MANAGEMENT VISIONS

Monday, October 27, 2008

November 3, 2008

"PRIDE"-ISEM PHASE 4-II - SOFTWARE ENGINEERING (SPECIAL)

This is Part XIV in our series on the "PRIDE" Methodologies for IRM. In this edition we provide a description of the concepts and philosophies used in the "PRIDE"-Information Systems Engineering Methodology (ISEM).

The full text for this section can be obtained by clicking: HERE.

NEXT UP: Phase 5 of the "PRIDE"-Information Systems Engineering Methodology (ISEM), Software Manufacturing.

If you would like to discuss this with me in more depth, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.

Keep the faith!

OUR BRYCE'S LAW OF THE WEEK therefore is...

Good Systems Design + Good Programming = Great Systems
Good Systems Design + Bad Programming = Good Systems
Bad Systems Design + Good Programming = Bad Systems
Bad Systems Design + Bad Programming = Chaos

"MORPHING INTO THE REAL WORLD"

Friends, be sure to check out our book entitled, "MORPHING INTO THE REAL WORLD - A Handbook for Entering the Work Force" which is a survival guide for young people as they transition into adult life.

Bonnie Wooding, the President of the Toronto Chapter of the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) said, "Many of our members are just starting their careers and I will be recommending that they read this book, especially Chapter 3, Professional Development - a primer for business skills and filled with basic common sense advice that is simple, easy to follow and extraordinarily practical; and Chapter 5, Do’s and Don’ts of the Workplace, an excellent resource for those questions you are too embarrassed to ask for fear of looking foolish."

The Miami Hurricane recently reviewed it (10/22/2007) and said,

"the abundance of information the book provides is a good start for anyone about to take the first step into the real world. Though the concept of adulthood may seem intimidating, it's comforting to know that someone has at least written a guidebook for it."

Reviewer Bill Petrey praised it by saying, "Every young person entering the workplace for the first time should be given a copy of this book."

The book includes chapters to describe how a young person should organize themselves, how to adapt to the corporate culture, develop their career, and improve themselves professionally and socially. Basically, its 208 pages of good sound advice to jump start the young person into the work force. Corporate Human Resource departments will also find this book useful for setting new hires on the right track in their career. It not only reinforces the many formal rules as contained in corporate policy manuals, but also includes the subtle unwritten rules we must all observe while working with others. The book lists for $25 and can be ordered online through MBA or your local book store. Complementing the book is a one day seminar of the same name which can be purchased separately for $4,000.00 (U.S.) plus instructor travel expenses. For more information on both the book and the seminar, visit our corporate web site at: http://www.phmainstreet.com/mba/morph.htm
ISBN: 978-0-9786182-5-4

MY "PET PEEVE OF THE WEEK" IS "FACING REALITY"

Telling the truth has gotten me into a lot of trouble on more than one occasion over the years, both personally and professionally. So much so that I have come to the conclusion that people plain and simply don't want to know it. For starters, it's hard to know when someone is telling the truth. A lot depends on the integrity of the person telling us something, coupled with our ability to apply logic. Erroneous results occur when we are being misled and don't use our heads which is why people act more on perceptions as opposed to reality (which is what politicians running for office count on).

Facing reality can be a daunting task as it can be rather unpleasant. As a result, people retreat into a make-believe world or yearn for a bygone era. Let me give you an example, not long ago I took some time off to do some fly fishing in the mountains of North Carolina. The area I visited seemed to be somewhat depressed and I discussed it with a friend who had moved to the area. At one time, the area was well known as a prominent furniture maker and tobacco grower. But as foreign competition proliferated in the 1980's and 1990's, at a fraction of the cost of what the North Carolinians offered, companies closed their doors. Since the passage of the Federal Tobacco Quota Buyout in October 2004, North Carolina's tobacco industry has been in a "transition" period, meaning tobacco production has sharply diminished in the area, if not disappeared altogether. All of this has given rise to unemployment, government subsidies, and a general bewilderment by the populace as to what to do next.

There are those still yearning for furniture work, but cannot seem to come to grips with the fact that the ship has sailed. Because of the natural beauty of the area, including mountains, streams, hunting and fishing, and gemstones, some would like to develop the area for tourism. Alas, this is pooh-poohed by the locals who are easily alarmed by outsiders and their perceived sinful ways. Instead, the residents have elected to simply do nothing and allow themselves to stagnate in a state of analysis paralysis. You can readily see the effect it is having on the natives as there is no hustle, no service, no nothing, just a defeatist attitude, all because they refuse to face reality.

I'm sure we have all seen instances of this throughout the country, if not in our very neighborhoods; people who are simply unwilling to recognize the truth and deal with reality; people who are unwilling to upset the status quo even at the expense of its demise. There is a scene in the movie "Men in Black" which sums it up for me; in it, Will Smith's character ("Jay") questions why the world doesn't know about aliens living on Earth, "People are smart, they can handle it."

To which, Tommy Lee Jones ("Kay") replies, "A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it. Fifteen hundred years ago everybody knew the Earth was the center of the universe. Five hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth was flat, and fifteen minutes ago, you knew that humans were alone on this planet. Imagine what you'll know tomorrow."

Imagine where we'll be if we don't face reality; maybe somewhere in North Carolina.

Such is my Pet Peeve of the Week.

Note: All trademarks both marked and unmarked belong to their respective companies.

"BRYCE'S PET PEEVE OF THE WEEK"

Folks, a couple of years ago I started to include my "Pet Peeve of the Week" in these "Management Visions" podcasts. They have become so popular that I now syndicate them through the Internet and they are available for republication in other media. To this end, I have created a separate web page for my writings which you can find at phmainstreet.com Look for the section, "The Bryce is Right!" Hope you enjoy them.

Also, if you happen to be in the Tampa Bay area of Florida, be sure to stop by and check out our new Palm Harbor Business OASIS, a new business venue offering local business people a place to meet, work, network, and relax. Why pay a lot for leasing office space when you can become a member of the OASIS for as little as $100/month? For more information, visit our web site at: http://www.phboasis.com/

AND FINALLY...

I received the following e-mail regarding my Pet Peeve on "The Blame Game":

An L.P. in Crowley, Texas wrote...

"During the Cold War I would blame anything and everything that annoyed me on 'a dirty communist plot to drive me crazy'. Now I just blame everything on 'mind controling aliens trying to drive me crazy'. Remember when Hilary C. blamed Bill C.'s infidelity on a Republican plot to disrespect his presidency? And she 'still' ran for president. I think people have short memories or she thinks the common person in the USA is stupid. Maybe I am. Are you trying to tell us that hurricane Ike wasn't President Bush's fault?"

A J.S. in Columbia, Missouri wrote...

"I couldn't agree with you more in saying that we don't want to take responsibility for ourselves and look for a scapegoat at every impass. It's always someone elses' fault."

I received the following e-mails from my "Pet Peeve" entitled, "The Four Day Work Week":

A J.D. in Tampa, Florida wrote...

"I've thought about this often, if only because I've found a 3-day weekend to be much more conducive to relaxation and 'recharging', than a normal 2-day weekend. To accomplish this, we could have four 10-hour workdays (thus providing the needed 40-hour work week), or switch to a 9-day rotation of 6 days on and 3 days off. The latter may sound incredulous, but Macy's had tried to institute that very policy back in the 40's. They wanted to have 3-day rotations, with various employees working 2 on and 1 off, staggered so that the store was always open. The idea was canned due to the confusion it would cause. But the idea of a 4-day work week would be successful, if, as you say, the focus is on productivity and not on the clock."

Again, thanks for your comments. For these and other comments, please visit my "Bryce is Right!" web site.

Keep those cards and letters coming.

MBA is an international management consulting firm specializing in Information Resource Management. We offer training, consulting, and writing services in the areas of Enterprise Engineering, Systems Engineering, Data Base Engineering, Project Management, Methodologies and Repositories. For information, call us at 727/786-4567.

Our corporate web page is at:

http://phmainstreet.com/mba/

Management Visions is a presentation of M. Bryce & Associates, a division of M&JB Investment Company of Palm Harbor, Florida, USA. The program is produced on a weekly basis and updated on Sundays. It is available in versions for RealPlayer, Microsoft Media Player, and MP3 suitable for Podcasting. See our web site for details. You'll find our broadcast listed in several Podcast and Internet Search engines, as well as Apples' iTunes.

If you have any questions or would like to be placed on our e-mailing list to receive notification of future broadcasts, please e-mail it to timb001@phmainstreet.com

For a copy of past broadcasts, please contact me directly.

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This is Tim Bryce reporting.

Since 1971: "Software for the finest computer - the Mind."

END

Labels: Bryce, Engineering, Facing, Florida, IRM, ISEM, MBA, Phase, PRIDE, Reality, Software, Tim

Monday, June 25, 2007

July 2, 2007

"THE BRUTAL REALITY OF IRM"

The challenge facing systems development since the MIS movement of the 1960's has been to share and reuse information resources on an enterprise-wide basis. There are substantial benefits for doing so:

The elimination of redundant work effort in systems design and programming, thereby accelerating delivery.
Simplified maintenance and enhancements of systems by controlling the whereabouts of information resources and how they relate and affect other components.
Integration of systems and software, thereby eliminating data redundancy and the production of inconsistent information.

Consider this, had companies been controlling information resources properly over the years, the crossover to Y2K would have been a nonevent. Instead, billions of dollars were spent in preparation for the switch.

The concept of Information Resource Management (IRM) is actually quite simple: to inventory and control all of the resources needed to satisfy the information needs of an enterprise. This includes data components (data elements, records, files, data bases, etc.), system components (systems, business processes, procedures, programs, etc.), and business components (functions, jobs, human and machine resources, skills, objectives, and projects).

To implement IRM, technology was introduced over the years, starting with the data dictionaries of the 1970's which evolved into more robust products referred to as "Repositories" which included a manifest of all information resources and how they are interrelated. An IRM Repository, therefore, represents a centralized consolidation of the whereabouts of all corporate information resources, regardless of where used or how stored, including corporate records. For example, it is equally concerned with the information resources as maintained in manual files as it is with those as maintained by the computer. As such, an IRM Repository bridges manual processing to automated processing.

Basically, the concept of a Repository is to record design decisions during a development project much like how an engineer records design decisions when defining the components of any product. In fact, the Repository concept is derived from "Bill of Materials Processing" (BOMP) which seeks to itemize and cross-reference parts to products, thereby providing the means to share and reuse components. One important byproduct of both BOMP and the IRM Repository is that design documentation is always current and up-to-date; as design decisions and component relationships are updated, the documentation is automatically updated. Further, the design intelligence contained in the IRM Repository is so extensive and precise, it can be used to drive application development aids such as program generators, report writers, and other CASE related tools.

Although techniques such as IRM Repositories and BOMP are useful on a product-by-product basis (or system-by-system), the true benefits are derived when they are used on a corporate-wide scale, thereby promoting the true concept of sharing and reusing components. And herein lies the rub; whereas the technology is certainly available to implement this concept, the management needed to make it happen isn't. Despite the considerable benefits associated with Information Resource Management, it will never be realized in this day and age for three reasons:

IRM requires a global perspective of information resources. Unfortunately, corporate America is more conducive to the creation of fiefdoms and, as such, there is more of a spirit of competitiveness as opposed to cooperation in the workplace. It takes true visionaries to understand the benefits of IRM and true geniuses to make it happen.
IRM requires standardization and discipline. In order to implement a centralized facility to share and reuse resources, agreement must be reached in terms of the standard components to be defined, their attributes, and how they relate to other components. This also requires standard processes (methodologies) for developing systems so they can be assembled in a consistent and predictable manner. Regrettably, it is fallacious to believe there are any standards in the I.T. community and, as a result, most I.T. shops consist of mavericks with different interpretations of how to address systems development. Concepts such as standardization and discipline are steadfastly resisted. Bottom-line: IRM implies a science with governing concepts and rules, not an undisciplined art form which is how most I.T. workers currently view it.
IRM requires long term thinking which is the exception as opposed to the rule in most companies. The true benefits of sharing and reusing resources will not be realized immediately. Instead, it is an investment in the future. Companies will benefit the moment they start to share and reuse information resources from one project to the next. But the real payoff is when the IRM Repository matures, and components are reused time and again.

The concept of IRM reminds me of an incident years ago when there was a problem with famine in India. To help out, the United States sent seed grain to India for the local populace to plant and harvest. This was a viable long-term strategy to take. Unfortunately, when the sacks of seed were delivered to the docks, the people opened them and ate the seed as opposed to planting it. This remedied their immediate hunger problem, but ruined their long term needs. You cannot harvest a crop if you do not sow the seeds. The same is true in IRM. To harvest the crop, we must first document our resources. Only then can we realize the benefits of sharing and reusing them.

Even though IRM is a beautifully simple concept, its only weakness is the management needed to implement it. If you are considering the acquisition of an IRM Repository for your development efforts, consider your management skills first.

OUR BRYCE'S LAW OF THE WEEK therefore is... "You must first plant the seeds in order to harvest the crop."

"PRIDE" METHODOLOGIES FOR IRM

Friends, the "PRIDE" Methodologies for Information Resource Management (IRM) is a common sense solution for Enterprise Engineering, Systems Engineering, Data Base Engineering, and Project Management. The methodologies include defined work breakdown structures, deliverables, and review points that promote quality and the production of industrial-strength information systems. Building information resources is a science, not an art form. Our methodologies clearly explain the concepts that govern them, which remarkably, is derived from engineering/manufacturing practices. Now you can get these acclaimed methodologies for free at our corporate web site at: http://www.phmainstreet.com/mba/pride/

MY "PET PEEVE OF THE WEEK" IS "MISSING SAM KINISON"

As many of you know, we lost comedian Sam Kinison in an automobile accident back in 1992. For those of you who do not remember him, Sam was described as a "heavy metal" comedian who was well known for being raunchy and irreverent. Interestingly, prior to becoming a comedian he was an ordained Pentecostal Minister. But he was better known for his shock-rock humor who made biting commentaries of our time. It seemed nobody was spared, but his favorite targets were Rev. Jim Bakker of the PTL Club and his wife Tammy, Jessica Hahn, the Pope, Oral Roberts, religion in general, World Hunger, Gays, and several commentaries on sex, drugs and Rock n'Roll. I can still vividly remember his trademark scream. His humor would make just about everyone blush, but behind it all you had to admit there was an element of truth and wisdom in his comedy, and this is what ultimately endeared him to the public. Many didn't understand how a former minister could be so vulgar, but as for me, I clearly understood what he was trying to tell us.

What is sad is that Sam was cut down just as the times were changing and we needed his biting humor more than ever. Had Sam survived, imagine what he could have done with Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and Anita Hill, President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky, Drummer Tommy Lee and Pam Anderson, Anna Nicole Smith and Paris Hilton. But Sam's humor was not confined to sex, I would have loved to have heard his take on Bill Gates and Windows, Steve Jobs and the iPod, the Internet, the Taliban, Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden, Iraq and Saddam Hussein, immigration, and on and on. Unfortunately, Sam missed a period of time which would have given him more fodder for his humor than he could have imagined. But such was not to be.

What few people realize is that just prior to his death, Sam was planning on giving up comedy and going back to being a Minister. As for me, Sam taught me that in an age of political correctness, maybe some intolerance and ridicule is deserved; that maybe we shouldn't just sit back and accept the status quo and instead we should speak up and voice our displeasure, and; that perhaps we take ourselves way too seriously.

So, Yes, I miss Sam, not just for how he ranted and raved, but more importantly, what he was trying to tell us.

Such is my Pet Peeve of the Week.

"BRYCE'S IS RIGHT!"

AND FINALLY...

An R.W. in Texas wrote me regarding my recent "Pet Peeve" on "Empty Nests."
He writes:

"Don't worry, you will find that just about the time you make the adjustment and get comfortable with the quiet and the pleasant evenings with your spouse . . . the kids come back for a while. We currently have a stepdaughter and her family (which includes a husband, an 18 year-old daughter, a 6 year-old son, and an 18 month old, hyperactive, female poodle) living in our upstairs area. Right after we moved into this house, we had the same stepdaughter (with no family at the time) and her sister and husband and newborn twins move into the upstairs.

However, that being said, I know what you mean about missing them . . . and finding things you almost didn't remember you had. (I wound up with an amazing number of extension cords because some gremlin kept hiding them in other bedrooms)."

Thanks for your comments.