Senor Pablo's Wax Musuem

8 Things We Hate About IT

samuelpablo — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 04:02:17 +0000

IT is bureaucratic and frustrating—and absolutely necessary. But there are things companies can do to change this: by Susan Cramm in Business Week.

You may think that hate is too strong of a word for feelings toward a corporate department. I don’t. Yesterday, I was interviewing an executive on his perceptions of IT and he couldn’t spit his frustration out fast enough. He said, “In the quest of getting things organized, they are introducing a bunch of bureaucracy and, in the process, they’re abdicating their responsibility for making sure the right things get done.” This is completely typical of management’s frustration—no, management’s hatred—of IT.

It’s hard to remember the time when criticizing IT was controversial. Now, it’s ceased to be even interesting. The now-classic HBR article “IT Doesn’t Matter” resonated so clearly because it underscored the pervasive belief that IT mediocrity is the norm. And how bad is an industry’s reputation when a major outsourcer, Keane, can get away with insulting its target market with the slogan, “We Do IT Right”?

It’s not personal—nobody hates the people in IT—it’s the system that’s broken. And here’s the rub: IT doesn’t like it either. One global Fortune 200 CIO describes leading IT as “a sucking vortex.”

So let’s do something about it. In the spirit of confronting brutal facts honestly, and then developing deeper insights that will allow us to chart a new path—here’s my take on what we all hate about IT.

1. IT Limits Managers’ Authority You bring in 10% of the company’s revenue but can’t authorize a $100,000 project if it requires IT. Furthermore, IT’s bureaucratic governance process rivals the tax code in complexity and inhibits rather than promotes innovation.
2. They’re Missing Adult Supervision The CIO is impressive, but totally unavailable. So the next best option is your IT “relationship manager” who’s a few clicks down the evolutionary scale and doesn’t have the breadth of expertise to truly act as a trusted IT advisor to senior business executives.
3. They’re Financial Extortionists When was the last time there wasn’t some emergency in IT (e.g. Y2K, SOX, HIPAA) that requires a zillion dollars? Compound this with the lack of visibility into how IT spends non-project dollars and it makes you want to become a technology vendor to cash in on the booty.
4. Their Projects Never End In-process projects are always 90% done. “Completed” projects don’t have agreed to functionality, and the team that promises to deliver missing functionality in future phases are always mysteriously missing-in-action.
5. The Help Desk is Helpless When glitches emerge, you are become a technology pauper, going door-to-door begging for help while functional specialists defend the reliability of their piece of the byzantine infrastructure.
6. They Let Outsourcers Run Amok You know that outsourcing wasn’t really IT’s idea, but you blame them when you’re trying to communicate with external “service” providers that lack even a basic understanding of your business. It’s like trying to teach calculus to a 4 year old.
7. IT is Stocked with Out-of-Date Geeks It’s not good when you learn about social networking from your 12-year old at home while IT is still trying to cope with email. Then, when you try to brainstorm with IT about how to apply new technology, you get paternalistic responses akin to the look that parents give their children when they play dress up.
8. IT Never Has Good News No matter how much you spend and how hard you work, you never have anything to celebrate and little to look forward to as the promise of technology seems perpetually beyond your reach.

Of course, there’s yin to go with this yang and my next post will turn the tables to reveal IT’s point of view on corporate management.

In the meantime, tell me what I got wrong (and right)—what do you hate (and possibly, love) about IT?

P.S. To all my IT friends who hate that I wrote this—read this and take some solace that IT’s not the only one in the management doghouse.

Croaking

samuelpablo — Wed, 07 May 2008 00:47:22 +0000

grew convinc’d that truth, sincerity and integrity in dealings between man and man were of the utmost importance to the felicity of life; and I form’d written resolutions, which still remain in my journal book, to practice them ever while I lived. Revelation had indeed no weight with me, as such; but I entertain’d an opinion that, though certain actions might not be bad because they were forbidden by it, or good because it commanded them, yet probably these actions might be forbidden because they were bad for us, or commanded because they were beneficial to us, in their own natures, all the circumstances of things considered.
And this persuasion, with the kind hand of Providence, or some guardian angel, or accidental favorable circumstances and situations, or all together, preserved me, thro’ this dangerous time of youth, and the hazardous situations I was sometimes in among strangers, remote from the eye and advice of my father, without any willful gross immorality or injustice, that might have been expected from my want of religion. I say willful, because the instances I have mentioned had something of necessity in them, from my youth, inexperience, and the knavery of others. I had therefore a tolerable character to begin the world with; I valued it properly, and determin’d to preserve it.

Nursing has it’s own science (which you may not have known) with a plethora of Nursing Theorists that have formulated and articulated our Nursing arts and sciences:

There are croakers in every country, always boding its ruin. Such a one then lived in Philadelphia; a person of note, an elderly man, with a wise look and a very grave manner of speaking; his name was Samuel Mickle. This gentleman, a stranger to me, stopt one day at my door, and asked me if I was the young man who had lately opened a new printing-house. Being answered in the affirmative, he said he was sorry for me, because it was an expensive undertaking, and the expense would be lost; for Philadelphia was a sinking place, the people already half-bankrupts, or near being so; all appearances to the contrary, such as new buildings and the rise of rents, being to his certain knowledge fallacious; for they were, in fact, among the things that would soon ruin us. And he gave me such a detail of misfortunes now existing, or that were soon to exist, that he left me half melancholy. Had I known him before I engaged in this business, probably I never should have done it.
This man continued to live in this decaying place, and to declaim in the same strain, refusing for many years to buy a house there, because all was going to destruction; and at last I had the pleasure of seeing him give five times as much for one as he might have bought it for when he first began his croaking.

Kids suspended for Midol

samuelpablo — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 11:01:04 +0000

I have seen too many “zero tolerance” stories. Kids suspended for Midol. Kids suspended for a butter knife in the bed of their truck. A whole hallway of kids plasti-cuffed on a futile drug raid on no evidence, teachers looking up girls prom dresses for “inappropriate thongs”, kids suspended for a US Army t-shirt, kids suspended for hair color, censorship of school newspaper for reporting true news stories about the school district, kids suspended for cornrows, kids strip searched because $5 was missing, 18 year old student suspended for legally smoking on his own time off campus….on and on and on

It’s out of control. If George W. Bush proposed these things there would be a hue and cry of epic proportions. But some minor ex-coach who became principal or superintendent when he started losing games decides to do this stuff and we clap.

We are not training our kids to be thinking citizens…but to think that its ok for minor government officials to watch their every move on camera and control their daily existence…and to obey. Like thats normal. It should not be normal.

That is far more dangerous than a little blue hair or a Midol or a thong. We are raising drones, stamping out any differences, and cheering about it.

We are surprised when our kids are cynical…but we tell them that they are unique snowflakes..and then put them in uniforms to be the same. We send them to Civics class to learn how wonderful it is to be free and all of the rights we have…and then censor their newspaper, search them, and make them pee in a cup. Damn right I wouldn’t believe Civics class either.

introspection, reflection……and SKIING!

samuelpablo — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 06:41:56 +0000

O am working for the state now

repost from Por Qué No Taquería

Hello everyone….

It’s getting cold out there! This is great becuase it means that it’s the start of the season for introspection, reflection……and SKIING!

Therefore, that will be the theme of this email…usually I write about other businesses in my emails, but this one will be all about Por Qué No in order to focus on that introspection….and with the 3rd annual Día de Los Muertos dinner approaching, it’s the perfect time for some reflection….and with the snow already beginning to fall, it is time for the Por Qué No 10 times ski pass at Mt. Hood Meadows!

First off, I would like to let everyone know that we have some major changes out on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant. The long awaited bike racks have arrived just in time for the rainy season! Seriously though, I worked with The City of Portland to get a bike rack corral installed in the parking spots directly in front of Por Qué No, and they came through in a huge way…They were installed yesterday, and last night the racks were almost filled up! Take a look at bikeportland.org to see some pictures and a little blurb about it.

Another change out front is a rain cover we have made for the bamboo structure which will have heaters very soon….this is our version of expanding!

Other things to brag about:

We almost have a complete website..it’s a construction page right now…porquenotacos.com

If you missed the blurb in the Oregonian about our Aguas Frescas last week, check out the video the Oregonian made of Josh making our Aguas Frescas: http://blog.oregonlive.com/aenow/2007/10/aqua_fresca_at_por_que_no.html

All right, so it’s time for our 3rd Annual Dia de los Muertos dinner again…It will be on Thursday, November 1st. Last year the dinner was dedicated to my father who had passed away earlier in the year, and our first dinner was dedicated to my wife’s Grandfather, Neil Kelly. This year I would like to dedicate the dinner to all of the lost loved-one’s of the guests who will be attending. We will build an altar that will have plenty of room for all guests to bring items that represent a loved one who has passed on, so that we can all partake in the incredible ritual of keeping someone’s spirit alive. I would like to take time during the dinner for those who would like to tell stories about their loved one’s…The more stories, the better!

The menu is still being created, but will be at least 4 courses served family style, and will cost $40/person, not including drinks and gratuity. We can only fit 28 people and an altar into the restaurant, therefore the dinner will probably sell out rather quickly. I will take the first 24 people to email me, to be seated family style, and then the last four spots will be at the bar (I will make sure that you want to be at the bar). When you make a reservation, please email me your name, # of people, phone number, and whether or not you or your guests are vegetarians….And a reminder: this is not a white linen affair. Come relaxed, ready to meet people, ready to eat some incredible food, and hopefully willing to share stories of someone’s life you would like to celebrate.

Lastly, the snow is actually falling on Mt. Hood! There are already 8 inches at mid mountain, and it is supposed to keep coming all week! Last year we set up a Por Qué No group for Ten times passes (10X)…The pass allows the skiier/rider to get 10 lift tickets for $295 ($29.50/ticket as opposed to $59.00/ticket regular price). The passes can be shared with others after Spring Break if you don’t use all of them……

I am attaching an application to this email if you would like to join….Just fill out all of the required info and take it to Por Que No or send it to Por Qué No Taquería, attn. Ski Pass, 3524 N. Mississippi Ave., 97217. Make sure you have the right phone number on the application, because I will need to call you when the passes come in.

I NEED THE APPLICATIONS BY OCTOBER 31st!!!

We need at least ten people to join, but last year we had twenty, so that should be no problem! This is a great way to be excited for all of the rain falling during the winter rather than fretting about it!

Other than that, thank you so much for all of the support to our little restaurant…It has been a great couple of years, and we look forward to many more!

Get out there and introspect, reflect, and throw some snow balls!

Cheers,

CAN YOU DIG IT?

samuelpablo — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 06:23:55 +0000

Can you f*ck*ng dig it???

Another Obama 527

samuelpablo — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 23:06:36 +0000

I found a good 527 for Obama that can help take some of the thunder from McCain and Hillary’s constant bullsh*t attacks.

Let’s help spread positive messages, help us out!

http://www.orleadership.com/

Donate to www.ORBusinessCouncil.com not McCainFlipFlops !

samuelpablo — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 03:21:26 +0000

I am often horrified by the political parties and their website Shennanigans. Martin Washington forwarded me his legitimate attempt to funnel some money towards families and businesses in local communities. Supporting politicians that commit to positive things.

Hope some of you will check it out and give $5 towards making positive media momentum.
www.ORBusinessCouncil.com

Otherwise you will see more of these guys (article New York Times explains : http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/06/rnc-snaps-up-domain-names/#comment-736439)

calculatingclinton.com
canttrustclinton.com
clintonbabbit.com
clintoncleland.com
clintoncohen.com
clintonisbad.com
clintoniscorrupt.com
clintoniswrong.com
clintonkerrey.com
clintonlibrarycard.com
clintonlibraryresolution.com
clintonomalley.com
clintonsalazar.com
clintonschweitzer.com
clintontruthwatch.com
hillaryiswrong.com
hillarymythfact.com
hillaryrecords.com
hillaryspendometer.com
hillarytaxplan.com
hillarytruthsquad.com
hopelesshillary.com
outwithhillary.com
thetwohillarys.com

2008

amateurobama.com
barackisliberal.com
barackiswrong.com
baracknotready.com
barackobamanotready.com
barackobamatheliberal.com
baracktheamateur.com
barackthebeginner.com
fauxbama.org
hesnotready.com
meetbarackobama.com
norealexperience.com
nowecannot.com
nowecannot.net
nowecannot.org
obamaisliberal.com
obamaiswrong.com
obamanotready.com
obamaspendometer.com
obamatheamateur.com
obamathebeginner.com
yeswecandowhat.com
yeswecanwhat.com

Don’t buy into the hype!

The Heidelberg electric belt

samuelpablo — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 06:09:45 +0000

In the early 1900’s many people believed they were suffering from “neurasthenia,” a disease cause by modernization and over-stimulation. This “sickness” produced a wide variety of symptoms from depression to impotency to fatigue. The Heidelberg electric belt, touted as a cure, sent electricity to your genitals and promised to restore your vitality and strength.

Ouch.

Love that kid

samuelpablo — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 04:38:00 +0000

Ben wrote me a Valentine himself.

3 years old and he wrote the names without help.

Great job!

Subaru DC Mountain Lab 1.5

samuelpablo — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 04:50:51 +0000

I just can’t get enough of this vid

Subaru DC Mountain Lab 1.5