Comments on: Executive questions, IT answers, pizza parlors, and speed chess http://www.peterkretzman.com/2008/05/24/executive-questions-it-answers-pizza-parlors-and-speed-chess/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=executive-questions-it-answers-pizza-parlors-and-speed-chess Intensely practical tips on information technology management, by Peter Kretzman Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:24:31 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: jfbauer http://www.peterkretzman.com/2008/05/24/executive-questions-it-answers-pizza-parlors-and-speed-chess/comment-page-1/#comment-9455 jfbauer Thu, 21 Oct 2010 10:39:23 +0000 http://www.peterkretzman.com/2008/05/24/executive-questions-it-answers-pizza-parlors-and-speed-chess/#comment-9455 One of the key elements of success that jumps out at me in your article is having an organizational culture that can support/accept/tolerate the element of playing speed chess: that "estimates will be wildly wrong at least 30% of the time". Based on an IT work estimate, the business starts forming plans to roll-out marketing campaigns, train call center staff/customers, change business processes and mostly likely, string these together to form their post-IT implementation master plan. The business needs to be cognizant that their master plan needs to account for late (and even sometimes early) IT delivery dates. Thus, IT work estimation continues to be part art and science. I've written previously at the art side, here: http://bit.ly/90xVMk. More recently, I've written about the science side here: http://bit.ly/9BFf18. Great post Peter! One of the key elements of success that jumps out at me in your article is having an organizational culture that can support/accept/tolerate the element of playing speed chess: that “estimates will be wildly wrong at least 30% of the time”. Based on an IT work estimate, the business starts forming plans to roll-out marketing campaigns, train call center staff/customers, change business processes and mostly likely, string these together to form their post-IT implementation master plan. The business needs to be cognizant that their master plan needs to account for late (and even sometimes early) IT delivery dates. Thus, IT work estimation continues to be part art and science. I’ve written previously at the art side, here: http://bit.ly/90xVMk. More recently, I’ve written about the science side here: http://bit.ly/9BFf18.

Great post Peter!

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