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  • #2256925

    IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

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    by why me worry? ·

    Having worked over 4 years in a large international law firm, I have seen my share of corporate politics and BS to last me a lifetime. One of my biggest annoyances and frustrations were with IT managers, directors, and executives who simply could not say “no” to a managing partner when he/she came to us with some half assed request for something that was technologically impossible or not feasible to implement. These “yes men” would first say yes, pass off some widget project to us, and expect us to perform miracles and magic tricks to make it happen. When we can’t deliver on the project, these managers would pass the buck and blame us, the engineers and admins, for their poor lack of judgement and inability to manage properly. Please feel free to share your stories about incompetent and stupid IT managers who should not be in IT with their lack of technical and management skills. In my opinion, having an MBA does not make you a good IT manager if you can’t distinguish realistic requests from bogus technology.

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    • #3229130

      IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      by tech consultant ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      I can understand the frustration shown here, IMHO this not unique and we all have faced similar situation during our working life, I don?t believe for a second that there are many technically competent IT manager out there, it?s a mix rarely seen. I have faced this situation throughout my career and I have yet to work for a technically sound manager.

      I always felt that people management is completely different than technology management, am sure I will get murdered for this statement by all the IT manager present here but I felt that good people management skills does not make you a technically sound IT manager.

      I have had same frustration of ?yes? to everything and of course the expectations to perform miracles. In cases where miracles were expected I had to manage that extremely carefully without having to sound that what was asked was almost impossible. In that situation I felt that I had to rely on my diplomatic skills and perhaps dig more at what user really want and more importantly why? If I understood that well then I was in position to suggest alternative(s) to achieve very same objective(s) without distressing the manger and more importantly the user.

    • #3229129

      No problem with IT manager

      by rayanami ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      I have no problem with IT managers, since I’m the IT manager in our company. ^_^
      I wouldnt propose anything that is technologically impossible since I know that my record would the one most affected if we cant deliver. Though things are not the same with other managers where they would demand new stuff implemented in our office without consulting on how long it might take.

      • #3229081

        One one hand… on the other hand

        by dr_zinj ·

        In reply to No problem with IT manager

        The ability to see and understand technology capabilities as they apply to problems is a skillset totally different from the skillset of being able to manage existing capital/material resources for use, which are both different from the skillset of being able to manage people.

        An MBA is likely to have the latter two sets, while an IT manager is likely to have the former two. The old pareto effect comes into play when looking for someone with all three sets in the same person.

        Now there is a difference between a manager making unrealistic promises; and one that makes promises that require people to ‘stretch’. If you’re not making people stretch, at least a little, then your business is probably going down the tubes.

        • #3229075

          1.21 $$$

          by white rabbit ·

          In reply to One one hand… on the other hand

          I usually say ?Yeah we can do that, but it will cost your department 1.21 jigabucks.? They usually start looking for another solution.

    • #3205079

      Re: IT execs et al.

      by pshiflet ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      The problem I see most often is that non-technical management does not understand the difference between technically possible and technically realistic for their organization given time, resources, or corporate support. Since IT is most commonly seen as an expense or a tool, the limitation of IT resources is also often times overlooked or completely mis-understood by such non-technical individuals. This can make accurate, effective communication between the two groups very difficult, if not impossible. The result of this, unfortunately, is the hiring of more business-savy than tech-savy IT managers because most tech-savy individuals do not take the time to become more business-savy to meet these board room types of needs.

      Don’t get me wrong. I am not a manager of any sort and I don’t agree with the results of this type of logic. I just see it everyday and can understand why it happens. The onus is thus on the technical staff to either integrate more effectively with the business to make that leap for themselves or learn better ways to communicate with their managers. Relate to what they know. Explain the pulls of time, personnel, functionality, money, and quality have on every project.

      Lastly, the fact that any IT manager is not being held responsible for the missed deadlines or failed projects (realistic or not) of their department speaks volumes about how most corporations view IT. This “lower than management” status can make denying any request difficult, if not job suicide. Something to think about the next time you want to castrate your resident IT-ish manager.

      • #3226597

        But do the ttechnically competent managers want to see?

        by gardoglee ·

        In reply to Re: IT execs et al.

        While you are right about those managers who are not technically competent to know better than to promise impossible things (who we will not call “incompetent”, being polite and all), there is another category who should know better, but who make the same mistakes. Those are the managers who were once themselves technical people, who rose up the ranks until they were promoted to senior management (yes, it does happen), and then semm to have had lobotomies when they reached a level of authority which made them potentially dangerous. From what I’ve seen, it is like the infectious disease of willful ignorance passes from the other executives into those who arrived with technical credentials. And don’t blame an MBA for this. I am one of many people who have MBAs or even business PhDs who bemoan the same stupidity on the aprt of management. Being a technical person with a business degree only makes it more painful to watch these idiotic mistakes being made, because you can then see that they are not only technically disastrous, but that they frequently also ignore sound business analysis. Even business managers are supposed to gather input on the realistic costs of a project before they approve it. The real disasters occur when a manager ignores the realistic estimates and substitutes numbers pulled from thin air which support the politically popular decision. That sort of mistake doesn’t require a business degree, and a degree of any sort will not prevent it.

        The sad fact is that most businesses have a political climate in which the real decision is made up front by an uninformed ego, and then everyone else is expected to carefully sift the data to provide only that which supports the preordained course. This sort of illogic isn’t confined to the professional politicians in Washington, but is endemic everywhere. The larger the organization, the more likely this sort of mistake will be made, because anyone who has survived long enough to get to senior management did so by saying ‘yes’ whenever they were asked.

        • #3205148

          Carve this on every boardroom in the nation

          by too old for it ·

          In reply to But do the ttechnically competent managers want to see?

          You have summarized in one paragraph what is wrong with every local/national/global business that has operated in the past 50 years:

          [i]The sad fact is that most businesses have a political climate in which the real decision is made up front by an uninformed ego, and then everyone else is expected to carefully sift the data to provide only that which supports the preordained course. This sort of illogic isn’t confined to the professional politicians in Washington, but is endemic everywhere. The larger the organization, the more likely this sort of mistake will be made, because anyone who has survived long enough to get to senior management did so by saying ‘yes’ whenever they were asked.[/i]

    • #3205073

      Educate when you can and celebrate

      by youraveragemanager ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      In other words, a decision was made to accept and proceed with a project without your necessary input.

      I suppose that if you could document why your input is necessary it would likely focus on being the Subject Matter Expert (SME), and demonstrate why your consultation and inclusion within the decision making process benefits all stakeholders, including the MBA Manager.

      You were not invited to the menu planning table, and were only asked to serve up the feast. From your description, it appears that the manager needs to consider a partnering approach because of a lack in technical depth. In partnering we are all part of the team, all cards are dealt face up, communication is two way, we do not leave any member of the team out in the cold.

      On the other hand, if the manager has attempted to partner and consistently receives only barriers, the manager needs to start looking at alternate plans for tactical attainment of leadership?s goals. If we can not do it using internal resources, then we look outside the organization when it is just that important.

      Find myself wondering why any manager would make commitments without providing a least a simple business case for proceeding. It is easy to leave a back door open by stating that “It sounds very interesting and simple enough, let me get back to you with some details on this project proposal. I?ll ball park Time, Cost, and Scope before we make any commitments or decision to proceed.” Do the analysis then present that rough result. Apparently, at a minimum this is where your input and contribution would fit.

      But, what do I know? Next to nothing by the description provided; yet have contributed more in word count here than the individual to which I am responding.

      Now for the example; the executive VP asked me (an average IT Manager) to develop an OS so that we could avoid purchasing MS Windows. I did not tell him “No”, there was no need. Let the requestor say no. What I needed to do was take the time to cover very roughly the Time, Cost, and Scope, reserving smiles and laughter until the VP started laughing. Technologists assume complex motivations on the part of others and many times that is simply not the case; the decision-makers are simply unaware of what the project will take, they do not understand what they are requesting.

      Educate when you can and celebrate those occasions when individuals discover why your input is necessary.

      • #3205146

        Estimation Meeting

        by too old for it ·

        In reply to Educate when you can and celebrate

        You describe an effective prelude to an estimation meeting. My preference is to have those with ALL the stakeholders, including the C-Level requestor, present for the time it takes to gather the facts for a realistic estimation.

        I am not that amazed that C-Level folks “can’t find the time” until the meeting is marked as “scheduled at so-and-so’s convenience”.

        I am further not amazed that most projects fail at this point, simply for being a waste of time and capital relative to other suitable alternatives.

    • #3203202

      Kitchen – heat – etc – a 50-y-old++ problem

      by drowningnotwaving ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      I laugh – BIG LOL – when I hear the lament of the down-trodden IT manager.

      This problem has been around since commercial systems – indeed since any system has been developed. I can imagine someone saying to Pascal’s engine: “well that’s nice but what about banking over the phone?” (okay – the phone maybe wasn’t around but if you can work with me a little on this . . .).

      An IT manager has a responsibility to learn how to communicate and educate effectively at all levels – their own management and the non-technical (sometimes known as those goddamn users or other similar terms) – included.

      Being the carpet upon which the uneducated wipe their feet is a CHOICE made by IT managers who are unwilling to learn how to communicate, educate, advocate and control.

      If nothing else, the ones that do get these skills – they “learn to earn”. They get the big-end jobs. And yeah probably get to wipe their feet on the ineffectual (with or without their MBA to rub in the mud) when it is the easy escape.

      I am sure they drown their personal anguish and sorrow for whatever hurt they have caused, sipping pina coladas in the 15 additional years retirement in a beach-front villa.

    • #3203196

      IT (wish to be) Manager

      by t.zacharis ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      Can you imagine an IT Manager(!) that do not know where is the NIC on his laptop?? Been surpised like a child when he discovered the copy/paste functions?? There are more…
      I don’t blame them for their ignorance, since the full responsibility is on the persons who are hiring such irrelevant persons for so critical positions. Needless to say that you cannot discuss any technology matter without the feeling that you are communicating with extraterrestials.
      God help us..

    • #3226405

      So what else is new

      by fortinbras armstrong ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      I’ve been doing IT work for over 25 years. I have regularly seen clueless managers promise the moon, usually with ridiculous deadlines, and blame us because we could not deliver.

      About 12 years ago, another manager came to my boss and asked him if we could write a fairly simple program for them. My boss took it to me, and I said that I could do it in a day or so. I did it, it was no big deal, and both my boss and I figured that they now owed us a favor that we would collect on down the road.

      Several weeks later, the same manager came to us with some of his people, this time wanting a significant suite of programs. My boss and I looked at it, and we figured that it would take me a month to six weeks, with me devoting my entire time to it. (They wanted it done in a week or so.)

      We then asked about whether they had some money in their budget for me to charge my time to. They said that since we had not asked them to charge my time for the first program, we could just swallow the expense again. My boss and I just looked at each other, and I said that he should explain the facts of life to them.

      The manager got very annoyed with us when we told him that we couldn’t do it under those conditions. Apparently, he had promised his boss that it could be done in a week without additional money out of their budget. So it became our fault that we could not deliver on his promises.

      • #3204602

        My point exactly. This manager did things ass backwards!

        by why me worry? ·

        In reply to So what else is new

        Instead of saying “I’ll check with my team to determine if we can do this and how long it will take”, he makes a half-assed promise and then blames you when he has his ass handed to him by his boss for making an idiotic management decision and not delivering on his committments. Such a person should not be in a management position if he/she fails to consults with the team before simply agreeing to take on a project whose scope is beyond his/her knowledge. I’m not a manager and never have been, but I have been fighting for a management position back at the law firm I worked for and was pushed out of the firm for it. Basically, their status quo was to pass the buck and blame others and never assume responsibility for their own ineptness. My management style would the complete opposite, as I would first check with others before commmitting to anything, and if I would screw up, I’d take the blame, not the people who work for me because it wasn’t their fault.

        • #3204528

          That explains why you and I are not managers

          by gardoglee ·

          In reply to My point exactly. This manager did things ass backwards!

          One of the descriptions I was given in business school of what made a person a manager was that a manager is someone who accomplishes their tasks and responsibilities through other people’s activities. Obviously there are several ways to take that, including the one which the worst managers like to use to explain why it is never their fault. However, once you get one idiot manager high up in a company, they need to pull other like-minded yes-men along behind them in order to distance themselves from the consequences of their stupidity. That is what causes one idiot’s stupidity to become a corporate culture of stupidity. In that situation, someone who even considers the possibility of saying something other than “YES!!!” to a request is a bad apple, a naysayer, a problem, not a team player, etc., etc., etc.

        • #3204523

          Oh yes, the good ole boys club of idiot managers

          by why me worry? ·

          In reply to That explains why you and I are not managers

          I can’t tell you how many times I have seen one idiot manager come into a company, bring in other idiot managers like him/her, and before you know it, all of his/her former friends/associates from his/her old jobs are heads of the IT dept and running the show. If that isn’t a good reason to jump ship from such a company, I don’t know what is.

        • #3204500

          A managers job

          by jamesrl ·

          In reply to That explains why you and I are not managers

          A manager’s job is to manage resources (Human resources, budgets) to fullfill the “mission” of the group/department. Managing resources includes planning, prioritizing, escalating, as well as training, and coaching staff. So the manager can’t succeed alone, they can only succeed through their staff.

          In that instance, I’d happily say its a bad manager. I never make a committment on behalf of someone in terms of timing, unless I’ve sat down with the “doer” and discussed it. I can and do adjust priorities, and juggle deliverables to try and make the most out of the resources I have. I can committ that we will support another groups project, but thats not a blank cheque – it means within the context of all the other projects we have going on,l I will work with you to determine the feasbility and timing. If you try, as that manager did, to please everyone, you risk pleasing no one.

          My general rule of them, is under promise and over deliver. I often take my staff’s estimate and pad it, knowing that my staff underestimate interruptions, and don’t factor in sick days. vacation, lag time etc.

          Good managers don’t have yes men. Yes men inevitably screw up and when they do it big enough or often enough they get fired.

          Good managers don’t pass off the blame to their subordinates. Good senior managers don’t accept passing of blame.

          James

        • #3204491

          You should offer an IT Management 101 class

          by why me worry? ·

          In reply to A managers job

          because many IT managers here in the USA desparately need it.

        • #3204454

          RAmen to that!

          by gardoglee ·

          In reply to You should offer an IT Management 101 class

          There are lots of business schools in the US, and most of them do try to teach that sort of responsible decision making. The problem seems to be that for some reason that message does not get across, or is burned out of too many managers as soon as they get into a real job. A good manager will do all of those things. There are just too many managers who don’t. The bad managers do tend to gather other bad managers around themselves, which in turn allows the bad managers to survive longer.

        • #3205139

          Law firms are the Worst

          by too old for it ·

          In reply to My point exactly. This manager did things ass backwards!

          Because to be in management, you either (by custom or by code) are required to be a lawyer.

          What the average attorney who spends his time practicing law knows about IT, business management or anything else for that matter is beyond me.

      • #3204228

        Setting bad precedent

        by dmarty ·

        In reply to So what else is new

        This is why we don’t allow our developers to do ANY work outside of a formal project request that has been routed through Executive Steering Committee for review and approval. Even though the cost may be attributed to an individual manager’s budget, work of that nature can only be done as a project. Projects must align with corporate goals and the decision to invest in any project is a corporate decision.

        So even if an executive has a pet project, it must be submitted for review by fellow executives, with full business requirements, justification and cost estimates. That weeds out a lot of nonsense, and reduces unintended consequences.

    • #3205307

      Cursed with an MBA?

      by crake ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      Earning my MBA was one of the best decisions I have ever made regarding my professional future. Many opportunities have presented themselves since I completed my degree, and much of my consultant work deals with industry and competitive analysis, competitive strategy and the economics involved, emerging markets (many companies are trying to jump on the mobile tech bandwagon), prospects, and more strategically oriented material.

      There is *A LOT* of number crunching, statistics, and forecasting involved. If it weren’t for my other small business, I would seldom lay hands on a computer or system.

      However, that being said, my MBA has come *after* some 12 years grinding it out in the trenches and working in the field. I believe this helps me to be a better manager than many of my colleagues, who *may* have 4 years of total hands-on experience. I’m not saying I am “better” than anyone; in fact I learn from people every single day regardless their “title” (or shall we call it a “label”?), but I think it becomes quite apparent to customers and coworkers alike when a person has a long history in his or her field.

      As an example, when I take my truck in for service, I can usually tell – within minutes – if the mechanic/technician knows what they’re talking about or not… even though I know absolutely nothing about automobiles.

      Of course, it is even easier for me and my customers to tell if a person knows his or her stuff when it comes to IT. An excellent example of “real knowledge vs dazzle ’em with bullshit” happens quite often as we interview potential hire candidates – particlarly those who have obviously lied lied on their resume. I’ll never understand why people do this, especially when the questions we ask are so black & white and not subjective whatsoever. Example?

      A 31 year-old gentlemen was interviewing for my customer’s Server Administrator position. The customer has five server clusters, each running 400+ HP ML series pizza boxes with a few exceptions.

      In the work experience section of his resume, he claimed to have worked on Windows NT 4.0 Servers since 1990. We asked him about this twice, and he insisted that he even went to the Windows NT 4.0 school in 1989, which was listed in his Industry Specific Training section.

      Since NT 4.0 was released in July of *1996* it was difficult to avoid chuckling at the poor guy.
      Sadly, things only went downhill from there.

      As ridiculous as his attempts to impress us had been, I felt I understood where he was coming from.

      He needed work desperately to take care of his family. I’m not sure if he was drawing unemployment or not – not that it really mattered… (been there, done that, got the T-shirt. We had to move into a shitty two-bedroom apartment when I was looking for work in ’93. It came complete with nightly knife-fights and drive-bys.

      I digress… an unemployment check wouldn’t have been enough for him to keep his house, both cars, and manage his household budget. Just a guess.

      So, there’s some insight from one of us cursed MBA folk. Just had to pipe in 🙂

      Cheers!

    • #3205302

      I wasn’t aware that an MBA was supposed to provide that skill!

      by daveo2000 ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      One of the most overlooked aspects of an education is learning to ask questions. I have heard way too many students complain about leaving a class with more questions than when they came in. They don’t realize that they have gained the knowledge to actually ask [b]more[/b] questions!

      When I went for my MBA, I had no preconcieved notion that it would be the answer to all of my job skill needs. An MBA is somewhere between a “key to a door” or, increasingly, like a bellybutton (since nearly everyone I work around has one). The MBA is very (and way too) often used as a screening tool to reduce the number of applicants. Having an MBA meant that I got to go on the interview.

      However, having an MBA does not [b]in any way[/b] mean that you learned how to be an effective IT manager. What it [b]should[/b] mean is that you learned enough questions to prepare you to navigate your way around just about any IT department and find the people that really know the answers.

      A manager’s job isn’t to know the technology that they are deciding on (although it helps to learn them as you go along). The manager’s job is to know the people that work for him/her and get the costs and benefits of the options. Armed with that, s/he should start asking more questions to see what option best fits the company’s needs.

      By the way, this is where another breakdown in communication happens. The people who present the information to the manager should not expect their wonderful presentation to result in the adoption of the technology. Their presentation may contain some information that points out exactly why that technology [b]isn’t[/b] the right option. (Of course, it would be nice if the manager told the presenter just what that item was!) Neither the presentation nor the presenter’s time were wasted.

      So, in answer to [b]Why Me Worry?[/b]’s implied question, “No, an MBA doesn’t make you a good IT manager.” What it does do is give you a broader field of understanding which can, and often does, lead to helping you become a better manager that you could have done without the education, IT or otherwise. It is just some of the ones you have dealt with must not have understood that.

    • #3205220

      MBA or IT expert

      by gabby22 ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      Having an MBA doesn’t make you a good IT manager (or any other sort of manager). Having IT expertise doesn’t make you a good manager either. Having an MBA means you know something about management. Having IT expertise doesn’t mean you know anything about management except that they make your life miserable.

      If you’re a manager and the IT experts below you won’t tell you the truth, then you’ve got a real problem, whether you know it or not.

      Back to the subject. If you understand what the bosses are saying, and why they’re saying it, and you can’t do it, you need to be able to stand up for yourself. Otherwise you’re heading for a life of misery.

      So when you’re asked to do the impossible, do a quick analysis and present it back to them with a number of options and rough budget for each. If you think it’s impossible say so, with rationale. If you think you need to do further analysis, say so, and cost it. You might find you start to get some respect that way. Or you might find yourself looking for a job. Depends on what sort of job you want, of course. Better to die on your feet …

      FWIW, when given a task, I’ve *always* done this, so we’re both sure we’re talking about the same thing, and so the manager has some responsibility in the matter.

    • #3205160

      Bad HRD manager

      by pmshah9 ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      The problem is not with the IT managers or directors or the executives. It is with your personnel department who placed them there. An MBA degree does not qualify a non IT major undergraduate to head the IT department. The HRD people should have looked seen to that.

      An MBA degree really hones your skills in performing & optimizing your duties and performance in your business/career of choice. It does not necessarily impart knowledge in any new branch of professional studies.

      I can say this from almost first hand experience. I have 2 daughters. The first one is an electrical engineer who also did her computer science degree with maths from SUNY. She is now a senior Unix admin with one of the 3 largest securities trading firm on Wall Street, NY. She did not pursue MBA as her field of interest was different. The second one is an economics graduate with MBA in marketing & HRD from one of the top 10 management schools in India. Is presently a consultant in organizational behavior. Although they are both brilliant in their own fields they would be miserable failures if their jobs were interchanged.

      Without proper foundation at undergraduate level any one is eminently unqualified for the job. MBA degree notwithstanding.

    • #3204375

      Both sides of a story

      by skicat ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      I am fortunate to hold an MBA. For those of you who never made it to college or did and never pursued a Masters I am here to give you the other side… sort of.

      Quick history. I worked in restaruants for years to earn a buck and pay for school. My experience (about 12 years) covers all areas of the service industry especially the kitchen (or the line). I have only met one chef/cook in my time who went to culinary school who could actually cook in a high volume situation. Many Executive Chefs are great at budgets, hiring/firing, inventory and menu creation. Is this sounding a bit familiar???

      I am not in management, yet, and I do see both sides here. The key is to have someone on the staff “educate” the IT manager of what is possible and realistic with the resources that are available. If your manager throws you under the bus, it may be time to play a little politics yourself and explain to the managing partner why his request cannot be met. Sometimes the reason will be monetary or equipment. Other times the reason may just be security setup by company policy.

      The biggest flaw with techs is the lack of ability to simplify to the end user what and why things work or don’t work. A good manager should be able to “translate”, but unless you have experience on both sides, no school in the world will enable you to converse in both languages (tech and management.)

      • #3203644

        Spoken like a true part of the problem!

        by simplejo ·

        In reply to Both sides of a story

        That’s the problem; most managers with an MBA don’t have experience on both sides. Like you said, you worked in a restaurant while you went to school. How did that prepare you for making rational IT decisions? Sure there is a balance constantly going on with the higher ups and those below, but ultimately, an IT manager is responsible for making quality decisions that will advance the good of the operation, not get him brownie points, which happens far too much… Too many hours in lectures have made far too many good men and women ignorant of thinking outside the box. They don?t get it and they probably never will.

        PS. Not all with an MBA fit into this catagory, there are some who have survived the brain washing and become great leaders. For our sakes, hopefully you are one of them…

      • #3203343

        Don’t agree

        by tony hopkinson ·

        In reply to Both sides of a story

        I can do it, no MBA and never been in management. I’ve met probably three super geeks in twenty years, and twenty MBA types that didn’t know their arse from their elbow in the last three.

        Like any academic qualification, it does not guarantee you can apply what you’ve learnt, only that you’ve learnt something, maybe.

        I seem to spend more time explaining to MBA’s why their ideas won’t work, not listening to why mine won’t.

    • #3204192

      Real IT Manager Wanted!

      by simplejo ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      I recently started working for a local govenment in Arizona ???? that has an IT Manager with MBA and PMP after his name that spends more time playing games he learned in school on how to properly facilitate a meeting, then he does actually leading projects.

      When I started, I thought I understood my job so I did a systems and network evaluation and put together a professional report, which had about 14 items on it – ranging from security to desktop management issues. When it was all said and done, I was told I was negative and I was written up for my criticism of their oversized peer-to-peer network. (Example – one DNS server resolving 10 sites with over 450 clients) I’ve had to invent work arounds to do what DNS and WINS should be doing because he doesn’t know what the hell he is doing …

      I see the real problem with the ignorant upper managers and directors who don?t know what a real IT manager should know and do. They don’t get it and for the most part they don’t care – that is until they need someone to blame for the problems. Sir, A ?BS? or ?MBA? does not make an IT manager any more than walking into a barn makes you a cow. Nor – for that matter – does seniority prepare someone for the job, which is another dumb thing you are guilty of.

      Here’s a tip: Someone that is part of the problem getting put in charge of fixing it – dumb choice. Excuse me, but nobody – unless he was a Marine in his first life, is going to take ownership of a mess that they helped create, and my current IT Mananger wouldn’t have made it through first phase boot camp. If they were any good in the first place – chances are – there wouldn?t be a mess to fix. Hire an outsider that has managed an operation bigger than the one you’re hiring him for, or at best, has a superb reputation from “those whom have worked for him”, ** not ** those he has worked for…remember their like you – ignorant!

    • #3204142

      The problem..

      by obiwaynekenobi ·

      In reply to IT Executives who make exhorbitant promises to corporate stake holders

      I’ll second that notion. Nearly every IT manager I’ve been under has been nothing more than a yes-man to the CEO and/or senior management, agreeing to everything and anything that the senior guys want regardless of it’s realistic or not, because they want to look good to the CxO. At one job I worked at the IT manager routinely would promise entire applications within a week to the VP of Marketing because he wanted to impress the guy; we (the IT dept, which was two people besides him) took the blame when it wasn’t completed.

      I’ve noticed that the IT managers will try and promise anything to appease senior management, who usually have absolutely no idea of what’s realistically possible but will instead come up with some scatterbrained idea to con a client into using their company and then expect it to be completed, and get downright hostile if god forbid a technical person explain why it cannot be done that way. I’ve been threatened with termination at a job for explaining why A) What they wanted could not be feasibly done using current technology and B) That it would take more than a week to do.

      It’s pathetic if you ask me.. at the very least I’ve learned what NOT to do when I’m an IT manager myself.

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