InfoXchange
The Newsletter of the ICCA Greater Boston Chapter
January/February 2006             Volume 2, Issue 1
IN THIS ISSUE
Announcements

From the Board

Recovering a Troubled Hi-Tech Project

Mentor's Corner - ICCA Mentor Program

Who Are We?
From the Editor:
We would like to encourage anyone to submit articles to the new ICCA Greater Boston Chapter newsletter. If you know of anyone interested in free publicity, ask them to write an article of any size or topic pertinent to our organization for submission in the next issue of our newsletter. The good news is the smaller the article, the better, since long articles are hard to read on-line.

We are very open to ideas and suggestions regarding article topics in all sections of the newsletter, including:

Local or Chapter Announcements;
Articles;
Member-to-Member Spotlights;
Member-to-Member News;
Mentor's Corner.
Submit ideas or articles to:
Kim Reddington
Director of Communications
newsletter@
icca-boston.org
Next Deadline:
Feb 20, 2006 for the Mar/Apr Issue

Announcements

The Scent of a Web Page: Five Types of Navigation Pages

Want to know the best practices web site design used in some of the most popular sites?
Don’t miss the January 19th meeting: The Scent of a Web Page: Five Types of Navigation Pages
You’ll learn the most up-to-the-minute research on how users actually navigate sites.

The speaker is Jared Spool, head of User Interface Engineering, the largest research organization of its kind in the world. He's been working in the field of usability and design since 1978 and is a top-rated speaker at more than 20 conferences every year. You can see his website at http://www.uie.com/ .


This meeting is co-sponsored by the local chapters of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), IEEE and ICCA. It’s our first of several upcoming collaborations with these organizations. Note that the day (Thursday), time (7:00 p.m.), place (IBM, Waltham, MA), price (free), and format (no food or drinks) are different from our usual meetings. Details are available at http://www.gbcacm.org/website/semInfo.php?id=1104.

That meeting is in addition to our regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, January 24, that includes the usual networking, excellent meal and drinks. Scott D. Anthony of Partner, Innosight LLC speaks on “The Opportunity and Challenge of Disruptive Innovation.” View Innosight's website at http://www.innosight.com/.

In January in New England, you deserve to go out two weeks in a row!

Norman Daoust, Past President of ICCA -GBC

From the Board

Want to get more value out of your ICCA-Boston membership?

  • Have you picked up any tips from InfoXchange, our chapter newsletter?
  • Have you picked up any good ideas from the speakers at our meetings?
  • Have you saved money when attending a meeting of our Strategic Partner organizations?
  • Have you met any good contacts from networking at our meetings?
  • Have you attended a meeting you heard about from our monthly events announcement?
  • Have you received any referrals from other members?
  • Have you received good advice from our In-Person Mentor Program?
Want to receive even more benefits in 2006? Here’s one way: nominate yourself for a position on the Chapter Board of Directors!

(For the record, I received benefits in six of those seven categories this year. – Norman)

We are seeking nominations now for the election at the March meeting. Contact any current officer for details. See http://www.icca-boston.org/board.htm for our phone numbers and email addresses. We have written descriptions of each position, which you have the opportunity to enhance. The nine Board positions are:

- President
- Vice-President
- Secretary
- Treasurer
- Director of Programs
- Director of Membership
- Director of Communications
- Director of Public Relations
- Past President (this office is not subject to voting)

As a member of the Board of Directors, we guarantee you two items: the ability to influence the chapter benefits you’ll receive in 2006, and the opportunity to learn, grow, and lead!

Norman Daoust, Past President of ICCA -GBC
Vin D'Amico, President of ICCA - GBC

Recovering a Troubled Hi-Tech Project

by Jim Stewart, Project Management Consultant and Trainer of JP Stewart Associates

In a previous article, I noted that I started regular travel a few years ago from Boston to New York, in order to work on a six-month contract. My role in the initiative was clear--to serve as one of several project managers overseeing the upgrade and deployment of up to 17,000 workstations from Windows NT to XP for a division of major investment bank. As is always the case with large internal projects in this type of environment, there were some challenges.

First, to recap, the project was already significantly overdue. When I arrived, the division I reported to had only rolled out several hundred workstations. However, the schedule indicated that they should have already deployed several thousand. The problem? There were several.

One issue was the inexperience of the project managers. For example, the person I was hired to replace had no real background in project management and in fact was a high school chemistry teacher. I’m not really sure how he got the job but when I got there, he was on his way out. Another problem was that his counterpart on the business side--a young woman--had very little experience in either project management or technology. So, between the two of them there was an instant recipe for failure. Other reasons for the delinquency included the “packaging” of applications simultaneous with rollouts, unrealistic management expectations and the lack of a consistently applied project management process.

Click here for more problems and some key solutions.

Mentor's Corner

ICCA Mentor Program

by Norman Daoust, Principal Consultant of Daoust Associates

Do you know someone considering consulting?

Do you know someone who’s just started their consulting business but could use some assistance or advice?

Or perhaps you know an experienced consultant who’s looking for new ideas to grow their business?

Tell them about ICCA’s free mentor program. They’ll thank you!

Here are some reasons people appreciate our mentor program:
  • it’s free!
  • you don’t have to be an ICCA member to attend
  • you don’t have to attend the ICCA meeting that follows the mentor program at the same location
  • while it’s operated by the Independent Computer Consultants Associations, the advise is appropriate for all type of consultants
Here’s what people say about the program:
  • “I found the ICCA members to be generous with their time and knowledge. Their enthusiasm and encouragement were very reassuring as I am just starting out.”
  • “Tom was very helpful to my thought process.”
  • “Good opportunity to talk with people living the consultant life.”
  • “I'm brand new to this. I'm very impressed how helpful the mentors were.”
When someone asks you a question about consulting that you can’t answer, tell them about the ICCA’s mentor program. When someone asks you a question about consulting that you can answer, tell them they can get a second opinion from ICCA’s mentor program.

Details are available at www.icca-boston.org/mentor.html.
Norman Daoust founded Daoust Associates in 2001 and is an expert in data and UML modeling, electronic data exchange, and training in those areas. Norman has never been known to turn down a speaking or writing opportunity. He can be reached at NormanD@DaoustAssociates or view his website at http://www.daoustassociates.com/

Who are we?

Founded in 1976, the Independent Computer Consultants Association (ICCA) is a national not-for-profit organization of independent computer consulting firms sharing the highest ethical and professional standards.

The ICCA Greater Boston Chapter Mission Statement:
The Greater Boston Chapter of the ICCA supports and encourages the growth of individuals and small firms in the business of computer consulting through education, networking, advocacy, and the exchange of ideas and knowledge among peers.

The ICCA offers great services and benefits to its members including business and health insurance, marketing programs, a National Conference, standard form consulting and subcontracting contracts, and many discount programs. For additional information regarding the ICCA or to search the National Membership Directory, visit the national website http://www.icca.org or the Greater Boston Chapter website http://www.icca-boston.org

Board Members

President - Vin D'Amico - president@icca-boston.org
Vice President and PR Contact - Mike Spanos - vicepresident@icca-boston.org
Treasurer - Michael Stiefel - treasurer@icca-boston.org
Secretary - Peter Dwyer - secretary@icca-boston.org
Director of Programs - Gordon Corzine- programs@icca-boston.org
Director of Internal Communications - Kim Reddington - newsletter@icca-boston.org
Director of External Communications - Bob Goodearl - extcomms at icca-boston.org
Director of Membership - Jim Connell - membership@icca-boston.org
Past President - Norman Daoust - pastpresident@icca-boston.org

Legal Stuff

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Publisher: Greater Boston Chapter of the Independent Computer Consultants Association, http://www.icca-boston.org Copyright 2005, Greater Boston Chapter of the Independent Computer Consultants Association This newsletter may be distributed without charge as long as it's distributed in its entirety. Individual sections and portions may be distributed with permission.