Building Operational Excellence

Citation

Harwood, C.J. (2003), "Building Operational Excellence", Kybernetes, Vol. 32 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/k.2003.06732cae.010

Building Operational Excellence

Building Operational Excellence

Bruce Allen and Dale KunickAddison-WesleyBoston2002ISBN 0-201-767337-6240 pagesPrice: $39.99

Since IT became a “buzz” word and computer systems started to appear at the workplace almost every organisation is either called an IT business or has a large IT operation. For a long time it was just another word for any use of computer systems until some attempts were made to define it.Like the use of “e-com” or “cyber” it is used with great frequency and with a complete disregard to its actual meaning.

A book, therefore, that tells us how to run effectively and efficiently an IT organisation does need to inform us a little more about who it is directed at and what it is trying to achieve. The authors do, however, say that an IT organisation is not just the one that has the right computer systems technology in place, but is rather one that has the right technology in the right place. There is more to running an organisation that uses computer systems than simply to have the right equipment. Such an organisation needs to have efficient procedures to train and manage staff, to deal with increasing workloads and the ability to integrate their systems and to collaborate with business operations.

This book helps by providing the authors' views of how to organise both people and the processes, and most important of all, how to manage critical resources.

The text provides what the authors obviously believe are the definitive steps to:

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  define a goal,

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  measure its current state, and

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  establish a path for achieving it.

This in itself should sell a book that then proceeds to guide us through the ways of becoming a top IT organisation, even, maybe, a “Center of Excellence”. To assist us in this pursuit, techniques are described to help us improve our management skills. It also provides an insight into techniques for using metrics. In summary the book achieves its aims of helping to create efficient IT management.

There are more details about the text on: http://www.awl.com/cseng.

C.J. Harwood