Posts about career, jobs, interviews and success at work.
Although it is very true that the best innovation comes from inside your organization, sometimes it is preferable to seek outside help from unusual sources. Innovation is about doing things better. It’s also about challenging one-self and the status-quo we find ourselves in, and it can result in major step-change as well as continuous improvement. […]
Outer-vation – How To Get Innovation From the Outside Read More »
I’ve just seen an article on CIO.COM which suggests 24 alternative careers for IT professionals. The article is off the back of the belief in the disappearance of tech jobs from the US, but this is true of Canada and Western Europe also. The article, written by Meredith Levinson, looks at the skills and experience of common IT vocations
Alternative non-IT Careers for Tech Workers Read More »
Have you used mindmapping as a communication tool? Mindmapping is not new (in fact it has been used for centuries), but it is becoming increasingly popular in business as a tool for organizing thoughts and ideas for personal use and more increasingly in teams over the enterprise. What’s more, the output of mindmapping tools are
The Penetration of Enterprise Mindmapping Tools & Technology Read More »
Last week I wrote an article about the really embarrassing issue of not knowing when your website is down – particularly before your boss does. Does this still happen to you?Have you got a story along these lines? And how did you solve it?
Web Outages – What is Your Story? Read More »
As soon as the word bad boss is mentioned most people start imagining pictures of a wicked person, a crook, a tyrant, a scheming backstabbing individual, a selfish ogre, etc. And typical textbook definitions of a bad boss is one who screams, threatens, intimidates, grabs credit, fires people, throttles people’s necks and so on. While
Brilliant Basics: When Good People Become Bad Bosses Read More »
One of my more popular articles recently has been ‘12 Behaviors Most Disliked by IT Professionals ‘ in which I shared the 12 things IT professionals hated the most about their leaders. In this article, I will be addressing one of these – when the objectives of different leaders are misaligned.
How to Piss Off IT Professionals: Misalignment of Objectives Read More »
Only last week I wrote that asking questions is one of the most powerful leadership tools there is. Since then I’ve connected with an aspiring IT Manager and Author, Thejendra BS. Thejendra is based out of Bangalore, India. Thejendra wrote a great article that compliments my recent post – so I am sharing it with you.“HOW TO ASK
UPDATE: How To Ask Questions to get Great Results Read More »
I’ve just read an excellent article, written by Ann All, on the IT Business Edge website that discusses the working environment that IT professionals prefer to work in.What I like about it is Ann’s honest view about the conclusion that IT people like to work in a positive, challenging environment. I’m pleased that IT people see
Money Isn’t Everything, According to IT Professionals (who responded) Read More »
I have been a developer myself, and I know many developers. The nature of these beasts, in general terms, tends to be outside of the ‘corporate norm’, as quite frankly, development requires abnormal skills (I mean that in the nice way!) However, customers and colleagues of developers who fit in with the norm can sometimes
8 Easy Tips on How To Create a Professional Image as a Freelance Developer Read More »
One of the most embarrassing events to happen to me is when my boss has asked me why our company website is down. I didn’t know it was down – and it was. Yellow Pages down the pants-time. One easy way I found to get to know first is to use a website monitoring tool.
Know When Your Website is Down Before Your Boss Does! Read More »
Management science couldn’t warn Churchill of the strong link between the Leader, Followers and Situation. This is called the Leader Follower Situation Model.
See the Leader Follower Situation Model in Action Read More »
I’ve often written about Lightworkers and Darkworkers. There are similarities between the boy-hero and Lightworkers I thought might be fun. He trusted his instinct and acted upon it:Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: A New Hope switched off his targetting computer and trusts his instinct when firing that bomb thing into the Death Star. What a guy. Lightworkers
5 Reasons Why Lightworkers (in IT) are like Luke Skywalker Read More »
Asking questions is one of the most powerful tools a leader can use. Young children use questions from an early age to find out how the world, and people, works. The great thing about questions is that they enable a leader to direct and instruct without actually giving directions or instructions, and the result of
How To Ask Questions to get Great Results Read More »
Opinion isn’t one-sided! In response to my recent article on the 11 behaviors most disliked by IT leaders, here are the 12 behaviors most disliked by IT workers of their managers/leaders. This list was created from surveying some of the IT professionals I know and connect with from a number of countries and industries (56
12 Behaviors Most Disliked by IT Professionals Read More »
I’ve just seen this article on CIO.COM which lists the top 10 annoying aspects of social networking, according to PCWORLD. Number 8 in their list is a comment about LinkedIn being ‘uptight’ – the article goes to say:
LinkedIn isn’t for Lovesick Teenagers Read More »
I’d like to point you to a brief but useful article by Loraine Lawson I found on ITBusinessEdge which discusses cost saving on integration projects. Loraine gives three tips for ensuring your integration project delivers value and isn’t pumped up with hype. Vendors are aggressive in their sales tactics as the prize is high, and particularly
SOA and Integration – Buyer (Be/A)ware…? Read More »
A couple of weeks back I wrote about the most disliked behaviors in IT departments, and one that 80% of IT leaders felt strongly about was the rise of the Merit-Whore. A Merit-Whore is someone who persistently and unfairly takes credit for the work of a team or a subordinate. Why does this happen?In most
It’s Leaders Who Create Merit-Whores Read More »
Do you still sense a big gap between the IT and Business?What do you think should be done about it?There is still quite a big gap in my opinion, and although it is reducing over time, there is still a perception of IT that it is all about tape-reels, basement rooms and fan-fold print outs!
The IT-Business Divide – Still Wide and Still Alive? Read More »
I recently wrote about the 11 Behaviors most disliked by IT Leaders, and #9 in that list was: Email-itis – in other words, staff using emails rather than interacting with each other in person. The added hatred was the use of blind copy and the overuse of copy to a wide audience
Leaders Must Exorcise The Curse of Email Read More »
Following my recent article, I’ve found an excellent article on the HBS Working Knowledge website which discusses the tendencies of women who are finding it easier to move jobs and maintain their star profile.This article shares the results of research that shows that females are generally more apt at switching jobs and preserving their ‘shine’, when compared
Update: How To Find a Much Better IT Job, Even in Recession Read More »
To most people outside of IT, SOA is really dull. I hear business people talk about it as ‘hype’ and an ‘excuse’ to delay work. Well that might be true in some cases. But I think it is more likely because of a lack of understanding and appreciation of the potential upside.I recently wrote about
How To Sell SOA to Your Business Read More »
