Preface
The internet has significantly raised the bar for Information Technology, in that the products they deliver are accessible and in some instances, highly public. It is not uncommon for projects to be large-scale, often arising suddenly, and with the demand that they are to be done as quickly as possible, usually without consideration of you existing resources.
This book is for the manager in such a position, whether working in-house to deliver IT solutions or as a supplier to other firms. In particular, it is aimed at six common problems:
- How to improve the probability of success and mitigate risk in IT projects.
- How to deliver products in an environment of uncertainty.
- How to anticipate and mitigate unforeseen setbacks
- How to ensure that the investment in projects are well directed
- How to keep IT focused on the needs of the business (rather than on its own)
- How to apply meaningful metrics to IT projects
The author uses the Titanic as an analogy throughout the book, primarily because it was a technical wonder of its age, and while the infamous disaster is often blamed on the inadequacies of technology, it was in fact more attributable to a large number of smaller blunders. The same is true in the current level of faith that is placed in computer technology - while there has not been an epic disaster yet, there is plenty of potential, and for the same reasons.
(EN: The author often chases after this metaphor for pages at a time, and can often neglect to provide direct information about the topic, relying instead on the metaphor to convey his meaning. From an editorial perspective, it's a way to generate filler material and bulk up a book that would otherwise be quite thin - so I expect the reading notes will seem very short at times).