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BUSINESS/IT ALIGNMENT
“Service-Oriented World” Cheat Sheet: A Guide to Key Concepts, Technology, and More — Part 1 
by Brenda M. Michelson
Today, everyone is talking SOA, services, and Web Services. If you Google “service oriented architecture,” you get almost 12 million hits. And if you Google “Web Services,” you get over a billion hits! If you are interested in pursuing a service-oriented IT strategy for your business, read this overview on services and SOA, which includes key service concepts, information on supporting technologies, a view of the SOA landscape, and some keys to SOA success.
Which IT Governance Model Is Right for Your Business
by Elizabeth Ferrarini
At one time, IT departments made decisions fast and loose, doing their best to keep up with the demands of a booming economy and pressure for more infrastructure. But the recovery from the 2002 economic recession has prompted IT managers to re-evaluate their decision-making processes to align themselves with the rest of the company’s goals.
STRATEGY
Lost Data Costs Money!
by Andrew Hiles
According to a report on data loss in Europe, more than six percent of PCs will suffer data loss in any year. And, there is no reason to think the position in North America (or anywhere else in the world) is any better. Each incident will have one of two outcomes: successful recovery of data or permanent loss. You may not be able to avoid data loss (or its consequences for your business) entirely, but there are a number of strategies you can take to minimize your risk.
The E-Bomb: The New Threat
by Andrew Hiles
From a shadowy vision of cyberwarfare comes a very real cyber-threat: the E-bomb. Find out about the evolution of this new weapon; its potential to damage and disrupt communications, information storage, and more; and how best to protect your organization from the significant risks it poses.
 Listen to the Podcast: Author Andrew Hiles further discusses the power and the menace that is the E-bomb.
INTERVIEW
Author Tells How to Put IT Costs on a Diet With Lean Six Sigma
by Elizabeth Ferrarini
Corporations are always searching for ways to improve the quality of
their goods/services for customers and to improve the their own bottom
line. Xerox Corporation found a way to do both, by combining two different
service quality methodologies. In this interview, Xerox’s vice president for
quality, Dave Rowlands, explains how the marriage of the two service quality
methodologies can help midsize to large organizations cut costs in most
operational areas, while improving service to either internal or external
customers, or both.
HELP DESK
Customer Support: Who Pays?
by Andrew Hiles
When examining cost, and cost-recovery issues of the Help Desk, Service
Desk, Contact Center, and end-user support, what are the trends in
charge-out, charging, and costing models, and ways to reduce costs?
WEBINARS
 Service Level Agreements: Seeing the Big Picture
Andrew Hiles, author and service management expert, discusses how to align IT and business strategy, measure performance, guarantee availability, and more.
View the Webinar »
CIO INTERVIEWS
Does IT Matter?
Transportation Co. CIO Says IT Matters If You Make it Your Business
“The
supply side of our business is really about selling IT,” says Ryder
System, Inc.’s CIO Robert E. Sanchez. “The supply chain is
really interesting because we mostly sell IT. If you come to us and want
to outsource all of the components of your supply chain, we’ll bring
you the people, the process, and the technology. Many of our customers
have tried to handle their supply chains, but failed.”
ITIL
ITIL: Tale of Two Continents
by Malcolm Fry
Over the last few years, ITIL has become the flavour du jour
in the US; whereas in Europe, it has been part of the main course for
quite some time. As someone who spends his time split between Europe and
the US, I am intrigued by the difference between the two continents in
regard to Service Management. Same ingredients, but a different recipe.
By the way I agree with you that I have now over-cooked the food metaphor.
JOB SCHEDULING
Introduction to Enterprise Job Scheduling: A Crash Course in Cutting IT Ops Costs
by Elizabeth Ferrarini
So how does enterprise job scheduling work? Here’s a quick look
at the basics.
LINKS
Using COBIT and the Balanced Scorecard as Instruments for Service Level Management (PDF)
by Wim Van Grembergen, Ph.D., Steven De Haes and Isabelle Amelinckx, Information Systems Audit and Control Association
In today’s service-driven economy, organizations increasingly rely on third parties for a variety of information technology finance or production. However, organizations often are not pleased with the service received and sometimes are dependent on third parties whose future is uncertain. This article will show how organizations can respond to this problem through service level agreements and service level management, supported by mechanisms such as COBIT (Control Objectives for Information and related Technology) and the balanced scorecard (BSC).
Service
level management: Linking IS performance to business goals
Flexible
IT, Better Strategy (registration required) by John Hagel and
John Seely Brown for a look at the service-oriented future.
 IDC’s
A
Holistic Approach to Delivering the Value of IT: Business Service Management
examines the role that business service management can play in aligning
business and IT, and provides assistance for business and IT managers
who are concerned about achieving true business benefits from their IT
investments.
 And here’s
a report from Giga’s
Gene Leganza on Overcoming
Obstacles to the Alignment of IT and the Business (PDF).
Visit itSMF’s
ITIL Service
Management Self Assessments — these “official” assessments
clarify the extent to which your company has “adopted” ITIL.
Look back to this survey from CIOInsight on the Role of the CIO. Has anything changed?
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