Marc's AIM

Cartoonist Walt Kelly most likely never heard of E-mail, ARPANET or logging in but he rivals Nostradamus when it comes to IT security.

Daily, I’m amazed at the number of security holes and vulnerabilities in IT systems that are not the result of bad code but are directly the result of bad practices.  There are many examples of perfectly secure IT systems which are rendered about as secure as a Madoff managed retirement fund when placed in the hands of their administrators or users.

My biggest pet peeve at the moment are clear-text passwords.

Continue reading ‘We have met the enemy and he is us!’

Posted in Opinion, Security
Tags: IT, ITIL, LinkedIn, Passwords, Technology

Earlier today I was reading an Associate Press article about David Morales, an eight-year-old Rhode Island boy whose patriotic baseball cap was banned from school.  Why?  Because he glued plastic toy soldiers carrying guns to it.  He didn’t bring in any guns, real or otherwise.  He simply glued plastic soldiers to the hat.

What’s next?  Removing the pictures from history textbooks that include images of guns?  Do we remove all references to the Minute Men because they carried rifles?  While we’re at it, let’s re-write Ralph Waldo Emerson‘s “Concord Hymn” from “And fired the shot heard ’round the world.” to “And created a very loud noise heard ’round the world.“

Continue reading ‘Zero Tolerance for Zero Tolerance’

Posted in Opinion
Tags: Character, Ethics, Life, Zero Tolerance

Experience, especially leadership experience, can’t be rushed.  Just as a fine wine matures over time, becoming a leader can also only be done over time.  Rushing either often produces an inferior, unpalatable, product.

The art of being a leader (I use the term art as there most certainly is no science that can define all the qualities of a leader) is dependent upon one’s experiences.  Yes, we’ve all heard the term, and may have even seen, a “natural-born leader” but even those leaders rely on their personal and professional experiences.  They are only born with the potential to be a great leader.

Being placed in to a leadership role, or worse, assuming a leadership role, without the experience necessary to support one’s decisions is a recipe for failure.

Continue reading ‘Standing On Top’

Posted in Uncategorized
Tags: Leadership, Life, LinkedIn, Management, Workplace

Attention corporate America — Want to reduce costs, increase customer satisfaction and help the environment?  I have the answer!  Close your Customer Service Call Centers and replace them with potted plants.  The plants would be just as helpful as the current level one agents and we could use the oxygen created by the plants.

Sarcasm?  Cynicism?  Truism?  You be the judge.

I have had the unfortunate experience of needing to contact four different “customer service” centers in the past couple of weeks.  Each of these was contentious at best and infuriating at worst.  As an IT Director, I have managed customer service call centers large and small.  I know for a fact it doesn’t need to be this way.  Why is it then so many companies can’t seem to get it right?

Let’s start with the first one.

Continue reading ‘Potted Plants’

Posted in Incident Management, Problem Management, Service, Service Management
Tags: LinkedIn, Management, Service, Technology

I recently had the pleasure of meeting Sig and Edgar Hansen of Deadliest Catch fame.  The brothers were guest chefs at Disney’s California Food & Wine Festival.  As “chefs” they make really good fisherman!  I wasn’t at all surprised by the level of their culinary skills.  What I was surprised by was how engaging and personable they each were.  They were funny, entertaining, and genuine.  They have years of stories to tell and tell them well.

Both Sig and Edgar came across just as you see them on the show.  Sig made a few references to cleaning up his act for a “Disney” stage.   He was more Vegas than Disney dropping the occasional “A” bomb and, at one point, even gave his brother a one-finger salute.  The audience loved it.  There was no bleeping this live performance.  Watching the Disney folks cringe when he did was as much fun as any “E” ticket ride in the park.

Continue reading ‘Lessons From the Northwestern’s Wheelhouse’

Posted in Uncategorized
Tags: Character, Life, Reviews, Workplace

Today was great!  We lost the game!

Come again?

You read it right.  My son’s basketball team lost their first game this afternoon and it turned out great.

My nine-year old son plays youth basketball in our local parks and recreation league.  It is his first year on the team.  He’s played soccer for a number of years as part of our local AYSO league but this league, and his experiences so far, are much different from his experience with AYSO soccer.

We have a great set of coaches for this youth basketball team.  They’re dedicated, knowledgeable and competitive.  We won our first games of the season, some of the decidedly, and then came today’s game.  All week the boys were anticipating this game.  This team was bigger than they are.  Like us, they were undefeated going in to today’s game.  They had a reputation for playing hard.

Continue reading ‘Alright! We Lost!’

Posted in Uncategorized
Tags: Character, Ethics, Family, Life, LinkedIn

I trusted friend of mine suggested I read one of his favorite books on the workplace, A Great Place to Work: What Makes Some Employers So Good–And Most So Bad by Robert Levering.  So, naturally, I got my copy from Amazon and gave it the once over.

What I found most intriguing wasn’t the history of the American workplace or management styles but the parallels between what is happening in the American economy today and what was occurring in the mid 1980s when the book was written.

If history repeats itself, and the unexpected always happens, how incapable must Man be of learning from experience. — George Bernard Shaw

Continue reading ‘A Great Place To Work… And Live?’

Posted in Book Review
Tags: Books, Economy, Life, LinkedIn, Management, Reviews, Trust, Workplace