Seven habits of highly ineffective IT managers

According to that reliable UK source, The Sun, the last week in January is the most depressing of the whole year. We’ve got no money after Christmas, it’s the peak time for colds and flu, and the days are too short. It’s no surprise that we feel fed up – and I can’t help feeling that some of this is reflected in recent blogs and comments on the web. There seem to be endless gripes and moans about a multitude of topics – including ITIL training and certification.

This article goes for light-hearted escapism. Hopefully we can lift our spirits and get more positive. 

I recently rediscovered Stephen Covey’s book, “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”.  It was originally published in 1989 – and it’s still a great read, full of serious insight. It prompted irreverent thoughts on “The Seven Habits of Highly Ineffective IT Managers”. This is my own top seven. I am sure you will have your own; perhaps you would like to share them by adding a comment.  They sound light hearted but unfortunately over the years I have met and worked with these people! 

1. Keep independent
Do not let other managers who know nothing about IT interfere.  You will only end up with less time for corporate hospitality at Twickenham if you waste time trying to reconcile the irreconcilable requests from sales, purchasing, production, customers – and the accountants.

2. Set up a great service desk
This is known as a ‘quick win’ or low ‘hanging fruit’. It will convince people that something has changed.  Fast response (any response) and attractive, well meaning service desk analysts are vital.  You may even be able to out source this so if there are unresolved issues there is always someone else to blame.

3. Have more statistics than anyone else
You know that there is always someone looking to catch you out.  If you have enough statistics at your finger tips you can be sure to find at least one performance indicator heading in the right direction. Just make that key for the month.

4. Launch an ITIL project
It’s great on your cv and you may even want to go for ISO/IEC20000. What you must remember is the importance of moving to a new job about 12 months later.  This is essential since this is when the initial enthusiasm and momentum fades.

5. Zero base planning
It’s good to go back to basics when it comes to planning. Do not be side tracked by current problems which are almost bound to be the result of short term exceptional circumstances (or your predecessor). Concentrate on how things should be in an ideal world. This is known as ‘vision’.

6. Identify vital business functions
Run the payroll a day late and you will be very unpopular.  Fail to fix that laptop for the wife of your MD – even more so.  Your personal service continuity will be at risk if you cannot prioritise and identify who your real customers are.

7. Smart use of consultants
Don’t stint when you call in consultants to help with your choice of service management software, or storage area network.  Be generous. These friends can deflect any criticism of the choice you make – and they come in very handy if the going gets really tough.

You get the idea – now it’s your turn!

If you want a more serious set of tips then find out what makes for a successful ITIL or ISO/IEC 20000 project implementation in my article "ITIL Implementation: learn from real life case studies".