I’ve heard it said that most arguments
are more about definitions than actual disagreements. Seems we all have
the habit of hearing or reading the same words, and interpreting them
in our unique way.
For example, here’s a term you hear a lot, but rarely hear defined: “Best Practices.” What’s that mean, anyway?
So I spent about 30 seconds with Google, looking at various definitions, and came up with these common themes:
- a well-defined method
- proven successful
- generic / transferable
- mature
And there are lots of others, but I think you can boil down to these.
Even these broad, vague definitions only prompt more questions:
- a well-defined method (By whom? Toward what objectives or goals?)
- proven successful (Where? By whom? Under what conditions?)
- generic / transfereable (Enough that they apply to everyone? At what level of detail?)
- Mature (How do we know?)
How does a “best practice” come to exist? Survey? Academic study?
Experience and industry consensus? A consultant spouts an opinion?
How do you validate that it’s a “best practice” versus “some consultant’s opinion” vs “it’s how we do it here, and it works ok?
Honestly… I don’t know. If you do - shoot me comment, ok?
Nevertheless, we are charged with implementing ITAM Best Practices. So I guess we better be able to define what that means…
So… here goes - got your flamethrowers ready?
- Centralized ITAM Program
- Corporate Standards
- Centralized Request System
- Centralized Procurement Function
- Centralized Asset Repository
- Integrated Asset, Change, Incident Environment
- Service Level Agreements: Internal, Customer, Vendor
- Lifecycle Asset Mgmt. defined from Conception to Grave view of asset lifecycle
- Inventory Mgmt. combination of Discovery & Physical Inventory (Audit Loop)
- Designated Asset Managers
- Phased Implementation, Prioritized by Business Need and Organized /
Managed / Concluded by following a formalized Project Mgmt. Methodology
- Repeatable, Measurable, Documented Process
- Compliance included as integral part of process design
- Ongoing Operational Program Management
Ok, I have suited up in my big silver flame-retardant Nomex suit…
I’m sure you disagree with some or all of the above… send me a comment
and let me know!
Scott B
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