"We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself. ” – Lloyd Alexander

 

Top Picks

Kevin Behr’s Blog
Kevin co-authored Visible Ops with Gene Kim and myself.  He’s started a blog to reflect his keen observations on the state of IT today.  The three of us are working on a new book that will help shed light on the strategic use of IT by coupling concepts from Visible Ops, the Theory of Constraints and years of frustration.  Kevin is remarkably brilliant and you need to visit his blog for a dose of humor, creative genius and keen insights.
http://www.kevinbehr.com/blog/
RSS:  http://feeds2.feedburner.com/kevinbehr

[By the way, subscribe or live with eternal regret J]

 

The Rise of the Mega-Data Center
“Behind popular Web services such as Facebook, Google (GOOG), and Amazon's (AMZN) AWS are racks and racks of computers serving up millions of pages or providing raw computing power. The use of thousands of servers to deliver one application or act as a pool of computing resources has changed the way that chipmakers and computer vendors are building their products. It has also led to the rise of the mega-data center.”

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/feb2009/tc20090219_049561.htm?chan=technology_technology+index+page_top+stories

 

Enabling a Green and Virtual Data Center
“To say that ‘green’ is a popular topic is an understatement. Green messaging in general and in the information technology (IT) industry in particular tends to center around carbon footprint and emissions reduction or cost savings. But no matter how much companies talk about incorporating green IT plans, there remains a significant gap between those words and actions put in place.”
http://greenercomputing.com/feature/2009/02/18/enabling-green-virtual-data-center

 

Book and Product Recommendations

Visible Ops Introduction at Computerworld:
http://www.computerworld.com/managementtopics/management/story/0,10801,95618,00.html

 

Review of Visible Ops Security by Dr. Mich Kabay
Introducing Visble Ops Security:  http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/sec/2008/111708sec1.html
Phase One:  http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/sec/2008/111708sec2.html
Phase Two:  http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/sec/2008/112408sec1.html
Phase Three:  http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/sec/2008/120108sec1.html
Phase Four:  http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/sec/2008/120108sec2.html

 

Review of the Visible Ops Handbook by Dr. Mich Kabay
http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/sec/2008/111008sec2.html

 

IT Audit / Internal Audit / Compliance/Ethics

Controversial data-security rules slow to take hold in Massachusetts
“Massachusetts officials this month gave companies a second reprieve on complying with new regulations aimed at any entity that stores the personal data of state residents. They also softened a particularly contentious provision requiring businesses to ensure that third parties handling such data are in compliance with the rules.  But the state left intact other parts of the regulations that have sparked criticism from the business community both inside and outside of Massachusetts.”
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyId=17&articleId=334342&intsrc=hm_topic

 

IT Process Improvement / Quality Management

Lean, Six Sigma and Lean Six Sigma (LSS)
At a recent speaking event, I was asked to provide more information on LSS.  Here are some current resources for more information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_sigma
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lean_manufacturing
http://www.dau.mil/educdept/mm_dept_resources/navbar/lean/
Great LSS infor at the Deputy Under Secretary of the Army Knowledge Center:  http://www.army.mil/ArmyBTKC/focus/cpi/tools3.htm
US Navy LSS Site:  http://www.navyenterprise.navy.mil/knowledge/tools/sixsigma.aspx

Kurt’s Corner

News and views from Kurt Milne, the managing director of the ITPI.  He can be reached at: kurt.milne@....

Desktop and Application virtualization considerations
Server virtualization has hit its stride in companies large and small. Desktop and application virtualization, on the other hand, are coming on strong as important tools for improving IT efficiency and user experience. Some considerations for evaluating new capabilities.
http://searchcio-midmarket.techtarget.com/tip/0,289483,sid183_gci1346985,00.html

 

Enterprise IT budgets getting hit
In large enterprises (companies with more than 1,000 employees), 42% of respondents are reducing IT budgets from 2008.  Read on for more subtle details of what budet areas are growing and shrinking.
http://searchcio.techtarget.com/news/article/0,289142,sid182_gci1347179,00.html?track=NL-964&ad=687836&asrc=EM_NLN_5809934

 

An interesting list of IT functions
Many organizations divide IT into application development and infrastructure groups.  Viewing IT more as a business unit offers an alternative demand and supply chain focused view.
http://www.itsmwatch.com/itil/article.php/11700_3802916_2

 

Data Centers / Cloud Computing / Green IT

What’s the Upside to a Downturn? Recessions Heighten Focus on Efficiency!
“What’s the upside to a downturn? As the economy shrinks and budget and program cutting expands throughout our industry, how can data center facility and IT infrastructure teams identify opportunities that create value for their companies?  In other words, how do we emerge stronger from a recession?”
http://blogs.technet.com/msdatacenters/archive/2009/02/04/what-s-the-upside-to-a-downturn-recessions-heighten-focus-on-efficiency.aspx

 

News flash - the Cloud is probably better than your data center
“It might depend on what dimension you're talking about, but in at least some dimensions, I'm confident the capabilities of many cloud providers far outpace our everyday data center capabilities.  The industry continues to buzz about a seemingly endless bucket of security concerns in the cloud, but 9 times out of 10 seems to miss the most obvious conclusion.  A real security assessment would likely turn up evidence that the cloud is a good bit more secure than your data center.”
http://blogs.computerworld.com/news_flash_the_cloud_is_probably_better_than_your_data_center

 

Suddenly, infrastructure is cool again
“While many executives responsible for their companies' IT operations grok the vision, they still refuse to make the switch. More than 60 percent of the companies surveyed recently by Kelton Research reported they did not use cloud-computing technologies, and most of them have no plans to use them anytime soon.”
http://news.cnet.com/8301-10787_3-10169023-60.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20

 

Security and Risk Management

How to Improve Virtualization Security
“In the rush to implement virtualization technologies, organizations are re-creating the same security mistakes that were made in physical environments over the past two decades. This is happening largely because they have failed to recognize that new technologies create the same risks, albeit from a different perspective. Knowledge Center contributor Richard Rees explains the five steps you need to take to improve virtualization security in your data center.”
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Virtualization/How-to-Improve-Virtualization-Security/

 

Companies Still Need Boost on Data Center Energy Efficiency: Survey
“Energy efficiency is increasingly a top-of-mind concern for executives and data center managers, not just as a way to trim spiraling electric bills and address carbon footprints, but also because electricity availability is becoming a critical concern.  But although the vast majority of executives are aware of the need to maximize energy efficiency, significant obstacles are preventing them from putting plans in place, according to a new survey from Siemens.”
http://greenercomputing.com/news/2009/02/20/companies-need-boost-efficiency

 

Researchers Hack Faces In Biometric Facial Authentication Systems
“The researchers cracked the biometric authentication embedded in Lenovo, Asus, and Toshiba laptops by spoofing the biometric systems with everything from a photo of the authorized user to brute-force hacking using fake facial images. They successfully bypassed Lenovo's Veriface III, Asus' SmartLogon V1.0.0005, and Toshiba's Face Recognition 2.0.2.32 -- each set to its highest security level -- demonstrating vulnerabilities in the systems that let an attacker cheat them with phony photos of the legitimate user and gain access to the laptops.”
http://www.darkreading.com/security/vulnerabilities/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=213901113&cid=RSSfeed

 

Driving Fast and Forward: Managing Information Security for Strategic Advantage in a Tough Economy
The third report at the RSA Innovation and Security Site is now available (along with the other reports) at:
https://www.rsa.com/node.aspx?id=3001

[Thank you for sending this in Julia!]

 

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

Report: 4 million Americans lost health insurance since recession began
“An estimated 4 million Americans have lost their health insurance since the recession began, and as many as 14,000 people could be losing their health coverage every day, according to a report by liberal think tank Center for American Progress' Action Fund.  The report also claims at least half of the 4 million who lost their insurance coverage still are uninsured. Before the recession started there were an estimated 46 million Americans without health insurance.”
http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/stories/2009/02/16/daily58.html

 

Human Error / Safety / Environment

Peanut Corp. tells all customers to stop distribution
“The peanut processor at the center of the ongoing salmonella outbreak has instructed all its customers to stop any distribution of any of its product in a yet further expansion of one of the nation's biggest food recalls.”
http://www.newsday.com/services/newspaper/printedition/sunday/health/ny-hssalm226045012feb22,0,4587293.story
[Interesting that this didn’t happen until February 20^th.]

 

Color Coded: Hospitals Standardize to Minimize Human Error
“Hospitals in Oregon and Washington are standardizing overhead calls and color codes to reduce the risk of confusion or human error. The move follows a survey that found wide variation in the emergency codes among the region's hospitals. This matters because many doctors and nurses now work at more than one place.”
http://kuow.org/program.php?id=16942

 

Russia: global warming to cause droughts, floods
“Russia will likely see more forest fires, droughts and floods in the coming century due to global warming, and policy makers need to prepare for large-scale change, scientists warned in a report released Wednesday.  It also said Russia, famous for its brutal winters, will benefit from climate change in some ways, with warmer temperatures and less snow and ice.”
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jwNjrvbYFMSgjSDpLXnbiVTw_h5gD96E2BM00

 

Global News / Business / Economics

Swiss to avoid Senate hearing on tax havens
“The Swiss government said Sunday it will not attend a U.S. Senate hearing on tax havens — an apparent protest against a U.S. lawsuit aimed at forcing banking giant UBS AG to hand over data on tens of thousands of American customers.”
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/banking/2009-02-22-swiss-senate-hearing_N.htm

 

Clinton urges China's continued investment in US
“U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is urging China to continue investing in United States Treasury bonds and said Sunday that country's continued investment in the U.S. is a recognition that the two countries depend on each other.”
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gUop4tPRyc6GuqJXiHqVNdXuwPgQD96GENH01

[Imagine the power of the biggest borrower on the biggest lender and vice versa.]

 

Crisis brings threat of crime wave to China
“The concern that the migrant workers will now turn to crime is felt all over China, but nowhere perhaps as keenly as in Shenzhen, part of Guangdong province, the nation's main industrial hub and labour magnet.”
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iB6ItKi3H7Lwxlf7-1mOL-53A96g

 

US News / Business / Economics

Volcker Says U.S. Economy May Suffer for ‘Long Time’
“The U.S. economy will suffer from the effects of the global financial crisis for ‘a long time’ as a slowdown in demand spreads to other countries, former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker said.”
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aEPhoxeCfsvs&refer=home

 

So, just how bad is the economy?
“James Kolari, an economist at Texas A&M University, says the nation experienced two ‘rough’ recessions in the mid-1970s and the early 1980s. A recession is generally defined as a decline in the Gross Domestic Product for two or more consecutive quarters.  He says it's not fair to compare the current economic crisis to the Great Depression, because the federal government was far more passive in the 1920s.”
http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/02/20/economy.history/index.html

 

Following the money: stimulus spending plan, by sector
This is an interactive chart that CNN has developed to show spending per sector.  For example, federal & state governments - $45.4472 billion.  You can click on the sector and then drill down several levels for additional details.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/18/stimulus.spending.chart/index.html

 

Customer Service in a Shrinking Economy
“Across the business world, managers are trying to pull off the same perilous high-wire act. Just as companies are dealing with plummeting sales and sinking employee morale, skittish customers want more attention, better quality, and greater value for their money. Those same customers are also acutely aware that their patronage is of growing importance to companies as others decrease their spending.”
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/09_09/b4121026559235.htm?campaign_id=rss_daily

 

Technology & Science

OMG! Did Google Earth find Atlantis?
“Google is officially denying widespread Internet rumors that its Google Earth software located the mythical sunken city of Atlantis off the coast of Africa. Either that, or Google is totally trying to hide something. Since I always appreciate a nice juicy conspiracy theory, I'm going to go with the latter.”
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13577_3-10168269-36.html

 

End Notes

The News is brought to you by George Spafford, Principal Consultant at Pepperweed Consulting, LLC.  Pepperweed is nationally recognized as a leader in IT Management Consulting.  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 News, and feel free to forward this email on to others.

Titles and links to articles written by me are listed at:  http://spaffordconsulting.com/articles.html and if you have news or feedback you’d like to share, please send an email to george.spafford@....

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_____________________________________________

George Spafford
Principal Consultant
ITIL Service Manager, TOCICO Jonah, IPRC, CISA
Pepperweed Consulting, LLC®
Office:  269-556-9597
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