| Dear IT, SA, and computing professional,
The software development industry has developed process improvement methods, which improved the quality of the software and the work environment for programmers. The process models used in software development seem to be applicable to the systems management field and would enable organizations to improve the service provided to computer users as well as enhance the role of system administrator. The System Administrators Guild, SAGE, is a special technical group of USENIX dedicated to the advancement of systems management as a profession. A unique workshop will be conducted during the annual LISA conference in December. The group will review previous work in the area and participants will present their ideas about process improvement and how benchmarking can be applied to the field of systems management. The goal of the workshop is to identify a vision and create an action plan for future development. If you are interested in contributing to this effort, please visit the LISA conference web site at http://www.usenix.org/events/lisa2000 . |
Coordinators:
Carolyn Hennings, Megapipe
Tom Limoncelli, Lumeta Corporation
Alva L. Couch, Tufts University
Workshop Description: How does your IT organization compare to others? How do your methods and procedures compare to those of others? There is no metric for comparing two organizations, which makes it very difficult to plan for and assess improvements in an IT organization.
A metric known as the Systems Administration Maturity Model (SAMM) has been proposed. In this workshop we will discuss SAMM and alternatives and will try to build a common understanding of this area. The outcome of the workshop is intended to be a vision and action plan for moving forward.
Potential participants should send email to metrics-workshop@usenix.org with a paragraph or two about their experiences and interest in IT organization metrics and practices.