Cool Tools

One of my favorite technology tools of late is a product called Personal Brain.
It allows me to quickly and easily capture thoughts on a variety of topics. I typically keep it open on my desktop all day long, using it as a repository of all kinds of ideas, reminders, books, music lists, family matters. I've even entered my family tree here.

The editor is quite capable, easily attaching files, pictures, hyperlinks, etc. Search is fast.
No interest in nor connection to the company whatsoever. Just a fan.
Interesting uses here.
Got something you like?

CLEARLY I'M NOT....

Dr. Gervase Bushe who's website is about Clear Leadership....but not about IT and not a blog.
or Harwell Thrasher who also has a book but adds a newsletter AND writes about IT but doesn't blog. He does offer a Free Gift. Interesting site.
I don't promise to Grow "..Leaders from the Inside Out" though it's a good idea.

Just thought I'd clarify....

PEOPLE- Rules of Thumb
I'm, in a show of naivete, surprised at how challenging it can be to post something on a regular basis. Regular being defined as something more frequently than once a week (or longer). Something being defined as reasonably intelligent and useful. So, working to get back on track.....

People. The most important predictor of a healthy, strong IT organization is the quality and energy of the people. Seems like a "motherhood and apple pie" kind of statement but what are the metrics we can use to indicate that quality?

Turnover is often used as a measure as are employee satisfaction survey results. While those can render good indicators of employee satisfaction, I don't think it's a very good measure of quality. At best I think you come up with clues about quality or its lack.

I look at turnover as a target range to strive to keep turnover within over a period of time. Too low, say below 5%, and we likely aren't being aggressive enough about managing poor performance. Too high- above 15% depending on location and industry- and we're likely losing talent and knowledge plus spending too much time in backfilling those positions.

Employee satisfaction surveys? Necessary for getting insight into how employees are feeling about their work, the company and their peers. Look for the trends and the outliers.

But here's a couple of key indicators I use that can tell a lot not just about the quality of individuals but the IT organization as a whole including perception by the business.

1. How many people, especially from the leadership team, have moved from IT into the business in the past 3, 6, 12, 18 months? And into the business in what capacity?
   
2. How many people from the business have applied for and been given key positions within IT?

If the answers are "Can't remember when." or a small and infrequent number, you have a problem. How can IT be a strategic and dynamic part of the business if no one wants to join the team from the rest of the business? How business savvy are your IT people if the business isn't trying to poach them?

What do you think? What's your experience been? What other kinds of Rules of Thumb do you find useful?