Thoughts on Enterprise Rent-a-car

[Wynn Osborne <wynn@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Is it a new CIO? CEO? COO?

In my somewhat limited time in this business, I've noticed the following
trend several times. Maybe it applies here.


A new dude is hired. The company thinks he's an operational God. His first
words are, "No wonder this company's having problems. The computer system
stinks!" "Damn, he's right.", utters the CEO. "Fix it!"

The dude consumes a few years making a comfortable living, implements his
bold new "5 year plan for turning the company around", fires a bunch of
people, installs new hardware & software, receives that big bonus, orders
new cherry wood furniture, and plays Mr. Politician for the remainder of
his tenure.

Then one day, the dude's current boss notices (usually at the end of a
business cycle, e.g., a recession), "Damn these IT guys sure cost us a lot
for damn little. We need a new CIO."

Thus begins iteration 2. Iteration 2 happens without notice because
Iteration 1 started so long ago that nobody on the payroll was around when
iteration 1 began.

The process repeats itself until either the company is bought by another
company, or the company goes out of business.

If the former occurs, the process again repeats itself, starting with
iteration 1. Why iteration 1 and not, say iteration 10? Because any such
iterations occurring before the company was sold are irrelevant, a.k.a.,
"Those idiots couldn't do anything right. We'll do it the right way."

If the latter occurs, the company had it coming anyway since the problem
never was with the computer system to begin with---it was the way they ran
the business.

Quite simple really :-)

Wynn




At 01:49 AM 6/21/00 GMT, you wrote:
>It has to be more than that.  Even AS/400 DASD is cheaper than throwing 
>out an installed system. 
>
>What will the software be?  Is it to be a ERP package?  Some new 
>E-Application Suite that has been proven and tested for 15 or 20 years?
>_______________________
>Booth Martin
>Booth@MartinVT.com
>http://www.MartinVT.com
>_______________________
>
>
>
>
>"R. Bruce Hoffman, Jr." <rbruceh@attglobal.net>
>Sent by: owner-midrange-l@midrange.com
>06/20/2000 09:27 PM
>Please respond to MIDRANGE-L
>
> 
>        To:     <MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com>
>        cc: 
>        Subject:        Re: Enterprise Rent-a-car
>
>CHEAP DASD.
>
>
>
>===========================================================
>R. Bruce Hoffman, Jr.
> -- IBM Certified AS/400 Professional System Administrator
> -- IBM Certified AS/400 Professional Network Administrator
> -- IBM Certified Specialist - AS/400 Administrator
> -- IBM Certified Specialist - RPG IV Developer
>
>"If all you have is RPG, then everything looks like a 400!"
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Colin Williams <colin.williams@technocrats.co.uk>
>To: 'MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com' <MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com>
>Date: Tuesday, June 20, 2000 10:51 AM
>Subject: RE: Enterprise Rent-a-car
>
>
>>But what do they think they will be able to do  on the RS/6000, that
>>they can't currently do on the AS/400?
>>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: Jim Oberholtzer [mailto:joberhol@compures.com]
>>Sent: Tuesday, June 20, 2000 2:28 PM
>>To: MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com
>>Subject: Re: Enterprise Rent-a-car
>>
>>
>>
>>Yup,  OUT with the 400 in with the 6000
>>
>>Why not?  IBM sells a boatload of new hardware, the AS/400 becomes less
>>viable by loosing its largest data center, and soon we can all go home,
>>Sounds like IBM New York got exactly what it wanted thanks to the tragic
>>box campaign.
>>
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