tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22226004955390623992023-11-16T05:22:07.605-08:00Darryl PooreA Practicing PLM Solution ProfessionalDarryl Poorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04510163729838535403noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2222600495539062399.post-20350431846041075422016-02-15T08:21:00.000-08:002016-02-15T09:15:26.893-08:00<div style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; margin: 0in;">
PLM Loyalty</div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.6667px;">So, what is the basis for commitment / loyalty you ask?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Peter
Schroer of Aras posted a blog, </span><a href="http://www.aras.com/Community/blogs/aras_corporate_blog/archive/2016/02/11/mba-101-is-that-10m-you-spent-on-plm-so-far-an-investment-or-a-sunk-cost.aspx">MBA 101: Is that $10M you spent on PLM (so far) an Investment or a Sunk Cost?</a>, <span style="font-size: 11pt;">on about commitment to PDM/PLM/CAD. I found it interesting and also felt that it warranted my comment.</span></div>
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Commitment / loyalty really has
nothing at all to do with the amount of money invested to date. However, to Peter's underlying point, executives
get hung up on how much they have spent and do not want to view that money as
being thrown away. So instead, they continue to
throw good money after bad. Also, this
phenomenon is not limited to PLM implementations. The world of ERP, BI, and QA have even bigger
horror stories when it comes to continuing to spend large sums of money on
failing implementations.</div>
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If you want to build
solution loyalty, you need three things:</div>
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<li style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; vertical-align: middle;" value="1"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Understand and help the
people who will get the greatest value from a new solution, the people who
work with the tool set day in and day out.
Determine what their needs are.
Walk a day, a week, a month in their shoes. Find out how much time they spend
tracking the progress of their work in offline spreadsheets. Watch them search through numerous folders,
network shared folders, and document libraries just to locate a single
file. Find out how much time they
spend sending and receiving email, making phone calls, and walking the
floor trying to determine what the status is for various efforts. Ask them how many meetings they sit it
where the focus turns to how broken the process is, trying to make the
process better, and still attaining no resolve. Work with these folks on documenting
their current struggles, listing their data, process, and system
requirements, and give them a seat at the table, a voice in the
discussion, and a vote on the solution.</span></li>
</ol>
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<li style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; vertical-align: middle;" value="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Assign an engaged executive
who can make a decision and have the authority to implement. And when I say engaged, I mean someone
who admits they do not have all the answers. Someone who spends time in the trenches
with the people doing the work.
Someone who will listen and be active in the discussions,
contributing not dictating. Someone
who will clear the field in front of the implementation team to ensure
that barriers are removed and support is ready, willing, and able. If you want to do all you can to ensure
loyalty, buy in, and support, get an executive who will clear their
calendar to make time for the effort that they and their people will have
to live with for the next decade or more.</span></li>
</ol>
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<li style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; vertical-align: middle;" value="3"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Start now. Start small. Never stop. PLM should not take a big bang approach
to implementation. You cannot
define everything that will be managed through PLM up front. PLM is not a one and done solution for
businesses. Nearly everything
within a company looking at PLM is somehow connected and/or managed within
PLM. Existing enterprise solutions
that may or may not be in place do not have features, functions, or
modules to address every thing or every process within and organization. ERP systems do a fine job of capturing a
number of attributes about a part or a raw material. However, ERP does a terrible job at
rendering 3D images and exploded visuals of a component BOM like CAD
systems do. Therefore ERP and CAD
need to share information about parts and components. CAD systems do a great job with
visualization, but not as good of a job with review and approval workflow
management like PLM systems, that can also loop in manufactures and
suppliers.</span></li>
</ol>
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PLM loyalty is not
about spending $10M. PLM is about
listening to your staff who is struggling every day to do things right and to
do the right thing. PLM is about
empowering your staff to do something about their struggles. PLM is about fighting in the trenches with
your staff, assisting them with becoming more efficient and more
effective. PLM is about making a
difference now by addressing the little things that have a big impact. PLM is about continually managing, reviewing,
and improving. PLM is a living system
that changes with the business as the business changes.</div>
Darryl Poorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04510163729838535403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2222600495539062399.post-84072071403701230352015-10-12T08:35:00.000-07:002015-10-12T15:41:52.153-07:00Persistence<div style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; margin: 0in;">
Starting a new
project. Starting a new position at
work. Starting with a new company.
Starting a new business. Starting
a new goal or objective.</div>
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All of us have
started something. Sometimes with
excitement. Many times with
apprehension, hesitation, and some level of anxiety. However, as it is new, we begin with high
energy and high expectations. As hours
go by, and days go by, and weeks and months go by, and sometimes as years go
by, we become discouraged. We all ask
why.</div>
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I have heard about a
particular parable many times in my life, "Pushing Against the
Rock". I recently came across it
and have included a copy below (thank you R.K. Owen, Ph.D.) It is not found in the Bible. However, it does speak of God and faith, and
I will refer to later in this posting.</div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Pushing Against The Rock</span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Author Unknown</span></div>
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There once was a man who was asleep one night in his cabin when
suddenly his room filled with light and the Saviour appeared to him.</div>
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The Lord told him He had a work for him to do, and showed him a
large rock explaining that he was to push against the rock with all his might.
This the man did, and for many days he toiled from sunup to sundown; his
shoulder set squarely against the cold massive surface of the rock, pushing
with all his might. Each night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out,
feeling his whole day had been spent in vain.</div>
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Seeing that the man showed signs of discouragement, Satan decided
to enter the picture - placing thoughts in the man's mind, such as ``Why kill
yourself over this?, you're never going to move it!'' or ``Boy, you've been at
it a long time and you haven't even scratched the surface!'' etc. giving the
man the impression the task was impossible and the man was an unworthy servant
because he wasn't moving the massive stone.</div>
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These thoughts discouraged and disheartened the man and he started
to ease up in his efforts. ``Why kill myself?'' he thought. ``I'll just put in
my time putting forth just the minimum of effort and that will be good
enough.'' And this he did or at least planned on doing until, one day, he
decided to take his troubles to the Lord.</div>
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``Lord,'' he said, ``I have labored hard and long in Your service,
putting forth all my strength to do that which You have asked of me. Yet after
all this time, I have not even budged that rock even half a millimeter. What is
wrong? Why am I failing?''</div>
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To this the Lord responded compassionately, ``My friend, when long
ago I asked you to serve Me and you accepted, I told you to push against the
rock with all your strength and that you have done. But never once did I
mention to you that I expected you to move it. At least not by yourself. Your
task was to push. And now you come to Me, your strength spent, thinking that
you have failed, ready to quit. But is this really so? Look at yourself. Your
arms are strong and muscled; your back sinewed and brown. Your hands are
calloused from constant pressure and your legs have become massive and hard.
Through opposition you have grown much and your ability now far surpasses that
which you used to have. Yet still, you haven't succeeded in moving the rock;
and you come to Me now with a heavy heart and your strength spent. I, my friend
will move the rock. Your calling was to be obedient and push, and to exercise
your faith and trust in My wisdom, and this you have done.''</div>
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Thoughts - we are
often told that it is OK to call out what is wrong. We should do this without hesitation and
without fear. The man in the story above
calls out to God and essentially says he believes his efforts are foolish given
that he is not making any progress with moving the stone. We as leaders, managers, and owners need to
welcome these types of discussions and not discount what our staff is sharing
with us. We need to embrace the feedback
and respect the individual for their courage.
What they share with us is their perception. And, as we have heard and said many times,
perception is reality.</div>
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Challenge management
to provide a venue to hear what is wrong in anonymity, and what we all believe
could be better. PSC has done this with
their Tiny Pulse feedback loop. Challenge
management to provide a venue to discuss concerns, issues, and recommendations
openly. Challenge leadership to positively act, truly addressing the concerns
that have been shared. And most of all,
as leaders, managers, and owners, ask clarifying questions. Dig deep into understanding why this point
has been brought to your attention.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">If
your desire is to build a world-class team, practice, branch, company, etc.,
completing a single task will not provide you the results you are looking
for. Remember, it is not necessarily the
task at hand that needs to be completed, but the culmination of many tasks to
reach the end goal. As Lone Watie (a
Character in the movie The </span><span style="background: white; color: #6a6a6a; font-family: arial; font-weight: bold;">Outlaw Josey Wales</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> (1976), "We thought about it for a long
time, 'Endeavor to </span><span style="background: white; color: #6a6a6a; font-family: arial; font-weight: bold;">persevere</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">'. And when we had thought about it long enough,
we. . ." . What will your decision
be when it comes to calling out what is wrong, or righting the wrong that was
call out? Whatever your choice, be
persistent in doing the right thing.</span></div>
Darryl Poorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04510163729838535403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2222600495539062399.post-25459486316795285082013-09-01T18:26:00.003-07:002013-09-01T18:26:49.044-07:00Picture This<div class="MsoPlainText">
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<b><i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">Picture This<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2222600495539062399" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2222600495539062399" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>Not long ago I attended the Aras ACE 2013
Conference. Some of the underlying
themes included 'Be Different', 'Do More', and 'Resilient PLM'. In one of the sessions a business need
requiring a change or customization to an Aras Innovator feature was presented
to a group of implementation and solution providers. A number of possible alternatives and
approaches were discussed, including one that was very elegant. All of these would have addressed the
business need in various capacities.
However, none of them filled the customer's wants. What immediately came to mind though was a
tire swing cartoon that I have seen over the course of nearly thirty years of
IT experiences. I recently ran across “<a href="http://www.businessballs.com/treeswing.htm">tree swing pictures</a>”
which I will come back to the comic in a little bit.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p> </o:p><br />
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Here was a room full of well-educated individuals. Many
of them true software developers. Others
were engineers. They all understood what
out-of-the-box features and functions existed.
They felt that they understood the business need. They felt they knew where in the system a
modification would need to be made. They
felt they understood the desired end result.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What they did not have was the simple solution design.
They did not have a process document or a use case. They did not have a full set of requirements
to work from. This group of individuals,
I included, set off to try and build a solution without some key artifacts and
project collateral. Isn't this at the
core of what all of us in consulting services are challenged with when we
engage a customer (internal and/or external)?
Are we not attempting to address and solve their business needs with
tools, systems and processes? Are we not
attempting to fix “it”, whatever “it” happens to be?<o:p></o:p></div>
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So now let me go back to the tire swing comic. As I read through the comic (see image below),
I was reminded of a hundred key points that I could make. However, two very simple points really stood
out;<o:p></o:p></div>
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1) many times having a list of
requirements is not enough to develop the desired solution<o:p></o:p></div>
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2) everyone has their own
perspective of both the need/problem and the solution (see my previous
Bulldozer post)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHtJuuT5HWZP2FRvdGqR3CiRUHZdyAMOj4hGHIJJLvsKWxtnc1MaCyPwPExSgc24EXkUt2les8aV9Wi3vzucv8m05rSsPhhEo888ilaPmxJ5HSvcJRDGkH6VGCu7JgiaQKaLiP7j-YadU/s1600/Tree+Swing.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHtJuuT5HWZP2FRvdGqR3CiRUHZdyAMOj4hGHIJJLvsKWxtnc1MaCyPwPExSgc24EXkUt2les8aV9Wi3vzucv8m05rSsPhhEo888ilaPmxJ5HSvcJRDGkH6VGCu7JgiaQKaLiP7j-YadU/s400/Tree+Swing.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Requirements are very important. Even more important is a clear and complete
vision, (sometimes a picture) of the whole situation. Having a complete vision, an image, or a
picture of the end solution to start with can save time, money, and even
extended periods of frustration. Being
able to clearly communicate a solution can be the difference between success
and failure.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Lesson: In the case of the tree swing, a picture is worth
more than a thousand words.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Take Aways:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Spend the time up front to capture requirements,
even a picture is necessary.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Get acknowledgement / confirmation that your
picture matches the customer's picture. <o:p></o:p></div>
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</span></span><!--[endif]-->Whatever tool you use to gather, manage, and
collaborate requirements, leverage to deliver value. For me, there is a very nice Requirements
module for Aras Innovator that was developed by Nate Brown. <span style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">(Links to his presentations at </span><a href="http://www.aras.com/blogs/ACE-2012-International/SLIDES-Aras-PLM-Requirements-Management.pdf"><span style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">ACE 2012</span></a><span style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;"> and </span><a href="http://www.aras.com/plm-software/100428.aspx"><span style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">ACE 2013</span></a><span style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">)</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Side Note: The
cost of change (time, money, and emotional capital) rises drastically the
further along your development path you go and the closer you get to the end of
your effort. I came across the following
graphic and felt that it (the image) gave an industry accepted visual.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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Darryl Poorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04510163729838535403noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2222600495539062399.post-52356386539153075102013-06-24T07:40:00.000-07:002013-06-24T07:40:31.425-07:00<div class="MsoPlainText">
<b><i><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Bulldozers and Different!<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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All of us are unique. We have a way of looking at things
in life from our own perspective. With a bulldozer at your disposal,
there is no truer statement than “it is a matter of perspective.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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I have sat in countless meetings listening to attendees
attempt to convince others to;<o:p></o:p></div>
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- change the way they do their job<o:p></o:p></div>
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- change the way the team or department processes
information,<o:p></o:p></div>
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- change the system they are currently using<o:p></o:p></div>
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- change where they get information from<o:p></o:p></div>
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- change what information they use<o:p></o:p></div>
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- change, change, change, change, change, and change<o:p></o:p></div>
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I can list hundreds of examples, but I believe the point
here has been made. Everyone has an opinion about what can be better and how
their way is the better way. You hear this at work, at sporting events,
in politics, and in religion. Interesting enough, none of us will ever
have an impact on most of those things. However, at home and at work all
of us can have some level of influence on change. A story from my
childhood really brings this into perspective.<o:p></o:p></div>
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When I was younger, much younger, say pre-teen, my
grandparents purchased a small farm not too far from home. Many of my weekends
were spent with my grandfather clearing brush, cutting down trees, running
barbed wire fence along the property lines, mowing pastures with a tractor and
brush hog, building ponds, and just hanging out together. A boy outside
in nature, getting dirty, using his hands, operating big machinery. What
more could a young lad ask for? By the way, this was before <a href="http://www.xbox.com/en-US/">Xbox</a>, <a href="http://www.nintendo.com/?country=US&lang=en">Nintendo</a>, <a href="http://us.playstation.com/">PlayStation</a>, <a href="http://www.nintendo.com/wii">Wii</a>, video games, and even <a href="http://atari.com/">Atari</a>’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asteroids_(video_game)">Asteroids</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Anyway, for years there was not a month that went by that
my grandfather didn't see a backhoe, or a front loader, or a bulldozer for sale
along the road to the farm. He was really fond of bulldozers. And
every time he saw one he would make a statement along the lines of "if I
had that bulldozer, I could do this or change that or make something
different". As I said, this went on for several years. Then
one day during a family gathering, my grandfather again made mention of a
bulldozer he saw for sale just up the road and what he could do with it there
on the farm. Well, my dad or my uncle chimed in on his "If I had a
bulldozer" scenarios and ask him a simple question, “if you had that
bulldozer, would all the things you are talking about doing make things any
better?” <o:p></o:p></div>
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Take a moment to ponder that question. How often do
we find ourselves talking about what would make thing better. Or, at the very
least, we find ourselves suggesting that by doing this or that, things would be
better. Think about it for a moment.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Well, my grandfather being the calm and reserved man that
he was, and still is today, pondered the question presented to him. After a
timely amount of silence, he responded with some of the most profound words
that I, as a young boy, had ever heard in my life. My grandfather, with a
look of professorial wisdom simply said, "I don't know if it would be any
better around here, but things would sure look a whole lot different."<o:p></o:p></div>
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There is not a week that goes by that those words of
wisdom my grandfather spoke many years ago do not come to mind. They
apply to so many things in my life, from home to work, from government to
church, and you fill in the blanks. I find myself extending them beyond
the original setting, and applying those words with humble respect to
day-to-day living, "if I were in charge, I do not know if anything would
be any better, but things would sure look a whole lot different."<o:p></o:p></div>
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Mixing is some profound words from a humble clown, Red
Skelton would close each of his shows with the following! "It’s a lot of
fun to try and make people laugh because regardless of what your heartache might
have been, while laughing for a few seconds you have forgotten about it. I
personally believe that each and every one of us was put here for a purpose and
that is to build and not to destroy. And if by chance someday you’re not
feeling well, you should remember some silly little thing that I’ve said or
done and it brings back a smile to your face and a chuckle to your heart, then
my purpose as your clown has been fulfilled."<o:p></o:p></div>
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So in the spirit of a great clown, Red Skelton, and with
unending respect I have for my grandfather, if there are times that you find
yourself, or hear someone else, recounting the ways that they would make things
better, and you remember my grandfather's words ("I don't know if it would
be any better around here, but things would sure look a whole lot
different"), then the message I hoped to communicate was fulfilled.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Humbly<br />
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Darryl Poorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04510163729838535403noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2222600495539062399.post-66331578099663569562013-05-04T04:21:00.000-07:002013-05-04T04:21:14.676-07:00<br />
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Introduction<o:p></o:p></div>
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So with all us being bombarded with blogging and
tweeting, with Facebook, LinkedIn, and Google+, and with Mobile advertising,
why have I decided to add another voice to this mix? It seems that the journeyman practice has
perished. Internships are in disguise, being more of a dumping of unwanted tasks onto unsuspecting
students than opportunities to be mentored in a trade. Today, if we don't know the answer
to a question, we turn to our favorite search engine to surf the Internet for the answer. With nearly 30 years of experience in
Information Technology, I have accumulated and maintained a body of knowledge
that some may find useful. With a
blogging venue, I hope to share lessons learned, tips, tricks, and some best
practice / common practices that I have found helpful in my experiences.<o:p></o:p></div>
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One of my goals will be to practice the KISS
principle (Keep It Short & Simple).
There will be no attempts to complicate challenges and more importantly
the responses to challenges. Another goal I hope to accomplish is to have fun with my blogging efforts. Quite frankly, if I do not enjoy blogging,
neither you the reader nor I will experience much benefit or interest.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Although this blog will focus primarily on PLM
(Product Lifecycle Management), I will occasionally sprinkle some project management,
business process management, and collaboration concept postings that I feel
apply to any or all of these disciplines.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Enjoy.<o:p></o:p></div>
Darryl Poorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04510163729838535403noreply@blogger.com1