Rating: 
Summary: Results oriented approach, not a bunch of theory!
Review: "Thank You" for your interest in our book! Hello, I'm Tony Tardugno, co-author of "IT Services: Costs, Metrics, Benchmarking, and Marketing." (Prentice Hall - March 2000) The whole idea for this book was born from a project that was actually implemented and is delivering real results! We wanted to provide a practical approach for developing and successfully implementing an Integrated Service Delivery (ISD) strategy. You see, during our quest much to our amazement, there was surprisingly few sources of information and "experts" from which to draw. Even our benchmarking efforts yielded little from an overall comprehensive approach. So when we put pen to paper (or more appropriate, finger to keyboard), we were committed to providing a results oriented, customer focused approach, not a bunch a theory or unproved strategies. I can't begin to express my excitement that we were able to share our strategy, approach, and overall experiences, and I hope you find them helpful! Happy reading!
Rating: 
Summary: An adequate review of the topic
Review: a small, concise exploration of the topic; some good ideas and good thoughts on a rare topic. Probably would have benefited from a broader view of its topic. Not a bad book though.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Useful For Anyone With Experience In The IT Industry
Review: Anyone working in the IT field with two projects under their belt and an IQ greater than 50 will find this book a waste of time. Do yourself a favor and don't blow your money on this. If you are just setting out on career in the IT industry, some of the content will be very usefull.
Rating:
Summary: Not Useful For Anyone With Experience In The IT Industry
Review: Anyone working in the IT field with two projects under their belt and an IQ greater than 50 will find this book a waste of time. Do yourself a favor and don't blow your money on this. If you are just setting out on career in the IT industry, some of the content will be very usefull.
Rating: 
Summary: This is a must have book
Review: Finally a simple step by step guide on how to successfully implement a Customer focused operation center. This book is a straightforward "Non-Techie" path to achieving a results oriented service delivery team. It is a must read for anyone serious about containing cost at the same time satisfying their customer!
Rating:
Summary: This is a must have book
Review: Finally a simple step by step guide on how to successfully implement a Customer focused operation center. This book is a straightforward "Non-Techie" path to achieving a results oriented service delivery team. It is a must read for anyone serious about containing cost at the same time satisfying their customer!
Rating:
Summary: Great concepts but lacks examples
Review: I bought it with the objective of having it as a reference for managing data center operations. The ideas and concepts were very interesting, and I totally agree that the starting point should include determining linkages with the core business and getting management support. Most useful to me are the following chapters: Processes and Procedures - gives a framework on processes such as customer communication, internal communication, and change control. Resource and cost model - helps determine the types and amount of resources (material, human, etc.) that are needed to efficiently serve requirements. Measuring Success - discusses service levels and their measurement and coming up with service level agreements (SLAs) The Appendices on job descriptions and sample SLA is also a great help. The reason why I'm only giving 3 stars is that the authors could have given more examples as they explain the concepts. A line in the back cover page says "proven results, benchmarks and case studies--not just theory!" Sad to say, except for the sample SLA, this was not really delivered. It would help if the authors came up with even a fictitious company and apply the concepts to it. Again, the ideas and concepts are great, but the authors could have given more examples to help explain them. So if the authors come up with a new edition or a sequel that addresses this, I'd be most interested in buying it!
Rating:
Summary: I'm recommending that all my managers buy a copy...
Review: The size of our IT organization has exploded over the past five years as we've deployed new systems and products. The focus was always on delivering projects on time. Well, we've grown up and now have to support those products. Oh, what to do: we've been technology driven, not service driven. Along comes "IT Services" to provide a blueprint of how to go about implementing a services organization. There's practical advice on determining what "customers" want, what IT can offer, and what to do about the gap. It gives good examples of how to determine service costs. The sample "Service Level Agreement" in Appendix B and discussions of SLAs in the text is probably worth the price of the book alone. Minor nitpicks - Sometimes the authors could spend a little more time explaining figures and tables: I'm still trying to figure out what authors are trying to convey in the first two rows of Table 5-4 (p. 51). Overall, I had a hard time putting down the book. The more I read, the more ideas I had. I won't loan out this book for a while - I want to keep it close at hand. My staff will have to get their own copies...
Rating:
Summary: Finally, a useful book on managing information services!
Review: This book describes how to build and run a corporate IT services organization from scratch. It is written in a very clear and readable manner without resorting to "Big-5 consulting firm" type buzzword-speak. Most of what I have read in this area promises much, but leaves things too vague to apply to specific situations. This book dissects a very complicated management problem into simple, understandible parts that make sense in the real world. An unsuccessful enterprise application rollout can cost a large corporation millions (if not billions) of dollars. The lessons here help you "dot-com" your organization successfully and delight your customers (internal or external) with the results.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, a useful book on managing information services!
Review: This book describes how to build and run a corporate IT services organization from scratch. It is written in a very clear and readable manner without resorting to "Big-5 consulting firm" type buzzword-speak. Most of what I have read in this area promises much, but leaves things too vague to apply to specific situations. This book dissects a very complicated management problem into simple, understandible parts that make sense in the real world. An unsuccessful enterprise application rollout can cost a large corporation millions (if not billions) of dollars. The lessons here help you "dot-com" your organization successfully and delight your customers (internal or external) with the results.
| 
