Recently, I was rereading one of my favorite stories about strategy implementation, It's Not Luck, by Eli Goldratt (North River Press, 1994). Once again, I was struck by a particular insight the protagonist has that many managers never acquire. Let me explain.

Sun held its annual Java Users Conference in San Francisco this past week. There were about 5,000 very enthusiastic people in attendance -- mostly young developers eager to learn the latest Java programming tricks.

I recently had a conversation with an old colleague from my quality assurance days on the topic of configuration management. As is typical in these conversations, the first challenge was to make sure we were talking about the same thing.

I recently had a conversation with an old colleague from my quality assurance days on the topic of configuration management.

I recently had a conversation with an old colleague from my quality assurance days on the topic of configuration management.

ASPs (application service providers) have been on the scene for about two years now. During that time, their early, almost exclusive, focus on ERP applications has expanded to include everything from e-mail to business intelligence. These applications are offered on a pay-as-you-go rental basis, which slashes the initial investment required to begin using them.

There were a number of interesting announcements at Java One and I'll be considering various different ones and their implications in upcoming few weeks.

When we are behind schedule, we often compound our problems by acting like we're behind schedule. The trouble is, we're behind schedule and don't realize what we are doing. There are, however, things we can do to break this downward spiral.

When we are behind schedule, we often compound our problems by acting like we're behind schedule. The trouble is, we're behind schedule and don't realize what we are doing. There are, however, things we can do to break this downward spiral.

ASPs (application service providers) have been on the scene for about two years now.

ASPs (application service providers) have been on the scene for about two years now.