Published: November 19 2008, 08:03 PM | no comments
by Steve Romero

One of the reasons CA World has been such a rewarding conference for me is that I've been able to meet fellow CA colleagues that I've worked with closely--but have never met in person. One such co-worker asked if she could write a guest blog for me-on the condition that I post it without editing. So, here is my first guest blogger, unedited as promised:

To Steve:

Thanks for this opportunity, which I hope will go a long way toward curing my mild case of blog envy.

To Readers: 

Like you, I look forward to reading each of Steve's new blog postings. He and I are part of the Governance Group within CA so the subjects he writes about are of interest to me. Governance, project and portfolio management and process management are topics I deal with every day and, as you know, Steve's enthusiasm for these topics oozes from each blog. After all, according to his tagline, Steve, the IT Governance Evangelist, is all about "passionate advocacy for improving IT Governance processes."

Or is he?

CA World was my opportunity to meet Steve and attend one of his sessions to find out once and for all--is Steve for real? Can he really be as zealous as his blogging portrays?

Was he really "floored" when he found out that the IT Enterprise Architecture Advisory Committee was comprised of business (versus IT) executives?  Did he really have a feeling of "comfort and assurance" as he worked with the process map at a midwest CA Clarity PPM customer site? Is he really "immeasurably passionate about good process management?"

I am here to tell you--YES!

During the session I attended, he spoke with real conviction and enthusiasm. Watching him in person, it was clear to me that his words were heartfelt.  It was also clear that the moniker "Evangelist," which was CA's doing, not his, is quite fitting. I couldn't help but wonder, "Where does this emotion come from?" "How does he muster such strong feelings for good governance?"

Those questions were answered at the end of his presentation when he stressed, "My purpose in life is to enable people to succeed."

Now I was the one who was floored! His passion is not solely for the discipline of governance, but for what good governance and process management do FOR PEOPLE.

This, I could relate to. With that one sentence, I came to understand what motivates Steve to write so urgently, and travel so extensively, to educate others about good governance and process management: THEY HELP PEOPLE SUCCEED!

So readers, you can take my word for Steve's sincerity, or, if you're lucky, I hope you'll have the opportunity to hear him speak in-person and experience it for yourself.

BTW, I had the idea to write this blog as I waited to speak to Steve at the end of his talk. I asked a CA World attendee waiting with me what she thought of the session. She answered that she had seen him present for the first time a few months earlier at another conference and has been stalking him ever since.

‘nuff said.

Sincerely,

Lynne Mahoney

Governance Group, CA        

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Published: November 18 2008, 06:39 PM | no comments
by Steve Romero

My post yesterday highlighted the wealth of topics covered here at CA World. This wide range applies to my presentations as well. I am delivering my IT Governance presentation, Critical Components of a PMO, Enabling Performance with Process Management, and an overview of the ITIL v3 treatment of Service Portfolio Management.

Though my presentations and meetings at CA World are keeping me busy, I'm still managing to wedge in some conference calls with customers who were unable to make the trip this year. One such call was focused on planning my visit to their organization next month. In previous posts, I've mentioned how much I enjoy these visits because they provide me with the current challenges, perspectives and experiences that keep me in touch with what is happening in IT organizations today.

Most of the companies choose 1 and sometimes 2 of my presentations. A few have really taken advantage of the opportunity and bring me in to conduct multiple sessions to numerous audiences. This next engagement wants me to conduct 4 individual presentations. Here is their ambitious agenda:

• 9:00 - 10:30 Meeting Enterprise Goals through Project and Portfolio Management
• 11:30 - 1:00 Beyond Mandates: Getting to "Sustainable" IT Governance Best Practices
• 1:30 - 3:00 Ensuring Process Success
• 3:00 - 4:00 Facilitated Process Management Discussion

They are making the most of my visit and promised they would find a way for me to eat lunch. If my voice holds out, we will be delivering a lot of information and providing a forum that enables them to immerse themselves in key IT-related matters - much like CA World.

Do you find yourself struggling to obtain executive sponsorship, involvement of key stakeholders? Is everyone in your organization on the same page in regards to your IT Governance, PPM, PMO, or Process initiatives?

I can help. I invite you to reach out to your local CA representative. They will be able to work with you to determine if it would be helpful to have me bring a bit of CA World to you.

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Published: November 17 2008, 05:00 PM | no comments
by Steve Romero

We're completing our first full day of CA World 2008. I arrived the day before yesterday so I've had plenty of opportunity to spend time with customers and co-workers. It's been busy and exciting and a pleasure to immerse in all things CA.

I just finished delivering my Process Management presentation, the first of five presentations I am giving here. I'm eagerly anticipating each one. The audiences are incredibly enthusiastic and the sense of fraternity is reminiscent of the professional conferences at which I frequently speak. And yet, CA World is unique.

I am a member of PMI, ISACA, itSMF and ISSA. I hold various certifications and formal positions in each of these professional associations. I enjoy these affiliations and am dedicated to the success of each organization. I eagerly accept invitations to speak in their forums and I gladly participate in their conferences. Attending CA World is like attending all of these conferences at once!

I am just one of the hundreds of speakers here in Las Vegas covering a wide range of disciplines including Governance, Service Management, Infrastructure Management, Data Center Automation, and Application Performance Management. CA's comprehensive involvement in the successful governance, management, and securing of IT fosters a unique environment at CA World. Participants are able to engage in every area and discipline of IT in one fell swoop. This a significant value, especially in these challenging economic times.

I'm using this opportunity to immerse myself in as many of the disciplines as I can, in the best way possible - by spending time with the people that address the challenges of ensuring IT is a strategic asset that can be leveraged to ensure the success of the enterprises they serve.

Wish you were here!

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Published: November 11 2008, 05:52 AM | no comments
by Steve Romero

When it comes to user satisfaction, perception is everything. That point was driven home for me during a recent flight while I was en route to Honolulu to present on-site for a strategic client and to speak at LAVACon, the local PMI Chapter annual project management conference.

We left the gate on-time at 12:45 in our enormous 777 for the 5-hour flight to Hawaii. After 15 minutes of sitting on the tarmac, the Pilot announced that we were returning to the gate to address a maintenance issue.

After 30 minutes at the gate, the Pilot told us that maintenance believed they could resolve the problem in 30-45 minutes. That time came to pass and after 90 minutes at the gate we were told the plane was going to be taken out of service.

As we gathered our belongings, my response was rather carefree. I travel so frequently that I expect things to go wrong, and I am resolved to go with the flow. Luckily, I had a day to spare due to prophetic travel planning. I did not expect they would be able to get us all to Hawaii on the next flight so I was prepared to leave the following day.

To my utter amazement, they provisioned another 777 (from the International terminal) and had us all on our way within 5 hours of planned departure. I was impressed, delighted and very pleased with the outcome. This made me very much the exception among my fellow travelers. Most were livid. While I gladly and gleefully boarded the new plane, to my astonishment, the resulting solution did not assuage the negative emotions of my fellow passengers. The 5 hours of countless displays of anxiety and anger continued. They grumbled on the flight, they grumbled as we deplaned, and they continued to grumble as they met their friends and family at baggage claim.

Why was my response so different than the others? I believe it was because I had more insight into the challenges and associated processes involved with solving the problem. My perception was different than theirs.

I closely follow the day-to-day machinations of air travel, due to my role at CA. Plus, my father worked for United Airlines for 38 years. I know jet airliners are expensive and only profitable when they are in the air. Airlines can't afford to leave 777s lying around "just-in-case." I also know tons of work and preparation goes into these jets getting from point-A to point-B. I hardly expected the airline to be able to not only find an available jumbo jet, but also get it prepared, staged and provisioned to fly - on a moment's notice! Yet they did!

I came to realize that my emotions and state of mind were greatly tempered by my perception. I have to believe that if the people on that flight had the same level of air travel industry awareness as I, they would have been equally impressed and satisfied with the outcome.

I believe this situation is analogous to the animosity and acrimony that exists between many IT organizations and the constituents they serve. I believe many IT users and customers have a negative perception of IT because they lack the insight into what it takes to deliver and continually support their technology services.

This is no fault of their own, but rather due to IT's inability to communicate what is required. I say inability because few IT organizations have adequately addressed IT governance and the associated discipline of process management.

If you can't design, implement, manage, and govern good processes, you surely can't communicate them. Until you do, you can't expect your constituents to have an understanding, appreciation and accurate perception of what it takes to govern, manage and secure the IT environment.

How do your users perceive your organization? What have you proactively done to influence that perception?

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