Menlo Briefs September 2003


	Menlo Innovations is pleased to be a part of Schoolcraft College's launch of their new VistaTech Center. Friday, September 5th Menlo is presenting a special presentation at the center from 2:30 to 4:00pm. Menlo's presentation is for executive managers. The topic is “Restoring Confidence in Information Technology: What Every Executive Must Know.” This is a non-technical seminar for executives looking to energize their information technology initiatives within their organizations. Seating is limited. Register for this presentation by Wednesday, September 3rd and Schoolcraft will also extend an invitation to its VistaTech Grand Opening (an invitation-only event) including a tour of the brand new facility as well as hors d'oeuvres and technology demonstrations. The new VistaTech Center is located in Livonia at 18600 Haggerty Road between Six and Seven Mile.

	Every now and then you read an article so good you are inspired to subscribe to the magazine. This month's WIRED has just such an article. "They knew about the technology, but they thought it would stay in Russia and that nobody would get it working right." Even the diamond business is not immune to major disruptions from technology. Read about the shadowy diamond world and what single new technology may disrupt both DeBeers and Intel.

	Ypsilanti Chamber of Commerce Tuesday Breakfast - Good food and good conversation. Tuesday, September 9th from 7:30 - 9:00am at the Washtenaw Community College Morris Lawrence Building (WCC MLB). The featured speaker is Menlo's own Richard Sheridan. Register by September 5th to save $5. Sponsored by the Bank of Washtenaw.

	The next killer app? At Menlo, we understand that a great deal of software is really just manipulating data into information so that people can make decisions. So, what the heck is "grokking?" Might a new way to organize information allow us to make better decisions faster?

	Don't worry, be happy. Too many people in the Tech Industry seem to be walking around with dark clouds hanging over their heads. Tim Koogle, former CEO of Yahoo, see things differently. "I love the current time." he says. Find out why.

	Classes, Classes, Classes. The Menlo September class schedule is out. Time to buckle down and learn how to really apply those Use Cases, manage those projects, and deliver systems successfully!

	Information Technology Does So Matter! Last May, Nicholas Carr wrote an article in The Harvard Business Review called "IT Doesn't Matter" You can now buy it from Amazon for 7 bucks. The article was controversial to say the least. Michael Schrage has written a persuasive rebuttal arguing that IT does so matter. He adds that businesses can indeed differentiate themselves through IT but the key is how they manage technology.

	At Menlo we practice High-Tech Anthropology to ensure that software meets real business needs and can be used by real users. Why is this so important? Well, according to a Gartner study of CRM software purchased in 2002, 42 percent remains unused. One of the causes is software purchased by non-IT executives who don’t understand what it really does. Menlo's High-Tech Anthropology Assessments can help you avoid this very costly mistake. Call Rich Sheridan at (734) 665-1847 to find out more.

	Can you afford to train 100 people? YES, with Menlo's new TRAIN THE TRAINER Program you can. If you have bright and intelligent people on staff with the appropriate interests and skills, we can teach them to teach you. Our TRAIN THE TRAINER Program lets you develop your own in-house training capabilities to teach Menlo’s core curriculum. For a fraction of the cost of an external training program you can train internal trainers, customize the curriculum, and launch an effective in-house education program. Call Rich Sheridan at (734) 665-1847 to find out more.

	PMI Global Congress 2003-North America begins Saturday, September 20th in Baltimore Maryland. James Goebel, a Menlo Founder and a certified Project Management Professional will be presenting a paper on "Managing Software Development Using Extreme Programming." Learn more about the PMI Global Congress here.

	Speaking of good news. The local Domino's Pizza IT department was rated one of the top IT shops in America by Computerworld. Domino's has applied many techniques from Extreme Programming on their projects. Being one of Menlo's first customers, we like to think in some small way we played a part in this achievement. Are you ready to have your organization make the list?

	The New X-Men? Domino's Pizza IT personnel are also featured in WIRED magazine's September article on Extreme Programming. In the article George Azrak, Executive VP of IT at Domino's Pizza, shares his experiences on how The Planning Game has been applied at Domino's and Tim Wise describes why pair programming is so effective.

	WatchIT.com has just released three Software Project Management DVDs as part of their Peak Performance offering. The DVDs include insights from Domino's George Azrak and Bob Nero, former president, CEO and director of Interface Systems. The programs are each less than one hour long and cover, Adapting Projects To Accelerated Delivery, Practices That Save Projects, and Transforming the Development Team. These DVDs are available for purchase from the WatchIT.com website, or come over to Menlo and watch them in our training facility.

	A Taste of Success, a continuing favorite Menlo event, is scheduled for Tuesday September 18th. If you haven't seen it yet, now is the time. A great time to meet Menlo team members, network, and get some free food. The 90-minute seminar covering the top six reasons software projects fail and how to avoid them is presented at Menlo's office in downtown Ann Arbor. This event is free for those that pre-register