Technical Advise Week #26 - Happy Valentine's Day

Welcome and Happy Holiday Greetings from Max & I. We believe that the best gift that we provide is the honesty. For some, this is met with resentment, it doesn't feel good but with reflect one would see that this is given out of love... nothing more and nothing less. Over the past months we have gone on the roller coaster ride, going from moments of excitement to periodic points of despair. We decided that training is good station to take a moment of rest and reflection. People seek education for allot of reasons. Maybe it's to seek answers, possible used to justify approach, or to gain clarification on trusts (both misguided or misunderstood). One thing that training doesn't provide is correction to corporate ills. People fix problems, training may only provide hints and ideas that might be possible solutions. Ultimately it comes down to people. We can almost predict who will get value from the educational experience by the way they react to the interchange of information. Taking raw information and converting it to usable information provide confidence that there is a way to overcome the most daunting problems. When the information cannot be converted it puts forth the possibility that the investment of time is not well spent. It isn't at all uncommon for 'the to be trained' to lament about the difficulties they face, they are real and looming. Yet when compared to other engineering marvels one would equate the challenge to that of painting a house vs. painting a country, they are often not that insummountable. The participants needs to dig down deep in their talent pool, utilizing every bit of strength they have, to seek and probe (and not look for the answer but to full consume the process towards that end). Training doesn't solve problems, people solve problems. Problems may not be pervasive, they may in fact be sporatic and therefore it's more a case of a situation to manage rather than an opportunity to solve in a large way. We encourage all to be the best that they can't be, to overcome the temptation to slide into a moras of pity, and to be as good as you say you are. This is what management and organizations look for, leaders and not those that have given up before they have started.

Over the next couple of weeks we will be AWOL. Yes, part of team will be traveling to Asia (again) and we will hold down the domestic front. Please let us know if we can be of help. As always we can be easily contacted via email.

- Mabel & Max

Technical Advise Week #25 - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

We got thinking, after a very successful conference, that many of our friends and colleagues are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. What is perplexing us is whether this is caused by the work, the inputs to our work, or simply the result of too many years of abuse at the hands of an unwitting business climate. When you talk with others in IT they will often lament the work, and fantasize about hobbies or other ventures other than work. The spring has all but left their step and when challenged to move along in their chosen profession they sigh a breath and say it's too late to make changes. We almost feel a bit ashamed to say that we are having a ball. Maybe its because we can stretch out our abilities and our experiences fully and there are no holds/limits placed on our innovation. Will Max & Dexter love to be the creative ones, I (Mabel) chose to take these wild ideas and make reality from them. This goes without saying that Dad & Mom really help out too at least in terms of providing a reality check. We can only wish that Dad didn't have to travel so much. He is off again to China to help them build the capability of their outsourcing companies. Good for us as it keeps us in toys and food, but there are times when we simply enjoy his warm body in bed. Guess this shows that we have our own form of stress disorders, but it's not the type borne out of what we can't control, but from what we can.

Will be talking with you shortly and hope that everyone has or will have a pleasant weekend.

Mabel, Max & Dexter

Technical Advise Week #24 - Technical Conference

We decided that we shouldn't let another moment go by without having a major conference. Max and I decided to invite our new friend Dexter to provide some invaluable input and independent insight into his world of specialization. Dexter comes to us from the practical side, and has tremedous street smarts for his age. His area of specialization is assessments.

Assessments are an important status tool, it helps companies to determine where they stand and can be used to help promote improvements going forward. The best known assessment assessment is CMMi (Capability Maturity Model Integrated) and this has been around since the late 1980s and was introduced by Watts Humphrey of SEI. At the time of introduction is was simply CMM. There is also ITMark which is of a simplier form but is sized to support small to medium sized organizations (offered by the European Software Institute http://www.esi.es/).

There are specialized assessment like V&VMMx offered by Certellus Corporation (introduced in 1988 and is the only one that places heavy review on the use of automation, agile methods and uses a 21 KPA model), TMM that is promoted by Sogeti. There are also International Standard Organization appraisals (ISO) that evaluate capability and quality of delivery.

Many companies, especially those doing outsourcing, have found these useful in promoting their businesses. It shows consumers that the company is interested in improving their 'delivery' operations and also can point to an independent appraisal (vs. self-appraisals). Unfortunately, when buying services, especially far afield, one of the first questions asked is whether the company is strong enough to continue in operations. The International Institute for Outsource Managment provides a VIABILITY assessment that measures this aspect. Originally carried out by Certellus Corporation over 100 Global Star Certification (GSC) assessment around the globe. Many of these original assessments were done for the buyer, but today we are seeing more and more outsourcers seeing value in building their business and also providing a level of certainty about this aspect. As is often said, "You may be capable of delivering but if you aren't viable, you are going to be out of business!".

Hope you enjoyed our work for the week. We (Mabel, Max & Dexter) wishing you a happy and productive week.

Technical Advise Week #23 - Friend or Foe??

Over the few years of our life, and the many years of dad's life, the question of friendship has always found it's way into business. Despite dad's valiant attempts, the question of friendship has always be brought up as a question about business issues. His favorite response is "friends are friends and business is business". To this end he has held true to this and never has allowed one relationship to spill over into another.

Some would say that this is an impossibility, there has to be some degree of consideration. Let us share with you a few cases to illustrate that we are truthful in his conviction.

1. Friendships are not used as a basis for business offerings, in fact on more than one occasion he has turned away offers because of friendships. Some friendships continued but many fell by the wayside. While this makes dad sad, it was probably for the best as it relates to the people who were asking the favor.

2. On a few occassions friends were having personal problems, and asked for business concessions. Dad's view is simple, it's not my concern as a business about your personal issues, it is my concern as a friend only.

3. Making wise decisions in business is a far different situtation than making personal decisions. One cannot apply personal beliefs, then try and then transfer them to business (they don't even apply when trying to reach for similiarities in behavior).

Why do we say this? Your professional life is rich with relationships (some will become friends, whereas most are simply acquaintances). One would more than likely not trust acquiantances as a basis for making strategic business decisions. Friends will most likely not engage you in support for hard personal issues. Therefore it's like oil and water, they don't mix. A friend of dad's make the comment that business & friend relationships is like the farmer who wants as many eggs as possible but realizes that this isn't going to happen so he kills the chicken only to discover that the hen wasn't lieing, there really wasn't an abundance of eggs in the body. A business looks at facts, works from professional statements of agreement, and doesn't use friendship as a stick to pursuade events in a different direction. One will only find that when these sorts of things happen that the eggs aren't there.

Our advise, keep business in business and keep friendship out. It will serve you in the long term.

- Max & Mabel

Technical Advise Week #22 - Resolution?!

As we sit on the edge of yet another year it serves us to reflect on 2007 and set about to set resolutions for 2008. 2007 was a really crazy year with lots and lots of new adventures, pursuits and the journey into the unknown corners of technology. We are sure that some of you are wondering where is the technical content (hint... look into the manuals and don't wait for us to read that bedtime story to you, haha!). Technical content is in the eye of the beholder and for most it's not enough to know a particular technology but rather it's an opportunity to ponder directions and avenues. Why would anyone wish to taken on a technology that is slated for the graveyard? Rather, we hope that our weekly rants serve to stimulate you to take an interest, blaze a trail, and to walk boldly forward. Heaven knows one would be the first to accept this advise, if they knew that success was just around the corner. On the other hand, many would prefer to hide their reluctance behind words of disbelief and ridicule for those who poke and prod them forward. Our joint resolution, for Max & I, is to never stop exploring and challenging the edges of the technology spectrum. Whether it's new found aspects of ERP or whether it's building an industry such as what we are doing with maturing the outsource supplier in far away places, we will continue to do this again and again. Humans have been quick to point out that a dog is man's best friend, and that a dog never forgets. We hold this as true from first hand account and for these reason we are fiecely loyal to our readership, to our parents and to the technology we love. So blow the horn, toast another year past and look forward to the future, not as a follower but as a leader. From Mabel & Max Happy New Year 2008! We look forward to stimulating your mind and your interests.

Technical Advise Week #20/21 - We Did It Again!

Happy Holidays and Seasons Greetings!

I guess we did it again and missed our regular weekly commitment. It's really hard to type using small hands and short fingers, but we do our best.

Dad just returned from another successful trip to China. This time he was in Beijing for a series of lectures and meetings with leading outsourcing companies. Later he traveled to Yantai to conduct a series of meetings with leading government officials, including the Deputy Mayor and the Director of the Information Systems Bureau. He even showed up on China/Yantai TV (http://a.jiaodong.net/av/tv/play.asp?contentid=31810). We hope you can see it and we hope that it's not time sensitive. The video is in Chinese but you will get to see Dad with the Deputy Mayor and other officials and also the work location at HighYai Software.

We wish to discuss a little bit about perspectives. Many of the articles and studies conducted on outsourcing are from the domestic perspective. Very few describe or provide insight into the views from the service provider standpoint. One must constantly assess how we can bring together these ventures rather than fire vollies at each other, and then complain about the results. We have read books that promote the concept of the world is flat, but what they don't talk about is that the world isn't what is defined by us, but what is defined by specific cultures. Learning and appreciating other cultures, and doing so with respect is the first step toward bridging the gap.

To close we wish you all peace, here and with our global friends.

Technical Advise Week #18/19 - Did We Miss One?

In the Agile paradigm the group is empowered to keep the project on track and to compensate for misgiving that occur. Given this condition, we would have expected that someone would have come forward to remind us that we had skipped a week. We got SILENCE... what does this mean? Is it that we have no readership, was it the holiday season, or was it something else? Max & my response is to provide guidance in what we can control therefore; 1. we have provided ourselves with a To Do list reminder, 2. we ask that you remind us if we are remiss, and 3. if we know that there is a condition (like a holiday) that will be occuring we will take proactive measures to address the issue before it arises. We wanted to bring this up because there are many lessons to be learned from this, all of which are project applicable.

Here is the lessons;

1. Group empowerment is important and a step towards responsibility & accountability,
2. If you are expecting something to happen take proactive measures to address it,
3. Don't rely on others, but don't be afraid to ask for help if it involves them, and
4. Remember that you can only control those things that are within your span of control. Others are accountable for self-control.

Next week Dad is going to Beijing and Yentai as a part of the International Institute for Outsource Management effort and the formation of the International Outsource Management Research Center (IOMRC). This is a great initiative and is uniquely positioned to mature the outsourcing market from the provider side. Given this it may be possible that we may have a couple of weeks lag, we will see whether Dad can do this remotely for us. Since we will communicate with him via Skype we are sure that he will be kept appraised of domestic matters.

- Mabel & Max