Thomas Otter

 
I’d been meaning to write this for a while, but Jason’s post prompted me to stop surfing the interwebs and jot it down.
Data has three sources.
1. It is interfaced or integrated in from somewhere else.
2. It is derived from other data. For example net pay is derived from gross pay via some sort of [...]

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I’ve tried this metaphor on several client calls recently, so let me inflict it on you too.
Cactus

via Flickr, the cc licence of Rodolfo Cartas thanks.
In this architecture, everything is from one vendor, and integration with third party applications is rather difficult. Typical ERP /HRMS pitch of the mid-nineties. Why do you need other [...]

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While at the Benz museum, (see earlier posts) I snapped these pictures of the time entry system that the factory used.

As organizations grapple with a very different economy from this time last year, we are seeing a growing interest in addressing cost issues associated with core HR processes such as time recording, leave [...]

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photo. My bike. In Italy last summer
I enjoy long distance cycling, and throughout the warmer months of the year, I try and get out on my bicycle most days. I normally train for a big event, involving some big hills, so that I have a goal to aim for. I do [...]

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Though your balance-sheet’s a model of what balance-sheet should be, Typed and ruled with great precision in a type that all can see;
Though the grouping of the assets is commendable and clear,
And the details which are given more than usually appear;
Though investments have been valued at the sale price of the day,
And the auditor’s certificate [...]

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Tom Davenport, over on his Harvard blog, picks up on how HR could learn from Basketball.
How do analytics spread in sports? It usually starts with a few individuals who have seen their application in other domains (Daryl Morey of the Rockets, for example, was a fan of Bill James, the baseball stats Geek of [...]

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Almost exactly a year ago today I left SAP and joined Gartner.
So, how are things a year on?
I’ve been on a steep learning curve, and I don’t see it levelling off anytime soon. I talk to several vendors a week, and a good number of clients. I’m building up a better grasp of the [...]

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(Photo from the cc stream of Steve Webel, thanks)
Andrew McAfee  recently blogged about airline queuing systems and IT. The post is well worth reading, and it got me thinking about HR systems. My blogging history is largely made up of looking for obscure metaphors and applying them to HR technology.
An old Chinese saying about [...]

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(photo via flickrstream of addedentry)
So much of our enterprise systems reporting is still locked into the rows and columns model of reporting. Yes, some vendors have oil gauge type dashboards and yapc (yet another pie chart) but I’ve only seen one or two vendors who really think hard about how to change the way data [...]

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SOA is one of those things that is really tough to explain.  I’m often on the look out for new metaphors to help me explain it ways that don’t inflict too much pain and suffering on my typical HR audience. HR people normally have a high tolerance for pain, but talk to them about SOA [...]

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