Bob Lewis's IS Survival Guide

• The only book to address the needs of today's IS professionals, who struggle with the dynamic nature of the industry and constant high-pressure of the job
• Written by one of the most trusted, well-known, and entertaining professionals in the Information Systems business
• With approximately 500,000 readers, Bob Lewis' IS Survival Guide is a favorite and trusted source among IS professionals. Oftentimes you'll find his columns posted on bulletin boards next to favorite Dilbert comics

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• INTRODUCTION
  

PART I - THE BUSINESS

• CHAPTER 1 - ALIGNING WITH COMPANY STRATEGY
  
  • The Club
  • Company Strategy
    
  • A Word of Warning
    
  • Strategy-Free Enterprises
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 2 - SUPPORTING COMPANY TACTICS
  
  • The Bad News: It's a Tug of War, and You're the Rope
    
  • The Good News: It Isn't Complicated
    
  • Business Technology Consulting
    
  • Project Estimation
    
  • Setting Priorities
    
  • Staff Pre-Allocation
    
  • A Final Thought: Leverage
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 3 - SUPPORTING THE INFRASTRUCTURE
  
  • Infrastructure--Our Definition
    
  • It Ain't Strategic
    
  • Work-Style
    
  • Budgeting
    
  • Developing an Infrastructure Plan
    
  • Oh Yeah, One More Thing
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 4 - THE IS MISSION
  
  • Why Is a Mission Statement Important?
    
  • Promoting the Results
    
  • Just One More Thing
    
  • Loose Ends
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 5 - YOUR ROLE IN THE BUSINESS
  
  • What's Wrong with Internal Customers
    
  • Internal Customer=Bad, Value Chain=Good
    
  • The Right Attitude
    
  • Your Role
    
  
  

PART II - MANAGING TECHNOLOGY

• CHAPTER 6 - PLATFORM LAYER--WHAT YOU HAVE
  
  • Assessing the Platform Layer
    
  • What's It Mean?
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 7 - INFORMATION LAYER--WHAT YOU KNOW
  
  • Information--The Point of It All?
    
  • Databases--The Point of It All?
    
  • End of Ranting and Raving--On with the Show
    
  • What's It Mean?
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 8 - APPLICATION LAYER--WHAT YOU DO
  
  • Assessing the Application Layer
    
  • What's It Mean?
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 9 - PLANNING ARCHITECTURAL CHANGE
  
  • It's Time for a Metaphor
    
  • Technical Architecture Management Process
    
  • Technical Architecture Management
    
  
  

PART III - PROCESSES

• CHAPTER 10 - MAKING DECISIONS
  
  • Command Decisions
    
  • Consultative Decisions
    
  • Delegated Decisions
    
  • Consensus Decisions
    
  • Voting
    
  • The Importance of a Good Decision Process
    
  • Last Words about Decision Processes
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 11 - PROGRAMS, INITIATIVES, AND PROJECTS
  
  • The Biggest Secret to Successful Project Management
    
  • Doing Big Work Without Big Projects
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 12 - BUSINESS APPLICATIONS
  
  • The Impact of Business Change
    
  • The Limitations of Analysis and Design
    
  • Choices for Implementing Business Applications
    
  • Making the Build/Buy Decision
    
  • Methodologies
    
  • System Development Methodologies
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 13 - PROCESS MEASUREMENT
  
  • Why Does IS Need to Be Good at Measurement?
    
  • Example: Measuring the PC's Value
    
  • Defining Process Measures
    
  • Step 1: Establish Management Goals
    
  • Step 2: Define Measures
    
  • Step 3: Testing and Refining the Measures
    
  • Data Collection, Reporting, and Use
    
  • Implement a Process Improvement Program
    
  • The Columbo Effect Again
    
  
  

PART IV - THE HUMAN FACTOR

• CHAPTER 14 - STAFFING AND SKILLS
  
  • Hiring the Right People
    
  • What Happens Next?
    
  • Last Thought
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 15 - COMPENSATION, REWARDS, AND CAREERS
  
  • The Employment Contract
    
  • Compensation2
    
  • Performance Appraisals
    
  • To Summarize
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 16 - ORGANIZATION AND POLITICS
  
  • Are You Leading?
    
  • The Four Relationship Directions
    
  • Motivation
    
  • Corporate Culture
    
  • Your Career
    
  
  
• CHAPTER 17 - LEADERSHIP
  
  • Corporate Politics
    
  
  
• MANAGEMENTSPEAK
  
• INDEX