White Papers

We have collected some of the best whitepapers in the industry that we believe might be of benefit to you. We found them to be interesting and informative, as well, they introduce you to leading edge thinking. Please read and share them only as permitted by the author or issuer. In the coming months we will post, free of charge, some of our own commissioned White Papers containing proprietary advice and guidance. Come back to this page often to see what's new!

If, after reading these articles, you need help with any aspect of IT Management advice, on any level, call us (65) 6829-7031. We specialize in translating best practice into tangible results!

1. Maximizing the CIO in IT - The United States Government Accounting Office
The development of new service approaches and the enhancement of old ones in this new information era require the active participation of information management organizations from the beginning. The efficient, effective, and innovative use of information technology requires a level of leadership and focus that goes beyond what would be provided in a technical support function. The US Congress recognized the need for greater leadership in information management and technology in the Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996, which mandated the position of chief information officer (CIO) for executive departments and agencies. This act and other laws define the general responsibilities of the CIO and many of the processes required to manage information in the federal government. Virtually all of the major executive agencies have appointed CIOs, and many have taken positive steps toward the implementation of important information management processes specified by law. To reap the full benefits of information management reform, federal agencies must utilize the full potential of CIOs as information management leaders and active participants in the development of agency strategic plans and policies. The CIOs themselves must meet the challenges of building credible organizations, and developing and organizing information management capabilities to meet agency mission needs.

2. Managing IT Services — IBM Global Services
Adopting a services approach to IT provides us with a framework to begin to address some of the issues described and provide a cornerstone for the IT organization to deliver value to its customers. Focusing on services forces us to seek and clarify answers to some of the fundamental questions about managing the internal IT organization:

• Who are the customers of the IT organization?
• What does the IT organization deliver to its customers, and what is its core business?
• How does the IT organization deliver to its customers?
• What does the IT organization need in order to deliver to its customers?
• What does the IT organization get in return?

This document describes a services approach for IT and outlines how the IT organization may benefit from adopting such an approach.

3. Managing Telephony Within the Support Center - HelpDesk Institute
The increased demand by customers for technical support, while management continues to look for ways to reduce the cost of that support, has forced the customer support industry to look at ways to automate and measure all of the functions within the support center. One area that has made great strides is the communications (telephony) between the customer and the support center. For most companies some ten years ago, telephony meant the phone lines that connected the customers with the help desk analysts. These could be either internal or external customers. Today, telephony can be a lot more complicated than just a few lines connecting the customers and the analysts. The document looks at the key components that make up the telephony technology used in today's customer service center.

4. Discovering IT Asset Value Yields Savings Dividends - The Aberdeen Group
Under pressure. That is how many executives feel today as they are pushed to expand profits while also keeping costs low. In the drive to meet these divergent demands, companies have made financial, time, and resource investments in information technology (IT) hardware and software assets. Yet many executives painfully discover - despite their commitment to technology - that they are wasting a significant portion of their IT budgets. IT organizations require a high return on investment (ROI) for their IT assets, but they often overlook two critical components: (1) accurate identification of their IT inventory and (2) monitoring usage of software and hardware assets. According to Aberdeen Group research, companies that effectively manage their IT resources can save up to 35% annually on their IT budgets.

Disclaimer

These documents are in the original state in which we acquired them, and are provided purely for your edification and information awareness needs. We make no warranties of their fitness for any particular purpose. We lay no claim of ownership nor do we necessarily subscribe to the advice or guidance provided in them. Please contact the author(s) of the document should you have an enquiry related directly to the document content. We reserve the right at anytime and under any circumstances to remove any Whitepaper(s) or retract the "free of charge" offer associated with our own publications.