The Daily News is brought to you by George Spafford, Principal Consultant at Pepperweed Consulting, LLC.  Pepperweed is nationally recognized as a leader in IT Management and was recently recognized as one of the Inc. 500 fastest growing privately-held companies.  For more information, check out our website at www.pepperweed.com or call 888 229-0145. Please let us know if you see stories you think should be included in the next issue of the Daily News, and feel free to forward this email on to others.

 

Do you need a public speaker at your next IT-related event?  If so, please contact me at george.spafford@....  A number of programs are available including one hour presentations, keynotes, executive awareness sessions and so on all revolving around technology business, the management of IT, ITIL, and risk management.

 

"The good of man is the active exercise of his soul's faculties. This exercise must occupy a complete lifetime. One swallow does make a spring, nor does one fine day. Excellence is a habit, not an event.” -- Aristotle

 

The Picks of the Day

FCC says 'no' to cell phones on planes

“A government agency on Tuesday said it will keep a rule in place that requires cell phones to be turned off during airline flights.  The reasoning behind the decision was technical. But the avalanche of comments the Federal Communications Commission has logged from airline travelers have been nothing short of visceral.”

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TRAVEL/04/03/cell.phones.airplanes.ap/index.html

[YES!  I have dreaded them allowing this and then having work time on the plane compromised by the non-stop drone of people on phones.]

 

Solar bursts may threaten GPS

“The Global Positioning System, relied on for everything from navigating cars and airplanes to transferring money between banks, may be threatened by powerful solar flares, a panel of scientists warned Wednesday.  "Our increasingly technologically dependent society is becoming increasingly vulnerable to space weather," David L. Johnson, director of the National Weather Service, said at a briefing.”

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/04/05/gps.solar.ap/index.html

 

ITIL v3 Roadshow Launch Announced

It’s set to start June 5^th in London

http://www.itsmwatch.com/news/article.php/3669931

 

Goal to Objective Mapping

“A significant challenge that organizations have is the alignment of functional area objectives to organizational goals. From a holistic perspective, an organization is a system of component functional areas assembled to achieve a goal. To optimize performance of the system, we need to ensure that the functional area objectives are properly aligned to support attainment of that goal.  In the course of strategic planning, goals and objectives are often identified in documented plans and PowerPoint presentations but a problem lies with understanding relationships and this is where “goal to objective mapping” can provide a visualization tool.”

http://www.spaffordconsulting.com/Goal%20to%20Objective%20Mapping.html

 

IT Process Improvement / Quality Management

Webinar:  Aligning Via IT Service Management

April 12, 2007 - 2:00pm EDT, 11:00am PDT

IT Service Management (ITSM) stresses alignment with an organization's goals by focusing on services that meet business requirements. Ensuring that this happens is the goal of Service Level Management (SLM), the monitoring and management of key performance metrics and the bedrock of any Quality of Service framework. This webcast will provide an overview of ITIL, discuss how ITIL represents a quality management approach and will show why SLM is important.

 For more information and to sign up today visit http://cp.jupiterweb.com/index.php/3526_default/

 

HP Education’s ITIL v3 FAQ

http://www.education.hp.com/itil_v3_faqv4.pdf

 

Wikipedia Page for ITIL v3

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITIL_v3

 

ITIL Refresh News – Spring 2007

http://www.best-management-practice.com/gempdf/ITIL_Refresh_News_2ndEdition.pdf

 

Official OGC ITIL Website

http://www.itil.co.uk/

 

Legal and Regulatory Compliance

One Day Seminar in Bangalore:  Risk Management, Control Design & Processes

May 21, 2007

“Organizations are under a lot of pressure to attain goals set forth by their various stakeholders. To this end, IT must grapple not only with advancing productivity but with the safeguarding of value as well. To accomplish this effectively and efficiently requires a review of how the business and IT interact plus how IT operates. This class will provide an overview of some of the considerations that organizations must take into account.“

http://www.complianceonline.com/images/alert/event/bangalore_event_may/bangalore_event_web/event.htm

 

SEC Commissioners Endorse Improved Sarbanes-Oxley Implementation To Ease Smaller Company Burdens, Focusing Effort On 'What Truly Matters'

“The SEC's Commissioners today endorsed the recommendations of the agency's professional staff to eliminate waste and duplication in the Sarbanes-Oxley compliance exercise, in a move that will particularly benefit smaller companies. The Commissioners urged the SEC staff to continue to work closely with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) to make the internal controls provisions of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 more efficient and cost effective.”

http://www.exchange-handbook.co.uk/index.cfm?section=news&action=detail&id=66179

 

Softening a Sarbanes-Oxley Thorn

“Federal securities regulators approved guidance staff should follow when paring back a provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley law to change how companies and auditors comply with accounting provisions unpopular with many businesses.  The Securities and Exchange Commission, in an unusual meeting, voted to support four staff recommendations to work with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the author of auditing standards, in what it said were the remaining issues that needed to be hammered out to approve a final guidance and rule in time for 2007 audits.”

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB117572550175560159.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

 

Security and Risk Management

Cloak and dagger tactics hit the office

“Significant numbers of New Zealand businesses are blissfully unaware of how easily competitors can steal their trade secrets, security experts say.”

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/3/story.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10433214

 

When identity theft becomes standard operating procedure

“An even wilder story is that identity and credit card theft is so common these days that not only have readers become immune to the press stories, but the credit card companies and banks are treating it with an attitude that's almost laissez-faire. It’s becoming clear to me that credit card and identity theft are so common that affected companies are almost not caring. Here are some anecdotal stories that sparked that conclusion:”

http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/04/06/15OPsecadvise_1.html

 

Is the U.S. to blame for cybercrime?

“Before you point the finger for criminal activities overseas, read on. Two reports released this past month suggest that the days of speculating about online criminals in Eastern Europe being responsible for a vast majority of cybercrime are numbered. New data from Symantec and Finjan trace the physical location of servers involved in botnet command and control, as well as in criminal economies such has hosting identity-theft information, right back to the good ol' United States.”

http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-3513_7-6722149-1.html

 

Security in focus at Black Hat

http://news.com.com/Security+in+focus+at+Black+Hat/2009-7349_3-6163475.html?tag=cd.lede

 

Healthcare / Bio-Informatics / Care Delivery Organizations (CDOs)

More Time to Comply with NPI

“The federal government is giving certain providers and payers some extra time to comply with the HIPAA National Provider Identification rule.  The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued guidance that allows provider organizations and health plans to develop contingency plans to help them comply.”

http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/html/news/NewsStory.cfm?articleId=14966

 

Testing Tomorrow’s Health Care – Today

“A rural community builds an advanced broadband infrastructure and becomes a testbed for 21st-century medicine.”

http://www.killerapp.com/content/publish/article_338.shtml

 

The “Year of Health Care” – Reforms should serve consumers, not fatten insurance industry profits

“The renewed spotlight on health care reform is a welcomed development for consumers. The Consumer Federation of California (CFC) will work to make sure that any reform plan serves the interests of the public, not the insurance industry’s bottom line. “

http://www.californiaprogressreport.com/2007/04/the_year_of_hea_1.html

 

Online health records create privacy issues

“Inputting records that detail every illness and every aspect of patient care into electronic or online databases can bring better healthcare and, advocates believe, save some of the more than 50,000 Americans who die each year because of medical errors.  However, privacy advocates worry the online systems being installed as part of a revolution sweeping through the healthcare industry and Ventura County could carry increased risk that information about an addiction or a diagnosis of depression will become public or Social Security information will be pilfered by identity thieves. “

http://www.venturacountystar.com/vcs/county_news/article/0,1375,VCS_226_5472151,00.html

 

Kenya: E-Health Welcome Relief for Over Worked Medical Staff

“The problem comes about, however, when e-health projects are perceived as technology issues rather than a medical solution. Even with state-of-the-art equipment, we still need a nurse's caring hands.  Quite often, technology is pursued because it is new and fancy, and not because there is a compelling need and appropriateness.”

http://allafrica.com/stories/200704010146.html

 

Report: More research needed for Medicaid to use health IT

“An expert advisory panel has recommended that the federal government do more research to help Medicaid agencies identify opportunities for incorporating health information technology into the country’s largest health care program.”

http://www.govhealthit.com/article98173-04-06-07-Web

 

Health care draws venture capitalists

“Although the health care industry hasn't performed that well in the past for VCs, they said the convergence of medicine and technology has opened the floodgates for a slew of new startups with attractive products. VCs said there are opportunities for early-stage companies to help corporations find new ways to address rising medical costs. Plus, the overall health care market represents a huge opportunity given its size.”

http://www.contracostatimes.com/business/ci_5599350

 

Redirecting health care

“Many experts believe consumer-directed health care -- giving patients greater decision making powers through greater transparency in pricing and understanding of possible outcomes -- is the path toward a better medical system. Yet one of the key tools to constructing this new model still lags far behind: the broad deployment of electronic medical records and consumer access to this information.”

http://washingtontimes.com/op-ed/20070403-085300-6819r.htm

 

Human Error / Safety / Environment

Scientists: Lake Superior warming rapidly

“Lake Superior has been warming even faster than the climate around it since the late 1970s because of reduced ice cover, according to a study by professors at the University of Minnesota Duluth.”

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/04/06/superior.warming.ap/index.html

 

Last word on climate is ours, scientists say

“Two distinctly different groups, data-driven scientists and nuanced offend-no-one diplomats, collided and then converged last week. At stake: a report on the future of the planet and the changes it faces with global warming.”

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003657129_climatereport08.html

http://www.bradenton.com/mld/ohio/news/nation/17042718.htm?source=rss&channel=ohio_nation

 

Egypt reports 34th human bird flu case

“The Egyptian Health Ministry Sunday said a new human bird flu case was discovered in the Egyptian capital Cairo, bringing the number of such cases to 34 in this populous Arab nation, the official news agency MENA reported.”

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-04/08/content_845742.htm

 

Indonesia confirms 74th bird flu death

“Bird flu killed a 29-year-old man in Indonesia after he came into contact with dead chickens, taking the country's human death toll from the disease to 74, the health ministry said Saturday.”

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070407/wl_asia_afp/healthfluindonesia_070407200550

 

NHS Improving On Stress And Safety Finds Healthcare Watchdog In Annual NHS Staff Survey - But Results Highlight Levels Of Violence And Abuse, UK

“NHS staff say they are less stressed, suffer fewer work-related injuries and see fewer potentially-harmful errors, incidents or ‘near misses’, according to the healthcare watchdog.  The findings were revealed in the annual NHS staff survey run by the Healthcare Commission. In October last year, more than 128,000 staff in 326 trusts gave their views and experiences of working for the NHS in England - there was a response rate of 53 per cent.”

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=67241&nfid=rssfeeds

 

Heal Thyself

“His book contains all kinds of smart, often selfless, occasionally heroic doctors making good decisions and sometimes saving lives. But it is far from a narcissistic paean to his profession. It is an effort to dissect the anatomy of correct diagnosis, successful treatment and humane care -- and also of diagnostic error, misguided therapy and thoughtless bedside manner.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/05/AR2007040502325.html

 

Outsourcing / Globalization / International

Nations Focus on Health Risks Posed by Globalization

“Simpson said there has been a growing risk of disease spread during the last decade as global trade has mushroomed. Along with greater access to commercial goods has come the potential to transport tainted food products, illegal black market goods, as well as disease carried by people as they travel.”

http://www.healthcentral.com/newsdetail/408/603418.html

 

China: Bracing for the Next Sourcing Wave?

“In a wide range of industries, from consumer electronics and IT equipment to automotive manufacturing, many Chinese suppliers moved far beyond being arm's length suppliers. They started to innovate and collaborate with their customers on component and product design, marking the transition to sourcing 2.0.”

http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/56726.html

 

Whirlpool puts losses in China behind it

“The Chinese call them school fees. American business executives call them something less printable. They are the trial-and-error costs foreign businesses often pay when learning how to crack China's enticing marketplace -- where 1.3 billion consumers, and a million challenges, await.”

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070408/BUSINESS06/704080591

 

U.N. report raises pressure on China to cut pollution

“Traditionally, many of the issues outlined in Friday's ominous United Nations report on climate change have been framed here, as elsewhere, as a trade-off between clean air and jobs. Yet it's also becoming increasingly evident that the division is not so clear-cut. Some studies estimate that pollution exacts a 7% to 10% cost on China's economy.”

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-green8apr08,1,1672111.story?track=rss&ctrack=1&cset=true

 

India scrambles to fill tech positions

“Nearly two decades into India’s phenomenal growth as an international center for high technology, the industry has a problem: It’s running out of workers.  There may be a lot of potential – Indian schools churn out 400,000 new engineers, the core of the high-tech industry, every year – but as few as 100,000 are actually ready to join the job world, experts say.”

http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/business/17047588.htm?source=rss&channel=journalgazette_business

 

Ship-building: India's next star industry

“With little fanfare, several corporations are building huge shipyards across the coast of India, from Kutch to West Bengal. Ship-building consists mainly of riveting of steel plates to form a vessel, followed by internal fittings. This cannot be done on an assembly line by robots. It has to be done manually by skilled welders and fitters.”

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Ship-building/articleshow/1872044.cms

 

Economics / Business / Misc.

The gap between the blades

“The Judith Gap wind farm is an impressive operation. According to the company that runs it, Invenergy, its 90 turbines stretch 400 feet into the Big Sky when the blades are fully extended, and each one produces enough electricity to power 300 homes. It's a showcase project in Montana's move toward renewable energy.  Yet the cluster of dynamos itself faces a looming power shortage.  To integrate the Gap's green electrons into the area's power delivery system, a back-up source of power is required. When the wind isn't blowing, the power that is scheduled to come from the farm has to come from somewhere else.”

http://kirbymtn.blogspot.com/2007/04/gap-between-blades.html

 

Why the U.S. No Longer Leads

“A disturbing milestone was reached this week. For the first time since World War I, the value of European stocks eclipsed those in the United States. According to data from Thomson Financial, Europe’s 24 stock markets, including Russia, now boast a market capitalization of $15.7 billion, edging out the U.S.’s $15.6 billion.”

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,263966,00.html

 

End Notes

Titles and links to articles written by George Spafford are listed at:  http://spaffordconsulting.com/articles.html

 

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Pepperweed Consulting, LLC, was founded by IT professionals who recognized a need for quality IT Management tools and specialists peaked in their implementation and use. Today, Pepperweed is nationally recognized for its unique ability to provide optimal infrastructure and process designs and to deliver on the promise of those designs through hands-on implementation of selected technologies. Recently listed as one of the Inc. 500 fastest growing, privately held companies, Pepperweed is one of the largest IT Management practices in the U.S.

 

Archives of the Daily News newsletter are available at http://www.spaffordconsulting.com/dailynews.html .

 

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George Spafford Principal Consultant Pepperweed Consulting, LLC® Office:  269-556-9597 Mobile:  269-208-1832 FAX:  208-978-6295 George.Spafford@...

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