The IT Skeptic - vendors

If all I had was a hammer

skeptic — Fri, 18 Jul 2014 23:23:36 +0000

Sometimes vendors need to pitch their tools as something less than the solution to all ills. Especially when it is a gadget.

Vendor etiquette in the webiverse

skeptic — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 02:43:34 +0000

At the risk of invading Chris Dancy's turf, I feel some vendors could use a lesson on what the online community expects. Let me share with you two conversations I've had in the one day, as case studies in how NOT to engage online.

Industry Advice on ITSM Technology – What Is It Worth?

skeptic — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 18:38:55 +0000

ITSM Weekly podcast Antipodean Edition Episode 25 out now

Service Assurance and the pursuit of the elusive service view

skeptic — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 01:22:51 +0000

I learned a new (for me) buzzword recently when a journalist asked me about "Service Assurance". Sounds like a new spin on an old idea: the single view of a service. This is yet another techno-geek wet dream.

Don't do it here

skeptic — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 08:55:11 +0000

There used to be a post here being very rude about a UK training company, because I was annoyed by one mindless comment-spam from them (and a crappy post that the spam was pimping).

After an email from the company explaining that the person

...who submitted the comment (and the article - which was very poorly
written and irrelevant to your post), has only been with the organisation a
short time - he had been tasked with raising the profile of our new ITIL
site. He took it upon himself to submit this comment without running it by

Binder-chuckers

skeptic — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 20:01:51 +0000

The problem with too many ITSM consultants is that they are binder-chuckers. ITSM consulting is not about inventing a process. It is about enacting cultural change.

ITIL v3 Process Maps

cmajewsk — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 08:01:53 +0000

Oh Great ITIL Wizard,

What do you think of these ITIL process maps. Are they worth it? It looks to me just something else to update, however, if put to actual and continual use, they could be a tremendous benefit. Especially for a company that is just starting to implement ITIL best practices...

Much appreciated,

cmajewsk

A few swallows in the Cloud are not altering the landscape

skeptic — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 23:24:23 +0000

I'm happy for Rodrigo Flores (who has probably given up on me at this point) that he has a few strong sales leads over Christmas. But I don't think that constitutes the future arriving "with a bang", an "altered landscape" or proof that Cloud is "happening" in any widespread transformational sense.

For all you vendors out there

skeptic — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 11:25:34 +0000

Here is part two of the transcript of a recent performance by the famous and fragrant folk music performer Rambling Kid Realitsm (see part one here):

...Now my next song is for all the software vendors in the audience. It's called "If All I Had Was a Hammer"

ITIL out of the box

Sat, 19 Jun 2010 22:48:59 +0000

Dear Skep,

A friend of mine works at an organisation that is migrating from one tier-1 ITIL tool vendor to another tier-1 ITIL tool vendor. They have been assured that they can adopt ITIL compliant processes out of the box using their toolset and are starting with Incident, Problem, Change, Service Catalogue, Request Fulfilment, Configuration and Service Level Management.

The vendor also sold a project manager and a technical guy for implementation.

It all seems too easy. What could possibly go wrong?

Thanks in advance.
Nervous

No thanks I don't want to look at your ITSM product

skeptic — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 18:43:22 +0000

When it comes to ITSM products (whether software or consulting or content or training) I'm reminded of the old postcard vendors of Cairo during WWII, or the "Rolex" sellers of New York, or the hash-or-houseboat sellers of Srinigar, or the tart-touts of Bangkok - they're everywhere, on every corner. As a high-profile blogger, I get this constant stream of "hey buddy/mister/falang, wanna buy an ITSM?". In the past when ITSM vendors asked I've politely looked (or found excuses) because I know how your product is like your baby: you are immensely proud and nobody dares tell you it is ugly. Actually most products are like most babies: they aren't ugly, they just look like every other one (my dad reckoned all babies look like Winston Churchill). But from now on I'm going to adopt a simpler answer: when I need something, I may look at your offering. Right now I don't, so I won't, thanks anyway.

What is the best ITIL V3 or ITSM tool?

skeptic — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:53:40 +0000

We go round this question every week on LinkedIn. My answer is getting pretty well honed.

The Exhibit Hall Optimizer

skeptic — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:22:03 +0000

It is not too late to sign up for Pink Elephant's 14th Annual ITSM Conference in Las Vegas next month. I'll see you there. If you come along, we'll be introducing an entirely new feature: an Exhibit Hall Optimizer. I have created the EHOBOK, the Exhibit Hall Optimizer Body Of Knowledge, as a tool for you to extract maximum value from the vendor exhibits, usually a dead zone for some of us at a conference. Check it out on the Conference blog and discover important principles such as

Software automation won't necessarily lower staff costs

skeptic — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 18:20:57 +0000

Automate to make systems more reliable. Automate to make them more effective. Even automate to make them more efficient. But don't automate to eliminate people, at least not if the system is mission critical. You need even more highly trained, professionally-alert staff, to step in when it all goes pear-shaped. And it will.

Microsoft make an even broader patent claim on CMDB

skeptic — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 01:48:15 +0000

The next time you feel even the faintest twinge of believing that Microsoft are on your side, ask them why they would be wanting to patent the concept of CMDB. To advance ITSM? To create a fair and open market? To increase healthy competition? Maybe Goooogle are exhibiting a few signs of evil but Microsoft hold the franchise.

Excellent analysis of how software vendors violate the customer relationship

skeptic — Wed, 06 May 2009 22:20:27 +0000

Here's a blogger taking the vendors firmly by the ear and twisting. My Hero! I am not worthy! etc etc

Conventional wisdom would assume that in a challenging economy, strong relationships would be a key success factor to retaining business and mitigating loss of revenue. Unfortunately, this does not appear to be the case for many companies, including vendors in enterprise software.

ITIL Software Endorsement Scheme dropped on an unsuspecting public

skeptic — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 21:09:04 +0000

News continues to leak about an ITIL Software Endorsement Scheme endorsed by OGC, administered by APMG, and created and assessed by a small organisation SMCG. Without any public discussion at all, a "standard" for ITIL software products is about to be dropped on the unsuspecting ITIL public.

ITIL 101 for software vendors

skeptic — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 05:04:49 +0000

We recently discussed how too many software vendors stretch the facts when claiming ITIL support. Giving them much benefit of the doubt, we thought they might be confused. if so, here is ITIL101 for software vendors to help straighten them out.

ABC Cafeterias

skeptic — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 08:14:45 +0000

Too many software vendors stretch the facts when claiming ITIL support in their products. Perhaps they misunderstand ITIL.

The CMDB Federation is a brilliant piece of vendor marketing smokescreen

skeptic — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 09:21:33 +0000

[Updated May 2009] The CMDB Federation standards initiative must be the most over-hyped vendor marketing smokescreen ever. Whenever anyone raises the bogeyman of proprietary CMDBs, the vendors wheel this one out as the future promise of interoperability. It is pure vendor double-talk. It solves little and is taking forever to appear anyway. It solves little because the standard defines only how management tools can pass data between them- nothiong about what they pass. I bet the much-trumpeted demos seen so far involved data massaging and informal backroom agreements beyond that dictated by the standard in order to get it all to work. I am highly skeptical (surpise!) about the likelihood that this standard would enable or even faciltiate anything useful in a real-world implementation.