Driving a car doesn't require knowledge of cylinder heads and compression ratios, and you don't have to understand software and hardware to make optimum use of Information Technology. It's the people managing and using the technology who are important - not the technology itself - and this is a book about those people, their limitations in coping with technology, and how they can better deal with those limitations. This book is for everyone who is frustrated with Information Technology, and for every non-technical person who is at the mercy of a seemingly uncooperative IT organization. It's for business people who want to better understand IT, and for IT people who want to know why their jobs are so difficult and unappreciated. Every manager, executive and knowledge worker in today's world uses information systems, and most of these people have a relationship - good or bad - with some part of an IT organization. This book gives you the information you need to improve your relationship with IT. And with that improved relationship, you can make your own job more successful.
Harwell Thrasher is an author, commentator, strategist and former IT executive who focuses on the human side of Information Technology (which is where things usually go wrong), helps businesses to better understand and communicate with their technology organizations, and helps IT people better align their work to business needs. Harwell founded MakingITclear, Inc. in 2002 after more than thirty years of previous experience in Information Technology.
Harwell is known for providing a unique perspective on the difficult problems confronting IT and business organizations. He often explains complicated issues using simple metaphors and parables. His non-technical explanations of technology make it easily apparent that IT is no different from any other organization staffed by humans - it just uses more expensive tools.
The word "magic" comes up a lot in Harwell's writing and speaking. He cites magic - an unreasonable expectation of illogical results - as the prime source of miscommunication between business and IT. Indeed, sometimes Harwell's purpose in life seems to be to destroy the inappropriate magic that leads to IT misperception and failure. By eliminating the magic, Harwell hopes to raise the overall reputation of IT people.
Currently, many IT organizations are perceived as kind of like that sleazy car repair place by the side of the highway that you have to go to because your car breaks down right beside it. You don't really want to use their services, but you feel like you've got no choice. You know you'll probably be overcharged - maybe even cheated - and you just want to get your car fixed and get out of there.
Harwell's hope is that he can turn this attitude around, clean up the sleazy IT "garages," and turn IT into a respected partner for business - a partner who works side by side with the CEO and senior business executives to make dramatic improvements in the processes used by the business, and makes business systems easy to use and even fun.
Harwell has been writing and publishing a monthly email newsletter for CIO's since April, 2003, and that newsletter has now evolved into a blog. In 2007 Harwell published his first book, "Boiling the IT Frog: How to Make Your Business Information Technology Wildly Successful Without Having to Learn Anything Technical" which explains IT issues to a business audience, and gives business people advice on how to improve the effectiveness of their IT organizations.
Harwell is also a popular speaker for gatherings of current and future IT executives, and for groups of people who work closely with IT. He is able to describe the IT life experience with humor and from a fresh perspective, and the resulting insight helps the audience better cope with their situation at work.
