Vacation

I will be trying to enjoy some vacation time for a few weeks so the blogging will likely start up again the end of July....

Doctor....Come Quick!

----sitting in a Physicians’ office recently and was looking around at all the devices on the desk, things near the examining table and even listening to bits and pieces of conversations in the waiting room and in the hallway. It occurred to me…..there is a lot of stuff going on in this office. I got to thinking of the tremendous responsibilities the Physicians and nurses have….how many problems they have to figure out….how they have to ask the right questions and push/pull in the right places to get the information they need to make the correct diagnoses. Even how much they have to understand their patients in order to know which questions could and should be asked and which words to use….likely they will use different words for different patients, age, sex etc.

It occurred to me that there were some similarities between IT work and the work Doctors and their staff perform. Physicians must diagnose illness by identifying symptoms….IT employees perform a similar function trying to identify technical problems. Once Physicians are comfortable with their diagnosis, they initiate a treatment process to remedy the situation. IT Technicians perform a similar role as they identify an issue and then must initiate a process to “fix” the issue. Medical professionals typically monitor a persons’ health and make recommendations to keep the body performing as intended. IT Techs also monitor the hardware and software of the Org. and make adjustments constantly to ensure systems are running at peak performance and reliability. Medical professionals must be able to communicate their intent across all age/sex/language barriers---Is the work in IT any different? I would say no. The communication about what and how is every bit as important.

I am not here to tell you that the two roles are identical in importance, they are not. Yet, there are similarities between the professions, for example: 1) The issue is not always readily apparent at the onset, 2) Solutions are not always well defined, 3) Lots of training is required to stay current and be effective, 4) Requirements of availability 24/7, 5) The nature of the work is such that being able to predict/measure work output through hours is difficult as the work is subject to what is found once initiated….etc.

Now, I would offer that IT work in some respects is more difficult than a Doctor. Consider a few of these examples: 1) Patients can tell a Physician what hurts and needs attention…hardware cannot tell the IT Technician—they must figure that out on their own. 2) The human organism really hasn’t changed much over the past several hundred years---Technology is rapidly evolving and has changed greatly over the past 20 years alone. 3) Patient treatments are typically along well defined boundaries and procedures that are proven successful---whereas technology is constantly changing and new skills are required constantly and must be developed, learned, and practiced at a rapid pace in order to even be of value.

So what’s the point? Point is, the work you do is IMPORTANT! It is difficult work that few completely understand (another tie to the Physicians) and yet is the very life blood of some orgs. You are valued and critical to the success of this Org. but you must stay current on new developments. Dinosaurs develop rapidly in this business. IT is not easy! It does require effort and intelligence and DEDICATION. Recognizing the role that IT and IT Staff play in the business process is crucial to its effective utilization… and that understanding at the IT worker level is a must have.

While you likely don’t have the MD title, the work you perform is every bit as important to the success of the business as a Doctor is to the health of a patient. Take it seriously and the value you provide to the Org. will in no way be questioned and the health of the org. will be obvious for all to see.

TAFN

Not Alone...

I was reviewing some materials on IT Leadership and training opportunities and ran across a training entitled: “Meeting the Global IT Challenge” Part of the description of the content is:--“A growing body of research indicates that executives and managers often perceive that IT investments are not as efficient or effective as they could be, and IT professionals need to enhance their abilities to add value by “providing relevant business solutions.””

While the comment about Exec’s not perceiving value in some IT projects came as nothing new, the comment about IT professionals following it did. The point is that they did NOT say just CIO’s or IT Director’s or even IT Manager’s need to enhance….the comment was “IT professionals need to enhance their abilities to add value…” It’s not a one man show in that the CIO or IT Manager just isn’t looked upon as the Holy Grail any longer….the entire TEAM is expected to “add value,” specifically by providing relevant business solutions.

Perhaps I’m fond of the comment because it is exactly how I feel and somewhat to the point of other Bloggings I’ve posted here. But, the fact remains, others are espousing it too! IT must provide relevant business value…it is expected and even demanded. IT employees if they hope to be successful in the field must embrace this change and develop skills that provide that value. Gone are the days when you could just understand the technology and get it work… Now the expectation is that IT employees (not just IT Management) understand the technology and also understand the business and how to provide technology solutions to move the business forward.
It’s a thought process. It’s a maturity and growth process that frankly was inevitable. Just as more and more Conservation employees are understanding technology better and demanding its implementation…..we too as IT employees should grow and understand more about the business of Conservation and in doing that, we will be better positioned to provide value.

I believe we recognized this trend several years ago with the advent of the FCS positions. The thinking with those folks was that they would understanding technology and yet dig deeper into the work that Conservation was doing. As a result, we could provide recommendations/solutions to help them accomplish their work. So at this point, it is apparent that the entire IT GROUP must more closely model that scenario than what is being done currently. Not one aspect of IT is excluded from this need to grow and mature into more integration with the business of Conservation.

The creation of the BA positions recently also point towards this need to become more “in tune” with the business side. We’re making progress and it has been slower that I would prefer….but moving is good and moving forward is better….I’m committed to continuing to find ways to help grow staff towards being the type of IT employee that Conservation needs….and deserves.

You in?

TAFN

Destiny...

Greatness is a matter of conscious choice and discipline…