There's an App for That!

There’s been great accomplishments over the last four or five years in technology.   Cloud services makes it possible to get an App on just about anything, anywhere and anytime.    Not only that, there’re pretty good too considering you can use most across multiple platforms.    And there’re not that expensive, sometimes even free if you don’t need all the bells and whistles.    There’re mostly intuitive and easy to learn and use, if not no problem, just get another one.   And to top it off you can get them yourself and fast through App Stores without going through the hassles of IT or Procurement. 

Cloud Adoption, Tip of the Iceberg? 

Cloud services are so wildly successful, many organizations don’t realize how many are being used in their company.    SkyHigh Networks published Cloud Adoption & Risk Report Q1 2015 estimates the average company now uses 923 distinct cloud services which is up 21.6% over previous quarter. “That number is more than 10 times higher than what IT estimates, highlighting the exceptional growth in employee-led cloud adoption” and growing.

Icebergs Sink Ships!

For a CIO this brings up some interesting questions.   Who is responsible for cloud services?  What are the risks?  What impact will this have on legacy IT models?  How do we harvest value and minimize the risk? Where will we get the resources?

This article looks at some of the opportunities and challenges created by Cloud services through the lens of Lean CSI which is “new thinking on delivering value with resource constraints”.

“The time, the time, who’s got the time?” asked March Hare

Scene from Alice in Wonderland

Do you ever feel like you’re in Wonderland and your watch is two days slow?  One of the most important resources within IT is time. We “are too busy resolving incidents to document adequately”, “have no time to complete changes/projects properly”, “have no time to improve” or we “have to test less to meet delivery dates”.

Time is a precious resource, use it wisely 

This article presents the notion that time is a precious resource and should be used wisely.  That is, stop doing things that don’t add value.   See how to measure, learn and improve your use of time to create real value for competitive advantage.

Service Providers under Pressure to find Competitive Advantage

Knowing how your customers value your services is key to success.  Sometimes it’s tough to find the perfect blend of reliable service delivery with good quality and for the right cost.  Finding your optimal mix “the zone” gives you significant advantage to win new customers and keep them delighted.

Occasionally customers and service providers have different opinions of what value is.  Getting the right mix of benefits, features, quality, guarantees and costs is paramount to happy customers and a good night’s sleep.  Let’s call this right mix “the zone”.  You want to be in the zone at all times.  Focus too much in one area, say low cost, you risk other areas, like quality.  As the old expression goes “Good, fast or cheap; pick two”.  You get the point.

Get in the Zone and Create your Advantage 

This article presents some ideas, techniques, tips, tricks and best practices to help you improve your services value proposition.  That is, maximum value for the right cost, delivery and quality.  See how to measure, learn and improve your services value proposition for competitive advantage.