- Management Reference Guide
- Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Strategic Management
- Establishing Goals, Objectives, and Strategies
- Aligning IT Goals with Corporate Business Goals
- Utilizing Effective Planning Techniques
- Developing Worthwhile Mission Statements
- Developing Worthwhile Vision Statements
- Instituting Practical Corporate Values
- Budgeting Considerations in an IT Environment
- Introduction to Conducting an Effective SWOT Analysis
- IT Governance and Disaster Recovery, Part One
- IT Governance and Disaster Recovery, Part Two
- Customer Management
- Identifying Key External Customers
- Identifying Key Internal Customers
- Negotiating with Customers and Suppliers—Part 1: An Introduction
- Negotiating With Customers and Suppliers—Part 2: Reaching Agreement
- Negotiating and Managing Realistic Customer Expectations
- Service Management
- Identifying Key Services for Business Users
- Service-Level Agreements That Really Work
- How IT Evolved into a Service Organization
- FAQs About Systems Management (SM)
- FAQs About Availability (AV)
- FAQs About Performance and Tuning (PT)
- FAQs About Service Desk (SD)
- FAQs About Change Management (CM)
- FAQs About Configuration Management (CF)
- FAQs About Capacity Planning (CP)
- FAQs About Network Management
- FAQs About Storage Management (SM)
- FAQs About Production Acceptance (PA)
- FAQs About Release Management (RM)
- FAQs About Disaster Recovery (DR)
- FAQs About Business Continuity (BC)
- FAQs About Security (SE)
- FAQs About Service Level Management (SL)
- FAQs About Financial Management (FN)
- FAQs About Problem Management (PM)
- FAQs About Facilities Management (FM)
- Process Management
- Developing Robust Processes
- Establishing Mutually Beneficial Process Metrics
- Change Management—Part 1
- Change Management—Part 2
- Change Management—Part 3
- Audit Reconnaissance: Releasing Resources Through the IT Audit
- Problem Management
- Problem Management–Part 2: Process Design
- Problem Management–Part 3: Process Implementation
- Business Continuity Emergency Communications Plan
- Capacity Planning – Part One: Why It is Seldom Done Well
- Capacity Planning – Part Two: Developing a Capacity Planning Process
- Capacity Planning — Part Three: Benefits and Helpful Tips
- Capacity Planning – Part Four: Hidden Upgrade Costs and
- Improving Business Process Management, Part 1
- Improving Business Process Management, Part 2
- 20 Major Elements of Facilities Management
- Major Physical Exposures Common to a Data Center
- Evaluating the Physical Environment
- Nightmare Incidents with Disaster Recovery Plans
- Developing a Robust Configuration Management Process
- Developing a Robust Configuration Management Process – Part Two
- Automating a Robust Infrastructure Process
- Improving High Availability — Part One: Definitions and Terms
- Improving High Availability — Part Two: Definitions and Terms
- Improving High Availability — Part Three: The Seven R's of High Availability
- Improving High Availability — Part Four: Assessing an Availability Process
- Methods for Brainstorming and Prioritizing Requirements
- Introduction to Disk Storage Management — Part One
- Storage Management—Part Two: Performance
- Storage Management—Part Three: Reliability
- Storage Management—Part Four: Recoverability
- Twelve Traits of World-Class Infrastructures — Part One
- Twelve Traits of World-Class Infrastructures — Part Two
- Meeting Today's Cooling Challenges of Data Centers
- Strategic Security, Part One: Assessment
- Strategic Security, Part Two: Development
- Strategic Security, Part Three: Implementation
- Strategic Security, Part Four: ITIL Implications
- Production Acceptance Part One – Definition and Benefits
- Production Acceptance Part Two – Initial Steps
- Production Acceptance Part Three – Middle Steps
- Production Acceptance Part Four – Ongoing Steps
- Case Study: Planning a Service Desk Part One – Objectives
- Case Study: Planning a Service Desk Part Two – SWOT
- Case Study: Implementing an ITIL Service Desk – Part One
- Case Study: Implementing a Service Desk Part Two – Tool Selection
- Ethics, Scandals and Legislation
- Outsourcing in Response to Legislation
- Supplier Management
- Identifying Key External Suppliers
- Identifying Key Internal Suppliers
- Integrating the Four Key Elements of Good Customer Service
- Enhancing the Customer/Supplier Matrix
- Voice Over IP, Part One — What VoIP Is, and Is Not
- Voice Over IP, Part Two — Benefits, Cost Savings and Features of VoIP
- Application Management
- Production Acceptance
- Distinguishing New Applications from New Versions of Existing Applications
- Assessing a Production Acceptance Process
- Effective Use of a Software Development Life Cycle
- The Role of Project Management in SDLC— Part 2
- Communication in Project Management – Part One: Barriers to Effective Communication
- Communication in Project Management – Part Two: Examples of Effective Communication
- Safeguarding Personal Information in the Workplace: A Case Study
- Combating the Year-end Budget Blitz—Part 1: Building a Manageable Schedule
- Combating the Year-end Budget Blitz—Part 2: Tracking and Reporting Availability
- References
- Developing an ITIL Feasibility Analysis
- Organization and Personnel Management
- Optimizing IT Organizational Structures
- Factors That Influence Restructuring Decisions
- Alternative Locations for the Help Desk
- Alternative Locations for Database Administration
- Alternative Locations for Network Operations
- Alternative Locations for Web Design
- Alternative Locations for Risk Management
- Alternative Locations for Systems Management
- Practical Tips To Retaining Key Personnel
- Benefits and Drawbacks of Using IT Consultants and Contractors
- Deciding Between the Use of Contractors versus Consultants
- Managing Employee Skill Sets and Skill Levels
- Assessing Skill Levels of Current Onboard Staff
- Recruiting Infrastructure Staff from the Outside
- Selecting the Most Qualified Candidate
- 7 Tips for Managing the Use of Mobile Devices
- Useful Websites for IT Managers
- References
- Automating Robust Processes
- Evaluating Process Documentation — Part One: Quality and Value
- Evaluating Process Documentation — Part Two: Benefits and Use of a Quality-Value Matrix
- When Should You Integrate or Segregate Service Desks?
- Five Instructive Ideas for Interviewing
- Eight Surefire Tips to Use When Being Interviewed
- 12 Helpful Hints To Make Meetings More Productive
- Eight Uncommon Tips To Improve Your Writing
- Ten Helpful Tips To Improve Fire Drills
- Sorting Out Today’s Various Training Options
- Business Ethics and Corporate Scandals – Part 1
- Business Ethics and Corporate Scandals – Part 2
- 12 Tips for More Effective Emails
- Management Communication: Back to the Basics, Part One
- Management Communication: Back to the Basics, Part Two
- Management Communication: Back to the Basics, Part Three
- Asset Management
- Managing Hardware Inventories
- Introduction to Hardware Inventories
- Processes To Manage Hardware Inventories
- Use of a Hardware Inventory Database
- References
- Managing Software Inventories
- Business Continuity Management
- Ten Lessons Learned from Real-Life Disasters
- Ten Lessons Learned From Real-Life Disasters, Part 2
- Differences Between Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity , Part 1
- Differences Between Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity , Part 2
- 15 Common Terms and Definitions of Business Continuity
- The Federal Government’s Role in Disaster Recovery
- The 12 Common Mistakes That Cause BIAs To Fail—Part 1
- The 12 Common Mistakes That Cause BIAs To Fail—Part 2
- The 12 Common Mistakes That Cause BIAs To Fail—Part 3
- The 12 Common Mistakes That Cause BIAs To Fail—Part 4
- Conducting an Effective Table Top Exercise (TTE) — Part 1
- Conducting an Effective Table Top Exercise (TTE) — Part 2
- Conducting an Effective Table Top Exercise (TTE) — Part 3
- Conducting an Effective Table Top Exercise (TTE) — Part 4
- The 13 Cardinal Steps for Implementing a Business Continuity Program — Part One
- The 13 Cardinal Steps for Implementing a Business Continuity Program — Part Two
- The 13 Cardinal Steps for Implementing a Business Continuity Program — Part Three
- The 13 Cardinal Steps for Implementing a Business Continuity Program — Part Four
- The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL)
- The Origins of ITIL
- The Foundation of ITIL: Service Management
- Five Reasons for Revising ITIL
- The Relationship of Service Delivery and Service Support to All of ITIL
- Ten Common Myths About Implementing ITIL, Part One
- Ten Common Myths About Implementing ITIL, Part Two
- Characteristics of ITIL Version 3
- Ten Benefits of itSMF and its IIL Pocket Guide
- Translating the Goals of the ITIL Service Delivery Processes
- Translating the Goals of the ITIL Service Support Processes
- Elements of ITIL Least Understood, Part One: Service Delivery Processes
- Case Study: Recovery Reactions to a Renegade Rodent
- Elements of ITIL Least Understood, Part Two: Service Support
- Case Studies
- Case Study — Preparing for Hurricane Charley
- Case Study — The Linux Decision
- Case Study — Production Acceptance at an Aerospace Firm
- Case Study — Production Acceptance at a Defense Contractor
- Case Study — Evaluating Mainframe Processes
- Case Study — Evaluating Recovery Sites, Part One: Quantitative Comparisons/Natural Disasters
- Case Study — Evaluating Recovery Sites, Part Two: Quantitative Comparisons/Man-made Disasters
- Case Study — Evaluating Recovery Sites, Part Three: Qualitative Comparisons
- Case Study — Evaluating Recovery Sites, Part Four: Take-Aways
- Disaster Recovery Test Case Study Part One: Planning
- Disaster Recovery Test Case Study Part Two: Planning and Walk-Through
- Disaster Recovery Test Case Study Part Three: Execution
- Disaster Recovery Test Case Study Part Four: Follow-Up
- Assessing the Robustness of a Vendor’s Data Center, Part One: Qualitative Measures
- Assessing the Robustness of a Vendor’s Data Center, Part Two: Quantitative Measures
- Case Study: Lessons Learned from a World-Wide Disaster Recovery Exercise, Part One: What Did the Team Do Well
- (d) Case Study: Lessons Learned from a World-Wide Disaster Recovery Exercise, Part Two
As mentioned previously, one of the most important pre-requisites of an effective business continuity program is a thorough business impact analysis (BIA). But common mistakes such as those listed in Figure 1 often cause BIAs to fall short in delivering meaningful analyses that IT managers need to develop responsive recovery strategies. In the first two parts of this four part series I discussed the first six of these common mistakes. In this segment I address the issues of what role tools play in a BIA, what role interviews play in the process, and how risk assessments can add value to a BIA.
- Too much focus on tools instead of process. Some analysts who conduct BIAs
become very focused on the tools they will be using in the collection, compiling
and analyzing the data provided by the business users. The emphasis often shifts
in appropriately from the process being used, to the automation that can be
applied to the process. There is an inherent flaw in this approach. If a poorly
designed manual process that is being used to collect and analyze the data
suddenly becomes automated, what you typically end up with is a poorly designed
automated process. This can lead to more problems than what you might have
experienced had you not automated in the first place.
The following serves as an example of how this can happen. A recent client of mine in the financial services industry wanted to conduct a BIA across his entire enterprise. Instead of focusing on the processes for selecting the appropriate individuals for interviews, scheduling the meetings at optimal times, and ensuring the proper questions would be asked, he spent most of his initial efforts on procuring and installing an automated survey tool to assist in gathering the survey information. While the tool had the potential of being very effective, it was not fully explained to users about its intention and use, and consequentially resulted in far less meaningful input than if only interviews had been used to collect the data.
1. Lack of clearly defined scope.
2. No agreement on level of details.
3. Marginal executive support at kickoff.
4. Poorly designed survey forms.
5. Inadequate preparation for interviews.
6. Over-emphasis on value rather than urgency.
7. Too much focus on tools instead of process.
8. Ineffective interviewing techniques.
9. Little thought of risk assessment.
10. Insufficient analysis of results.
11. Tedious presentation of results.
12. No timely follow-up of results.
Figure 1 The 12 Common Mistakes that Cause BIAs To Fail
- Ineffective interviewing techniques. I have known more than a few BIA
analysts who preferred to rely solely on surveys, questionnaires and emails to
collect needed data. The example previously cited concerning the over-focus on
tools shows how this can less than desirable results. Analysts often say that
setting up interviews can be more hassle than it worth. They will mention how
interviews often start late, or may be cut short, or have to be re-scheduled, or
cancelled altogether. In my experience, the real reason some BIA analysts try to
steer clear of face-to-face meetings is that they tend to use ineffective
techniques when interviewing business process owners. The interviewers struggle
to keep the discussion focused, seldom ask open-ended questions, and may
volunteer decisions such as recovery time objectives (RTOs) instead of prompting
business users for this information.
There is no question that a face-to-face interview has distinct benefits over surveys. An interview provides an opportunity for full introductions, for re-enforcing the benefits of business continuity, and for explaining the objectives of the BIA. The interview also can help to improve the working relationship with business users and afford them an opportunity to ask questions about the process. This is not to say that surveys are not important. They can be used very efficiently to collect large amounts of data in a short period of time. But following up with an effective interview is needed to validate and clarify the information, and to build on the relationship. A little bit of training on effective interviewing techniques can go a long way to addressing this common mistake.
- Little thought of risk assessment. A thorough BIA frequently includes a
corresponding Threat Analysis and Vulnerability Analysis which together feed
into an overall Risk Assessment. Such an assessment can add value to the BIA,
but is often overlooked. A threat is defined as primarily a human intervention
to undermine a key business process; another way of saying this is that a threat
is an action with human malicious intent. Disgruntled employees, hackers,
terrorists, vandals and pranksters would all fall under the category of
threats.
Vulnerabilities, on the other hand, are defined primarily as natural or inadvertent man-made disasters. Blizzards, ice storms, floods, earthquakes and tornadoes are all disasters that could impact the critical business processes of a company. Power shortages, air conditioning problems, and gas, water or plumbing problems are all examples of inadvertent man-made incidents that could lead to major impacts.
The combination of Threat Analysis and Vulnerability Analysis can provide valuable input for an overall Risk Assessment that can then be used to determine which critical processes are most at risk of sustained outages. Analysts performing BIAs sometimes overlook the benefits such a risk assessment can provide.
This was the third segment of the four part series on the 12 Common Mistakes That Cause BIAs To Fail. In the upcoming fourth part I will discuss the final three of these mistakes involving:
- insufficient analysis of results
- unclear presentation of results
- no timely follow-up of results
Part four will conclude this series that examines the causes of BIA failures.