Agile Elephant

Connecting vs. Communicating

NEWS FLASH!!  Social Media is hot!  People are connecting through Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn and many other on-line avenues. 

OK, maybe not such a news flash.  But I have noticed that most people that are utilizing these forums are what I would call " Compulsive Contact Gatherers".  These CCGs take pride in the number of connections they can accumulate and then stream nonsensical information into the blogosphere hoping that someone out there cares about what store they are in or what they are eating at that moment.  These people are not effectively communicating.

When I first got turned onto Twitter I have to admit that I fell into the same dark hole.  Why in god's name would I care what Ashton Kutcher is doing? Does he care what I'm doing?  How does that help me?  I quickly learned that my on-line presence is a reflection of my professional presence.

Don't get me wrong.  It can be fun to post funny comments and some personal information...to a point.  But just keep in mind who is watching and what your posts say about you.

All of these social media tools have already revolutionized the way we communicate.  But the key word here is "communicate".  If you are actively building your personal and professional network so you can keep in touch with friends, colleagues, clients, etc. then welcome to the revolution!  If you are just collecting names like you have some compulsive hoarding disorder and letting us know you enjoyed the chicken last night, then please don't bother me.

IBM IMPACT, Social Media, Personal Branding and Expanding Your Network

As IBM IMPACT comes to a close, there was a lot to learn and I certainly left with an expanded viewpoint on SOA, Cloud Computing and, most interesting to me, the application of social media tools to build your personal brand and expand your network.

It was Twitter-mania as people were pounding away at their laptops and blackberries, sometimes just a few feet away from their intended message target.  Larger screens were used to display all Twitter traffic related to IMPACT (#ibmimpact).  Bloggers were treated as IT gods, given press passes and special access to learn more about what IBM had planned for release.

So what might seem to be overkill, actually made for a very interesting event.  The attendees, and not IBM, became the true focus of this conference.

Two sessions stood out for me:  First was Jeremiah Owyang (@jowyang) fromForrester Research.  If you follow Jeremiah on Twitter or on his blog, there are always great take-aways!  In his research, what Jeremiah was able to uncover was that social media tools were going well beyond the personal use aspects and are already very embedded in our corporate marketing culture.  More and more marketing dollars are being taken away from traditional marketing projects and being put into building an on-line brand.  And this trend is just going to continue to the point where we, as consumers, become a 'community of buyers' who can be represented or sold to on the open market.

The other session was hosted by Sandy Carter, IBM's VP SOA & Websphere Strategy.  Sandy discussed the importance of personal branding, using social media to build trust and creating an emotional connection with your intended audience.  Overall, a wonderful session.  Sandy touched on a subject that I have blogged about and presented on many times in the past; your ability to network and take advantage of the network of others is the key to creating success in your personal and professional life.. plus it is a lot of fun!

IBM IMPACT was a big success in my book.  Many connections were made to expand my own network, the network of others and I learned quite a bit about how to leverage social media tools to advance one's personal brand.  See you next year!

SOA and The Cloud @ IBM IMPACT

I got off the plane in Las Vegas, ready to meet and network with some great colleagues (and soon-to-be colleagues) at the IBM IMPACT event.  And, even though I was greeted at the airport by a slew of "Oracle #1 in SOA" banners, I have to say that everything has been going well the past few days.  

First of all, as a non-technologist who focuses on the human aspects of technology, I have to report that IBM really has its act together when it comes to SOA, Websphere and its deployment.  The sessions around these topics, especially the panel discussions, have been great.

That being said, IBM really doesn't seem to have its arms around Cloud Computing yet.  Many of the sessions were very basic "What is Cloud Computing" information sessions.  Plus it appears as though that there is this expectation that IBM (and I don't mean to single out IBM - many companies have this same though process) can simply push its products onto the cloud and poof! ....Cloud Computing!!  Sadly, according to many of my colleagues that I spoke with, this is simply not a good strategy.  I am pretty confident that IBM will be more prepared for cloud computing discussions next year, but this one was kind of a bust.

All-in-all, IBM IMPACT has been a very successful trip for me.  Lots of very bright and communicative people that are passionate about their work.

My next post will focus on some of the great sessions I attended concerning the use of social media in business.  Some really great stuff!  Especially all the twittering going on (you can find me @jordanhaber)

Off to my next session then KC and the Sunshine Band!

When good people get fired...

Working off of a good post by James McGovern, I am often reminded that I can succeed as a recruiter in a down economy because strong talent is a rare commodity and my access to it makes me unique.  The difficulty comes in finding the companies that realize that an increase in compensation levels overall can benefit a company in the long run.  However the inverse is true as well... Those that release good talent to simply reduce overhead are risking the vitality of their organization.  

"Employers don't want to pay the cost associated with replacing employees, but eliminating employees is usually considered to be a cost saving measure..."

I would like to modify this statement by James slightly.  I honestly don't think that most employers realize what costs are involved in replacing an employee (good post for a later date).  This 'cut and save' attitude is a losing proposition.  Taking advantage of the companies that are short-sighted and release good talent is key.

The days when job security was almost a certainty are long gone.  Being able to maintain a wide network of contacts will keep you active (and employed) for the long haul.

On that note, mark your calendars for April 30th, 2009 when I will be speaking at OWASP Hartford on how I go about recruiting elite IT talent and how you can better utilize your networking skills to keep yourself gainfully employed.

Top Blog for Developers!

A big thanks to Mike Kavis (@madgreek65) for pointing out to me that Agile Elephant was in the Top 200 list for influential blogs for developers.  While my ranking within that 200 is nothing to write home about, it's still nice to be recognized and I really have a ton of room for improvement.

Thank you to all those who track Agile Elephant and follow me on Twitter (@jordanhaber).  I'll keep pushing stronger content and try to achieve what I ultimately wanted: an influential blog that focuses on the human aspects of agility within any corporation.

SOA and Social Media

I'm writing this post while simultaneously checking my TweetDeck (@jordanhaber), Facebook page and LinkedIn Updates.  There is an on-going convergance of business and the use of social media sites such as these.  Web 2.0 technologies are quickly invading the professional circle and it is only for the better.  Even my own company just released its own Facebook page focused on our nuclear energy business.

Staying connected to all the SOA professionals that I work with has become easier and, honestly, a lot of fun!  I can attest to a much more robust recruiting network thanks to the use of these Web 2.0 tools.  So please reach out to connect with me and, if your attending IBM IMPACT, let me know!

IT Asset Management On Steroids

I don't usually post information related to my own IT Practice, but this is an area that is in high demand and worth further discussion on future posts..

I have seen an increasing need for many of my clients to get their arms around their asset management processes.  Since I'm not a shy person, I began to make some inquiries as to whether or not IT Asset Management (commonly referred to as ITAM) is a practice area worthy of exploring.  It didn't take long for me to learn quite a bit about ITAM and how it touches on every aspect of a company's internal IT spend.

After a good deal of C-Level discussions within my company, we decided to make a significant move into the IT Asset Management Services space.  It didn't take me very long to identify and recruit some of the best ITAM talent in the marketplace:  David Keith (CSAM CHAMP CITAM) and Judy McCall (CSAM CHAMP) as ITAM Director and Associate Director respectively.

David Keith is a known entity in the ITAM Practice world.  As the former Director of Government Relations and Research for the International Association of IT Asset Management (IAITAM), he has professionally trained thousands of Asset Managers in industries all over the world.  But because of his role in the Association and the need for him to remain vendor and services neutral, he has never been able to lend his expertise to the marketplace.

We're looking forward to working with Dave and Judy.  We have the ability to truly create the most robust ITAM Services Practice in the world. 

SAP says "Thanks, but we're full"...

So SAP feels that their skills shortage is over?  Well according to them, they are meeting demand and are turning their attention to strengthening the skill sets of their internal teams. 

It is certainly true that there is nothing like a down economy to help drive independent consulting resources into full-time positions for stability.  But that is a cyclical solution to a problem that will not go away that easily.  "With an aging workforce and fewer students signing on for science and math degrees, it could prove to be a perennial problem..."

Even SAP freely admits that with the 27,300 skilled professionals that were added last year, customers are still demanding more from their consulting resources.  Key certifications are a part of that, as is hands-on project experience with the client implementation.

When all is said and done, whether you are utilizing SAP's resources or mine, don't just accept that the consultants are "skilled professionals".  Find out what projects they have worked on in the past, what certifications they have and how they fit into your organization.  More to follow on this topic..

Time to Look Down Before Looking Ahead

There was a good article in the Sunday New York Times about the key business drivers for 2009.  They focused on Value, Due Diligence, Timing, Tools and Trust.  All very good points and I encourage you to read the article.  But as many companies will be looking to remediate costs this year by outsourcing to the cloud, how many are taking the time to review their current infrastructure and put real dollar figures to the return on their existing investment in technology?

IT asset management, or ITAM, is already a very hot area of interest for many companies.  Larger firms that retain an Asset Manager can calculate their investments much more easily.  These are individuals who have been trained in software and hardware management (CSAM, CHAMP).  But there are many mid-sized firms that cannot calculate their IT spend and honestly don't have the slightest idea how to go about doing it.

So as I speak with my clients about outsourcing and cloud computing, I always ask if they know their current IT spend and what their existing ROI and TCO bring to the company.  Wouldn't that be a good thing to know??  You'd be amazed how many senior IT executives have no clue as to what specific dollar value their department brings to their own organization.

A Four-Day Work Week to Lower Costs?!?!?!

So Trip Chowdhry, the tech analyst at Global Equities Research thinks that Silicon Valley is headed for a four-day work week in 2009 (see Barrons post).  This will cut salaries by 20%, leading to lower energy usage and, ultimately, lower housing prices in an already inflated market.

You can read the post for yourself but the absolute nonsense of this type of prognostication is beyond belief.  I would pay particular attention to some of the comments from the post which are spot-on.

Even if this were true (which I highly doubt), energy costs would not be lowered as people would just have to fit their 60-hour work weeks into a 32 hour week, instead of a 40-hour week.  It would be a pure cost-cutting measure.

I would love to hear from anyone who either thinks this is a possibility or even a good idea.