* As management disciplines converge, you should start to look at problems differently
Convergence of management disciplines is beginning to happen as vendors with different specialties merge and form partnerships. IT managers can benefits from this trend as well.
You can start by expanding your horizons to build a broader view of management, one that includes areas that are adjacent to your area of expertise. As an example, rather than taking a system-only approach to solving a problem – such as scrambling to test and patch a vulnerable system – if this is supplemented with a network perspective, the system can temporarily be given limited access to the infrastructure until the patch is sufficiently tested.
Look for adjacent management disciplines as you do your job every day. For example, when diagnosing problem events, where are the gray areas that could be the potential source of the problem? A better understanding of these areas, and of what the experts in that area look at to determine the cause of the problem, will help in several ways. Talk with your peers in other management disciplines to better understand what they do and the area that they manage. This allows you to look at the problem in a multi-dimensional way that may result in quicker diagnosis. More importantly, it helps you to speak the language of your colleagues. This is necessary to begin to bridge the invisible barriers, cultural and organizational, that separate groups in an IT organization.
These kinds of changes are very difficult changes to effect in IT organizations. It’s always easier to stay within your comfort zone, which most people tend to do. However, those individuals who can see coming trends and are able to adjust to the trends in advance are the ones who will be successful in the long run. This trend is just beginning, so ITers have time to begin this building process – both on a personal level and an organizational level.
The technology is starting to begin to move in this direction, but the gating factor, as with many new technologies, is user adoption.
In many cases, the progress of the technology is slowed due to slower user adoption. As vendors approach convergence, it is already apparent that they will be facing challenges in bridging the technological management silos that exist in IT organizations today. So if you want more collaborative, integrated management tools, begin to embrace cross-discipline collaboration and knowledge, and ask for integrated tools from your vendors.
