Monthly Archives: September 2011

Monkey Traps, Career Development, And Your Next Budget


Have you ever seen a monkey trap? It’s a simple device, just a container with a narrow opening. Typically, it’s a gourd or a hole in a tree with an opening just big enough for a monkey to squeeze his hand into; inside of your … Continue reading

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Solving The Government Budget Gap: The Strategic Software Initiative


The government’s budget problems are not going away any anytime soon. The problems facing the Federal government get the headlines, but the problems facing counties and towns are even more problems. While the Feds can print their own money, and … Continue reading

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Management Focus, Gemba And… Rats In The Attic


In our last Blog, we talked about a survey that showed that 46% of outsourcing buyers were satisfied with cost savings,  26% were satisfied with transformation efforts and just 11% were satisfied with meeting innovation goals.  We went on to … Continue reading

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Are Costs Savings The Holy Grail Of Outsourcing?


Whether your goal is re-engineering or outsourcing, somewhere along the line you’ve run into the term Transformation. Your organization may have been exposed to the idea of transforming your organization from contact with a consulting firm or members of your … Continue reading

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Are Cloud Services Really Outsourcing?


Technology is a tricky thing. It’s very, well, technical. Technology is not just complex, it also changes very rapidly. And of course, the names change as well. Today you see a lot of talk about “Cloud Services,” but the definition … Continue reading

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Technology vs. Outsourcing: How Four Job Positions Evolved


Outsourcing is a tool for getting work done, especially when you just don’t have the skills or the management bandwidth to do the work yourself. Outsourcing is often chosen because it can significantly reduce cost, either through more efficient processes … Continue reading

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How Do I Develop A Simple Outsourcing Plan?


A lot of discussions about outsourcing in the media make it appear complex, but it’s really quite simple. In fact, it’s so simple that you probably began “outsourcing” work at home before this became a trend at work. At home, … Continue reading

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Which Location Is the “Best Buy” For Outsourcing?


Not too long ago, the outsourcing of corporate office jobs was synonymous with India. Big news stories showed example after example of work successfully outsourced to India, yielding enormous savings.  Years ago, when IBM was the biggest and most recognizable … Continue reading

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How To Talk To Your Outsourcer


Outsourcing is a committed relationship. You have to work closely with the account manager at your outsourcer. Like every other committed relationship, you need to communicate with your partner. However, also like every other committed relationship, quality communication is very … Continue reading

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4th Sigma: How To Listen When The Client Is Silent


If you’ve been following this Blog, you know that we have been discussing variability: how the products and services we provide can be better or worse at any given moment. We then created a tool for identifying and quantifying the … Continue reading

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