For IT workers this is THE million dollar question. I think most of us agree that keeping up with the latest technologies needs to be a recurring task in our calendars, but deciding on when to replace which of our software tools looks to me the most difficult problem faced by developers, architects and CIOs.
Answering the question of what needs to be replaced next is driving the organization’s innovation and self-development processes towards realistic goals like leveraging the cloud technologies.
Moving into the cloud is a “when” question - these days running a VM does not cost more than a decent shared hosting package. And don’t be mad on your IT guy asking for your budget, ultimately that money amount decides what type of solution can you start from.
Let’s face it: since the advent of the Internet (token-based, routed, non-deterministic communication channel) and the dynamically evolving, diversified hardware and software, the reliability and maintainability of a given solution have become moving targets. The IT&C solution you are using is essentially a service, which needs maintenance, otherwise its quality and usability will degrade in time.
Even if you are an end-user, you need to familiarize yourself with the changes in the software tools you are using, for you that’s the price of their evolution.
The owners of the “latest and greatest” software services have learned more or less on the hard way that the user needs have to be monitored and addressed as attentively as the ever-changing technical challenges. Beyond mastering the industry-specific management processes someday they will learn that staying relevant in the IT&C business is neither about populating the company with micromanaged guys nor about acquiring innovative teams. The right guys keep asking and answering “what should I learn next…”
