Whose house is it anyway?!?

I know this may come as a shock, but I'm still alive and my house is done! 

Since I haven't written anything in quite a while, I'm not sure which of those facts you find most shocking.

Personally, I'm voting for the house being complete as the most shocking news I've heard in a while (except, of course, the Patriots losing the Super Bowl)!

I guess technically, I'm not actually complete with the house yet.  I am, however, in the final stages.  The floor guys are sanding and finishing the floors even as I type and the landscapers are working away on the outside.  In theory, I should be in the house by the end of this month (February).

Needless to say, this process has taught me a great many things about the construction industry.  For example, when a sub-contractor says, "I promise I'll be there tomorrow" he really means "If I happen to finish my other job and can't pick up any other work, there's a remote chance I'll grace you with my presence and swing by your pathetic house!"  It's also, however, served to reinforce to me something about the IT industry.

After 11 months I've concluded, that the typical contractor really doesn't care about the big picture (i.e. my house).  They're strictly concerned with just their work (and their paycheck) and have very little (if any) regard for how it integrates with the other aspects of construction.  Further, because they don't know whose house it is, it's difficult for them to make any personal investment in the project - it's just a job.  As a result, I've spent quite a bit of time (and money) having to redo things that weren't done right the first time.

What does this have to do with IT?!?!

Lately I've been spending a good bit of time in the world of ITIL v3.  Between visiting with customers, teaching the Foundation Bridge class, and taking the Service Manager Bridge class, I've been involved in quite a few discussions about the nature of service and about IT facilitating business outcomes.  In all of those discussions, there's been a consistent theme - unless the people in the IT trenches understand how what they do directly impacts their customers, IT has little hope of providing real business value on a consistent basis.  As always, it begins and ends with people.

I was reminded of this fact one day at the beginning of my construction odyssey while reading "Building Your Own Home for Dummies" (yes, there is such book).  In one of the chapters about dealing with sub-contractors, it suggested bringing cookies to the job site in order to encourage the workers and help them make a connection with their work and you, the homeowner.

It's the same in IT.  Whether through technology, processes, or organizational structures/initiatives, we have to ensure that people don't have to go too far to see the link between their actions and the upstream business impact.

In the next couple of weeks (in between packing and moving) I'll share some thoughts on things you can do in each of these areas to make sure you and your IT organization don't lose sight of who you're building the house for.

By the way, the cookie thing works!