.e. how many support requests are
received, how long does it take for IT to respond, and how quickly
are these requests are closed?
more
Tips and Techniques for Marketing the
Internal Help Desk Operation
An internal IT help desk is created to assist end-users with the use
of installed hardware and software systems, and the application of
current IT policies and procedures.
more
Facing Up to Service Problems: Apology
is Sometimes the Best Policy
While we would all hope that systems never fail, purchase orders are
never lost, and projects are never delayed, sometimes, customer
service becomes a negative experience.
more
5 Keys to IT Customer Service Success
The customer must be served! That goes without saying, but in
the context of internal IT support services, just who is the
customer and how are they best served?
more
IT Service Techniques: How to Say No
IT customer service is all about helping people and solving
problems, and that implies an acceptance of any and all requests.
more
Using ROI as a Measure of Service Value
If you expect the true business value of IT projects and services to
be fully recognized, then you must be able to express IT
expenditures in standard business terms.
more
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