IT Process Automation Needs Controls

I bought a new driver a couple of months ago, and just got a chance to try it on the golf course.  On the driving range I found that I got about 50 more yards of distance.  On the course I got the Rest of the Story.  That last 50 yards was usually on the wrong trajectory, leaving me in deep trouble most of the time.  But it sure is fun to use on the driving range!

I heard a similar story from a customer that makes Formula 1 race cars.  The problem to be solved in Formula 1 racing is not speed, but control - keeping the car on the track.

This same principle applies to IT process automation.  The fun part of automation is making things work.  The important part of automation is approval and auditing.  Make sure that approvals can be automated and that any automated changes can be tracked to a change request, audited, and backed out.  Automate the backout process too - ahead of time!

I guess this is obvious if you are an ITIL guru, but I thought the analogies would be interesting.