Compliance remains a key concern for many IT managers. Frameworks like ITIL and COBIT are very popular, but the NIST 800 guidelines and ISO 17799/27002 may be more beneficial. Regardless of the approach, IT leadership is sacrificed when violations occur.

IT managers with a desire to understand software testing can quickly become overwhelmed by the various types of testing, all seeming equally important. However, when attempting to improve the functional quality of software, only six primary goals need to be met. To meet these goals, six basic types of testing can cover the gamut and effectively contribute to application quality.

Software configuration management (SCM) is a necessity for any enterprise engaging in software development. Understand the six key activities of configuration management and determine whether or not development teams need to revise their processes.

Effective change management has an important role in protecting the business operation. The path to successful IT change management begins with senior management support and a solid process based on ITIL best practices.

The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is growing in popularity among IT leaders. However, many IT leaders don’t truly understand ITIL basics. Those new to ITIL must establish specific goals for ITIL prior to initiation.

Enterprises spend the majority of application budgets on maintenance. Managing the corporate application portfolio can give organizations insight into which applications are providing value, and which are money pits. Understand Application Portfolio Management (APM) and use it to get the most out of enterprise applications.

The foundation of Application Portfolio Management (APM) is an accurate and detailed inventory. Use this application inventory tool to document all applications deployed in the enterprise.

Projects, through development or procurement, create a software asset that must be maintained. Enterprises spend 50 to 80% of the development budget maintaining existing software. While costs per application vary, an application is often two to four times more expensive to maintain over its lifetime than the initial development costs.

Some open-source software configuration management (SCM) tools are as good as their commercial counterparts – without the licensing fees. Use this Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) comparison tool to capably determine the cost difference between the two licensing options.

Enterprises are completely reliant on software to enable their core business processing. While software maintenance is often associated with larger enterprises, in fact no enterprise – big or small – can afford to ignore it. Maintenance is often the largest part of the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) for a software application.

Prioritization of maintenance requests is a critical aspect of managing the maintenance budget. The ITA Premium "Software Maintenance Request Prioritization Worksheet" provides a standard and consistent method for setting the priority of enhancement requests to ensure IT application maintenance efforts and budget are put to the best use.

One of the keys to successful Application Portfolio Management (APM) is mapping business function and business value to applications in inventory. Use this tool to assess the business function and value of enterprise applications.

Application Portfolio Management (APM) requires that enterprises keep a current inventory of applications, but it is also necessary to identify the status of each application in the inventory. Use this tool to assess the status of enterprise applications.

Application maintenance consumes an enormous portion of enterprise IT budgets and resources. There is often little consideration given to which applications provide real business value and warrant resources and which provide little or no value. Use Application Portfolio Management (APM) to evaluate which enterprise apps deserve precious resources.

A well-written contract ensures that the selected vendor meets the company’s specific expectations and objectives for the purchase. During the evaluation process, the team will determine whether the selected vendor will have any difficulty meeting original purchase objectives. The negotiating team, therefore, must reach agreement on which objectives will require negotiation and what an acceptable...

Application Maintenance Management can be a very involved process. Companies with increasingly complex systems of interrelated applications face a growing need for a formalized application maintenance process.

IT teams looking to improve software configuration management processes should standardize on an appropriate software solution. Assess platform needs, development approach, and geographic distribution to choose the tool that best meets the organization’s needs.

During procurement, evaluate application vendors on a variety of disruption risks to identify problems that, while easy to spot, might otherwise be missed. Up-front risk awareness provides important input to the selection process. Scouting vendors first will better prepare the organization for unpleasant surprises.

An enterprise looking to invest in a comprehensive Software Configuration Management (SCM) solution should follow a formal RFP process. Employ this SCM Solution RFP Template to save time and ensure that all key areas are addressed.

Application Portfolio Management (APM) has the potential to make a big dent in application maintenance and support costs, but in a tough economy getting funding will be a challenge. Rather than implementing expensive APM software, start with simple tools and minimal resources to demonstrate the value of the management philosophy.

As part of the ongoing vendor management process, IT professionals should monitor the business and application health of vendors. Use this tool to detect increased risks before they materialize into negative events.

Develop vendor risk profiles to anticipate disruption proactively, and have an action plan ready with application alternatives for the various disruptive scenarios that can occur.

Effective change management has an important role in protecting the business operation of the enterprise. The path to successful IT change management begins with senior management support and a solid change management policy. Use this template to define a consistent approach to manage changes to the IT environment of your enterprise.

The Change Master Log provides visibility to key stakeholders on the status of ongoing changes to IT applications (or infrastructure). Ideally, the Change Master Log should be part of an automated configuration/change management or IT service desk solution. If such a solution does not exist, employ this template.

Network infrastructures must consistently deliver reliable, quality services to enterprise users. To achieve this, application developers must work closely with the network team to verify that the network quality of service (QoS) and an application’s required performance metrics are in sync. Cross-functional teams should be formed and assigned this task.

The Forward Schedule of Changes (FSC) is the document that contains the list of approved changes and proposed implementation dates for IT applications. Ideally, the FSC should be part of an automated configuration/change management or IT service desk solution. If such a solution does not exist, employ this FSC template.

Changes to IT applications (or infrastructure) must be managed properly to avoid disrupting the normal operation of the company. Use this tool to assess and enhance the maturity of your current IT change management process.

The creation of a request for change (RFC) form for the enterprise can be a time consuming and daunting task. Save time by customizing this form to the context of your enterprise.

The enterprise's readiness for ITIL-aligned problem management function depends on the service desk's ability to master more basic service desk functions. Use Info-Tech's Problem Management Maturity Tool to assess your service desk maturity level.

When managing an overworked help desk that is deluged by incidents and requests, incident management will only plug small holes in the service management dam whereas problem management could solve problems at the source.

Application Portfolio Management (APM) is about allocating appropriate resources to the right applications. It's not a one-time activity; it requires care and feeding. Keep APM on track by maintaining focus and keeping resources engaged.

When the overall budget available for application projects is significantly reduced, management should reassess project priorities. Use three key indicators to identify which projects should live and which should be deferred. Projects should be re-prioritized on the basis of business necessity, the absence of major risk, and the availability of resources to complete the work.

Failure to properly maintain software assets wastes money and can put the enterprise's reputation at risk if downtime is the result. Implement an application maintenance policy to control and raise the profile of this important, yet often overlooked, responsibility of the IT department.

Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) applications must be properly updated to reflect improvements, changes, and fixes supplied by the COTS vendor. Establish standard procedures for managing vendor-provided updates, and to improve performance and reduce system vulnerability.

IT managers that are unhappy with the often excessive money they are paying for software Maintenance and Support (M&S) can replace their apps vendor with a third-party provider. When third-party M&S is the right fit for the enterprise, it can lead to savings of 50% or more.

Software licenses represent a material part of every IT budget. They can be complex to negotiate and are often forgotten after a contract is signed. Understand how to better negotiate license agreements in the first place, and how to renew them for the lowest cost.

Service Level Management (SLM) delivers accountability, transparency, and visibility to IT services. Enterprises must start establishing service levels with the business through implementation of Service Level Agreements (SLAs).

Enterprises buckling down on spending will target projects and freeze hiring, but for many IT departments the cuts won't stop there. To avoid debilitating hatchet-like cuts, IT must learn to manage service levels and communicate the consequences of IT budget decreases on business services.

Many enterprises find themselves having to streamline a very large IT applications portfolio because of application redundancy, application aging, and unnecessary complexity. Use a three-phase approach to application retirement to put the right applications out to pasture and maximize the value of the application portfolio.

Many enterprises find themselves having to streamline a very large IT applications portfolio because of application redundancy, application aging, and unnecessary complexity. Use this tool to put the right applications out to pasture and maximize the value of the application portfolio.

Cutting back on service levels, negotiating with vendors, and implementing good application maintenance processes can yield short and long-term cost reduction results with minimal consequences on day-to-day business activities. Assess the area of application maintenance for cost saving opportunities to reduce IT's cost to serve the enterprise.

Questioning the value of existing software maintenance and support agreements and not getting a good answer? Consider ditching this 15-25% annual expense and save money.

Special Alert: Financial Crisis – Essential Reading for IT Leaders Executives around the globe are asking themselves how they should prepare for tough times. IT leaders are no exception. Read this report to develop a fundamental framework for assessing your choices as you plan for your organization.

This tool is designed to help organizations determine their top tactics for cost reduction within the end-user support service area. The tactics provided in this tool are a starting point for organizations seeking to reduce their end-user support service costs.

The decision has been made to make changes to an application. Now these changes must be executed and rolled out to the user base in a controlled way that maximizes the change’s success and minimizes disruption to the business. This process is known as change execution management.

Although copyright infringement in the form of software piracy is an enterprise-wide concern, IT is on the hook to ensure that software is properly managed and fully compliant with licensing agreements. When auditors come knocking on the door, IT’s problems instantly become much worse. This Management & Staffing research note discusses methods for surviving a software audit.