As outsourcing becomes entrenched as a means to deliver IT solutions, horror stories from vendor projects are becoming commonplace. The landscape is littered with multimillion dollar failures in which years of investment leave buyers with partially functioning systems or with the necessity of having multimillion dollar annuities to keep systems operating.

As outsourcing becomes entrenched as a means to deliver IT solutions, horror stories from vendor projects are becoming commonplace. The landscape is littered with multimillion dollar failures in which years of investment leave buyers with partially functioning systems or with the necessity of having multimillion dollar annuities to keep systems operating.

Although all Capability Maturity Model (CMM)-certified organizations follow the same practices, there can be wide variance in how these organizations operate. CMM is not just about following certain key practices; it must also include a learning-oriented cultural identity. Thus, it's important to carefully question any potential outsourcing partner about its software process status -- beyond simply asking its CMM level.

Although all Capability Maturity Model (CMM)-certified organizations follow the same practices, there can be wide variance in how these organizations operate. CMM is not just about following certain key practices; it must also include a learning-oriented cultural identity. Thus, it's important to carefully question any potential outsourcing partner about its software process status -- beyond simply asking its CMM level.

To effectively manage an outsourced software development effort, you must have a set of measures that can (1) accurately predict and monitor the cost of the software deliverable, and (2) measure the value of the service provided to the customer. The key to this is establishing an accurate cost-per-unit-of-work measure.

To effectively manage an outsourced software development effort, you must have a set of measures that can (1) accurately predict and monitor the cost of the software deliverable, and (2) measure the value of the service provided to the customer. The key to this is establishing an accurate cost-per-unit-of-work measure.

We can all recall situations where we've told ourselves, "I should have known better." In most cases, our mistakes probably didn't cost us much -- a few hours listening to a pitch about buying a time-share in Florida or getting a bunch of junk e-mails. When selecting a vendor for an IT outsourcing project, however, mistakes can have a great deal more impact.

We can all recall situations where we've told ourselves, "I should have known better." In most cases, our mistakes probably didn't cost us much -- a few hours listening to a pitch about buying a time-share in Florida or getting a bunch of junk e-mails. When selecting a vendor for an IT outsourcing project, however, mistakes can have a great deal more impact.

On the desk in my office sits an entirely self-contained, enclosed, living ecosystem. Five inches high, this microcosm of life contains algae, very small shrimp and snails, and multitudes of microscopic bacteria, all living by exchanging stuff with each other and by converting light to biochemical energy.

On the desk in my office sits an entirely self-contained, enclosed, living ecosystem. Five inches high, this microcosm of life contains algae, very small shrimp and snails, and multitudes of microscopic bacteria, all living by exchanging stuff with each other and by converting light to biochemical energy.

Truth is often tautological; at least it seems that way once it is stated. Certainly that appears to be the case considering the theme of this month's Executive Update, that given any particular technology, different organizations will experience different results from using that technology. What keeps this tautology from becoming trite is that different organizations do not simply experience different results; they experience dramatically different results.

Enterprise application integration (EAI) has emerged as the latest information management trend. Unfortunately, a typical EAI scenario is likely to focus on near-term integration tactics and ignore long-term integration strategies. As trends go, EAI is one of the better ones to emanate from software vendors and trade rags in recent years, because it is driven by real, immediate business requirements.

If you don't have the skills within your organization to develop business models for your new e-commerce application and manage it through successful implementation, take heart -- you're not alone. In fact, you're in the majority. Cutter Consortium's business-IT alignment survey shows that these key skill areas (e-commerce, business modeling, and project management) are missing in most IT organizations.

If you don't have the skills within your organization to develop business models for your new e-commerce application and manage it through successful implementation, take heart -- you're not alone. In fact, you're in the majority. Cutter Consortium's business-IT alignment survey shows that these key skill areas (e-commerce, business modeling, and project management) are missing in most IT organizations.

In Cutter Consortium's recent Council Opinion " E-Business and E-Commerce as Drivers of Integration Solutions ," Council Fellow Jim Highsmith wrote that "the number-one e-business driver seems to be fear" -- as in fear of being "Amazoned." He went on to say that there are other drivers, including customer acquisition and alliance management.

The promise of third-generation e-business is total integration of all business processes. Many well-known e-businesses -- Dell Computer Corporation and Ford Motor Company, for example -- have implemented third-generation capabilities and enhanced their business performance significantly. Most e-businesses, however, have not evolved to third-generation form.

Since the emergence of the Internet as the stage upon which a cast of new technologies continuously appear, the pace of business has become astounding, even tiring. However, as IT professionals, it is imperative that we do more than simply keep abreast of developments. We must ensure that the strategic plan of the business reflects the new opportunities and threats inherent in the technology.

So, you've decided to outsource that new e-project because you don't have the skills to develop it internally? Sounds great. You need results quickly and you don't have time to retrain the current team nor embark on a lengthy recruiting process. Therefore, you contract with the hottest new Web development company with a pretty good idea of what you want and plans for a highly iterative approach.

So, you've decided to outsource that new e-project because you don't have the skills to develop it internally? Sounds great. You need results quickly and you don't have time to retrain the current team nor embark on a lengthy recruiting process. Therefore, you contract with the hottest new Web development company with a pretty good idea of what you want and plans for a highly iterative approach.

As Director of Risk Management Systems, David Miller is head of the IT group that services BankBoston's Global Capital Market Systems group. In addition to maintaining current applications and developing new systems, Miller is heavily involved in the integration of BankBoston systems with those of Fleet Bank, as a result of the banks' recent merger.

The interview in this Executive Update is with the director of corporate technology at a US $700 million consumer goods company. Brought in this year to help revamp the IT department, the director talks about his struggle to move IT forward in an environment where IT is often the scapegoat for business underperformance and where business models are unclear.

Tony Candito, CIO of New England Financial (NEF), has been with the company since 1974. He is responsible for a staff of approximately 800 people in multiple locations. In this Executive Update, Candito talks about his most recent challenge, combining NEF's IT department with a portion of the IT department of its parent company, Metlife.

As manager of business systems analysis at Focus on the Family -- an international, nonprofit organization of Christian ministries including print publications, radio, and video -- Paul Lewandowski is responsible for managing a team of analysts that works to determine the IT needs for 1,300 employees partitioned into more than 70 divisions.

In this Executive Update, Greenwich Associates' Curtis Ehrgott describes the company's move from legacy systems to three-tier architecture and Web-based distributed systems. Greenwich Associates is a privately held financial services consulting firm that conducts proprietary market research and consults to providers of commercial financial services.

One of the key factors in misalignment is change. There is so much change, things are moving so much faster, and business models are changing -- dramatically. We all know about the e-commerce initiatives from Internet companies such as Amazon.com, Dell, Cisco, and Intel.