Baseline articles from January 2003

Baseline archives from January 2003

Spin Unspun.(A.T. Kearney Procurement Solutions)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... "A.T. Kearney today launched 'Accelerate Your Savings' (AYS), an innovative service offering... [that] 'is unique in its commitment to guarantee a dramatic return on investment of 300 percent to approved participants with no financial risk.'"...

3 Triumphs, 3 Breakdowns.
January 1, 2003... Do project managers learn from their mistakes? As a profession, the record suggests no. What dooms a technology project can be parroted by any sleepy MBA student: workers who shun change, corporate politics, poor management. "We, in this...

The Bottom Line Per ... Roger Hull.(CIO of First American )(Interview)
January 1, 2003... Title insurance is something you don't think about until you buy a home. When it comes time to get it, paperwork for the insurance adds to the processing bottleneck. Hull, CIO of First American Corp., wants to change that. He supervised a staff...

Baan: Back From the Brink.
January 1, 2003... During the mid-1990s, Baan was one of the top four makers of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, along with SAP, Oracle and PeopleSoft. But the Netherlands-based company fell behind in the technology and marketing race, to the point...

Agile Software: Fan Appreciation Day.(Company Profile)
January 1, 2003... There's nothing quite like a fervent fan base to compensate for small market share. While Agile's tools are notably light on the design side, the company has a reputation in the electronics industry few can match. Especially popular among...

Parametric Technology: Designed to Lead?(Company Profile)
January 1, 2003... Considered by many to have the premier computer-aided design software--Pro/Engineer--PTC has tried to build on that strength in the engineering sector over the past decade. For Marco Arnone, the general manager of engineering company Enser...

Matrixone: Rolling the Dice.(Company Profile)
January 1, 2003... Gamblers know the house always wins--unless, when you see your one perfect hand, you bet it all. MatrixOne, trying to rebound from market-share losses and a 15% staff reduction, seems to have some of that same spirit. Promise big, when the...

B the Numbers: January 2003.
January 1, 2003... Where the Jobs Are A poll of 1,400 chief information officers projects little change in first-quarter trends over Q4 02. Security professionals are among the most-sought candidates, says survey-taker Robert Half International. Tech...

Even in a Democracy, Revolution Has Its Price.(Column)
January 1, 2003... At Jenzabar, the company I founded in 1998, the concept was a rather straightforward one for universities in the United States. We would create a "media station" for colleges. The presidents of these institutions would be able to broadcast...

Partial Eclipse of the Sun.
January 1, 2003... Is it time for Sun to set? Probably not. But there are plenty of reasons to think twice about basing your critical systems in the long run on Sun's proprietary hardware. While the combination of Intel processors and Linux operating systems...

Voter News Service: What Went Wrong?
January 13, 2003... In November 2000, a "perfect storm" of vote-counting miscues and polling problems led the major TV networks repeatedly to change their minds as to whether Al Gore or George Bush was the next president. In November 2002, a second storm whipped...

When Bad Things Happen To Good Software.
January 16, 2003... Maurice Bailey's Miele G885 SC dishwasher cleans dishes almost as well as a human being. Its 10 separate programs control the washing and drying of fine crystal and crusty pans. Its electronic controls warn owners if the drain is blocked. It...

Don't Placate Corridor Warriors.
January 17, 2003... "The hottest technology in personal computing is wireless networking," declared gadgetry guru Walt Mossberg in The Wall Street Journal on this year's first day. Speaking personally, he's probably right. Wireless access points are popping...

Online Extras: January 2003.
January 20, 2003... Planner Check back soon for a link to January's Planner, "Calculating Costs of Creating Visual Sales Tools." There will also be a customizable Excel spreadsheet you can download. Community Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) While January's...

Quiz: What's Your Project-Management Savvy?
January 20, 2003... Missed deadlines, cost overruns, inferior workmanship and changing requirements are problems all project managers will encounter during their careers. But if the success rate of technology projects is any indication, forewarned doesn't...

Quiz: Do Your Products Have a Life?(Brief Article)
January 20, 2003... TRUE FALSE My company manufactures or maintains complex physical objects The products we sell have terabytes of data associated with them We share design and manufacturing data with suppliers Our customers or partners perform maintenance on...

Revolution Has Its Price.
January 20, 2003... At Jenzabar, the company I founded in 1998, the concept was a rather straightforward one for universities in the United States. We would create a "media station" for colleges. The presidents of these institutions would be able to broadcast...

Live from Oracle AppsWorld: Software Hosting and Space Travel.
January 21, 2003... SAN DIEGO--In an effort to attract budget-conscious customers, Oracle Corp. plans to guarantee the cost of installing, running and maintaining its e-business applications before customers buy. Speaking at Oracle AppsWorld here, Oracle Chief...

How Not To Waste Capital.(Economic Value Added )
January 21, 2003... When a business initiative requires a heavy investment in technology or other capital equipment, a methodology called Economic Value Added (EVA) can help distinguish between illusory profits and real economic gain. By taking both operational...

Calculator: Adding Up the Real Value of Capital Costs.(Brief Article)
January 21, 2003... BigCorp Inc. invests $1 million in a magic server that instantly produces $100,000 in revenue each year while adding only $50,000 in annual operating costs. After taxes, the operating profit is $45,000. But what about the $1 million? That...

Quiz Test X.
January 21, 2003... Viewing projects as part of a portfolio helps justify potentially risky initiatives. The definition of what's risky, however, varies from company to company. Take this informal quiz--adapted from a version in the academic journal Financial...

Calculating Costs of Customizing a Visual Sales Tool.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2003... A $3 billion office-furniture maker realizes it must shorten its sales cycle drastically if it wants to survive in an economy in which companies want to auction off their chairs, not buy new ones. One goal in this initiative is to provide top...

Online Extras: February 2003.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2003... Planner Check back soon for a link to February's Planner, "Calculating Costs of Creating a Digital Asset Management System." There will also be a customizable Excel spreadsheet you can download. Community Linux Consulting Services In the...