When was the last time anyone came to the IT department and said, "I want you to solve a problem for me. It's a rather parochial problem, and its solution will not measurably improve our ability to achieve our vision, but I'd like you to do it anyway"? The answer is, of course, never.

A recent report published by TrendWatch suggested that the average age of Web designers/developers is 30 years of age and that the individuals are hired right out of college. One has to be careful with averages, of course. The statistic might mean that half of the designers were 20 and that the other half were 40.

Just a few short months ago, it was quite possible to bring a nifty dot-com idea before the marketplace and have hoards of investors willing to fling money at it. Nevermind that the idea was untested and, incidentally, had never made any money, nor had much prospect of doing so.

Just a few short months ago, it was quite possible to bring a nifty dot-com idea before the marketplace and have hoards of investors willing to fling money at it. Nevermind that the idea was untested and, incidentally, had never made any money, nor had much prospect of doing so.

Just a few short months ago, it was quite possible to bring a nifty dot-com idea before the marketplace and have hoards of investors willing to fling money at it.

Just a few short months ago, it was quite possible to bring a nifty dot-com idea before the marketplace and have hoards of investors willing to fling money at it.

Recent research by Cutter Consortium into corporate risk management practices reveals that many enterprises (68%) have been doing risk management for less than three years; in fact, many of the organizations (43%) have been doing risk management for less than one year.

Recent research by Cutter Consortium into corporate risk management practices reveals that many enterprises (68%) have been doing risk management for less than three years; in fact, many of the organizations (43%) have been doing risk management for less than one year.

Piecemeal, poorly coordinated integration initiatives can send an enterprise one step forward and two steps back. Integration is at the top of many corporate agendas; but what are we really trying to integrate? And how do these efforts interrelate across business units, data architectures, applications, suppliers, customers, and other integration initiatives?

Microsoft has made a number of major announcements in the last couple of weeks. If one was a cynic, one might suggest that Microsoft is eager to drive up its stock value and to counteract the despair surrounding Judge Jackson's order to break up the company into two separate companies.

The quality of a Web site is fundamentally based in its information content -- if that content is hard to locate and understand, the value of the site is significantly diminished. Here are five reasons why you should conduct usability testing of your e-commerce site:

Microsoft has made a number of major announcements in the last couple of weeks.

Microsoft has made a number of major announcements in the last couple of weeks.

The quality of a Web site is fundamentally based in its information content -- if that content is hard to locate and understand, the value of the site is significantly diminished.

The quality of a Web site is fundamentally based in its information content -- if that content is hard to locate and understand, the value of the site is significantly diminished.

Once upon a time, there was a fairy-tale princess who was very, very sensitive. She could feel a pea through her mattress, and it kept her awake at night. In the version of the tale that we saw, the princess was played by comedienne Carol Burnett, and you can imagine how sensitive she could be! Her attendants piled up mattresses on the princess's new bed until they were seven feet from the floor. Sitting on top of the pile, Carol screamed, "I can still feel the pea!"

In the field of IT, measures are intended to frame discussions. Often, having the wrong measures, or no measures at all, results in difficult conversations. The substantive issues are clouded when information is sketchy, leading to disputes and fractured negotiations. Problems associated with late projects, aggressive deadlines, or fuzzy requirements become tough to solve.