Karen Lopez: Musings on Data, Process, and Architecture

CA Modeling Global User Community Election Open - Again

website@infoadvisors.com — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 21:58:10 GMT

If you followed my advice yesterday and voted for the CA Modeling Global User Community, you need to vote again as the election team has reset the votes to correct an error in the voting options.

The correction was around who is running for which position. Instead of two people running for VP of Communications, there are two people running for Enhancement Co-ordinator.

So get your vote out, again, to show support for the fine people who are willing to work on your behalf to make the CA modeling products meet your needs.

Board Positions and candidates:

President: Tom Bilcze

Vice President: Steve McMahon

Secretary: Daniel Dechichio

Treasurer: Francois C. Cartier

Vice President of Programs: Hanne Christensen

Enhancement Request Coordinator:

Garry Gramm
Huroye D Scott

Vice President of Communications: Luis-Ignacio Gonzalez

Cast your vote by clicking on VOTE

Voting closes February 15, 2010.

Technorati Tags: CA Modeling Global User Group,ERwin,CA

CA Modeling Global User Community Election Open Now

website@infoadvisors.com — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 13:27:57 GMT

I just received the call for votes for the CA Modeling GUC. Note that several of the people stepping up to fill these important positions are long time members of our community, too. Not only do those people help other ERwin users on our discussion boards, but they also are volunteering to give back to our CA community in a more formal manner. Kudos to them.

The full announcement is probably waiting in your inbox now. Highlights:

CA Modeling Global User Community

Dear Modeling Global User Community Members,

CA ERwin users in this Global User Community nominated these 8 candidates to form the Global User Community Modeling Board for 2010-2012 (effective March 01, 2010). We are now ready to have you, as Modeling Global User Community members, cast your votes.

Board Positions and candidates:

President: Tom Bilcze

Vice President: Steve McMahon

Secretary: Daniel Dechichio

Treasurer: Francois C. Cartier

Vice President of Programs: Hanne Christensen

Enhancement Request Coordinator: Garry Gramm

Vice President of Communications:

Huroye D Scott

Luis-Ignacio Gonzalez

Cast your vote by clicking on VOTE

Voting closes February 15, 2010.

I had a hard time finding the candidate profiles, so here’s a more direct link: http://causergroups.ca.com/UserGroups/NewsItem.aspx?ID=397&NEWSID=4166

I also invite anyone running for these positions to post to our ERwin group about their candidacy.

Vote now!

Technorati Tags: CA ERwin Data Modeler,Voting,CA Global User Group,PLC

Advanced Data Modeling course is now available online

Karen Lopez - karen@Infoadvisors.com — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 03:29:23 GMT

I received this notification recently from my friend Gord Everest. It’s a bit late in posting (the first class was last week), but it’s good to know that advanced courses are making their way online.

Finally, the premier course in database design at the University of Minnesota is available online to the IT/IS professional community.

If you are a practicing (or aspiring) data architect/modeling professional, you owe it to yourself to check into this educational opportunity. Both new students and experienced working professionals have found this course to be very worthwhile. It can be a real boost to your career. Students report back that they soon became a recognized expert to whom other data modelers would come for help. They are able to recognize poorly designed databases, and to develop good conceptual data models (a stage before ER/Relational modeling). The course also covers how to conduct database design project meetings, and present data models to business users so they can understand them.

The course consists of 15 weekly lectures of 2 credit hours each, along with practical design exercises/assignments and quizzes. It is actually recorded in conjunction with a face-to-face class. Unlike more traditional online courses or webinars, here the online delivery results in a more effective and engaging learning experience. Being able to view the lectures anywhere online at work or at home gives you considerable flexibility in arranging your schedule each week.

Taught by Dr. Gordon Everest, this course has been well received by students and data management professionals alike. Student ratings are consistently high. The concepts and techniques are difficult to learn by reading a book alone. The class first solidifies your understanding of the traditional ER/Relational database design approach. Then you learn a much better way to do data modeling using Object Role Modeling (ORM).

The course begins 2010 January 21 and runs for 15 weeks in lock step with the live course. For further information go to: http://www.tc.umn.edu/~geverest/DModCourse.html

There you will find details of costs, how to register; course conduct, content, and schedule; the instructor bio; readings list; and information about the approach to online delivery. For any questions, send an email to: geverest@umn.edu .

FOR DAMA:

If you are planning to be at the DAMA Enterprise Data World conference March 14-18, you will have an opportunity to hear Dr. Everest conduct a workshop entitled “Normalization: the Achilles heel of Data Modeling.”

--
-- Gordon Everest - Visit my new website:
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~geverest
----------------------------------------------------------
Gordon C. Everest, Professor Emeritus and Adjunct
Database- Design, Administration, and Management
University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management

Technorati Tags: Advanced Data Modeling,Course,Distance Learning

No Man is a Failure Who Has Friends: 5 Architecture Tips from It’s a Wonderful Life.

website@infoadvisors.com — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 22:11:21 GMT

It’s a Wonderful Life is a part of many a holiday tradition. While most of you probably know this as a Christmas film, the links to the Christmas holiday are fairly weak. There’s an angel, some snow, and a background Christmas tree with a bell. Other than that, the story itself could take place at any time of the year. So if you’d put off seeing this film because you think it is all happy, shiny, Christmas cheer-ish, you need to think again.

George Bailey is a protagonist in a small town, Bedford Falls, located in upstate New York. He finds himself on the brink of financial ruin due to no fault of his own. He goes to visit the town big wig, Henry Potter, to get a loan. Potter tells him that with no equity in his life insurance policy, he’s “worth more dead than alive.” In a fit of despair, George decides to sacrifice his life so that his family and company (The Bailey Building and Loan) can survive. However, his plans are sidetracked by Clarence, his guardian angel. George rambles that he wished he’d never been born. Sounds pretty dark, doesn’t it? Not that Christmas-y at all. Clarence sees this as a great opportunity to show George just what a great impact he has had on not just his community, but on the world.

So George is shown what his family, friends, town and world would be like if he’d never been born. The new town is called “Pottersville”, after the antagonist Mr. Potter. It’s not a good thing. Clarence tells him:

“Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?”

and

“No man is a failure who has friends.”

The “feel good” part of the film is when George gets to return to the world he wished he’d never been born into. I’ll leave the assignment up to you to see how this all happens and how George and him family do once he returns.

I’ve seen this film at least 50 times in my life, perhaps even more. In fact, most people would probably think that I’m a bit obsessed with this whole story. To which I say: everyone needs a hobby. This just happens to be one of mine.

So what does this have to do with architecture and data management? I think plenty.

Enterprise-class projects can’t be done by one person. No one is a failure who has good team mates who collaborate well. You don’t have to be friends with them, or even like them that much. But you do have to find a way to collaborate with them.
Architecture done well can have all kinds of impacts elsewhere. Each architect’s work touches so many other parts of the architecture. When it isn’t there, it leaves an awful hole…to be filled by a non-architect to do. One small great architecture component can have huge impacts on solution quality for a long time in the future. When George is a kid, he saves his brother Harry’s life. But in the Pottersville world, Harry dies. Clarence tells George: Every man on that transport died! Harry wasn't there to save them, because you weren't there to save Harry. If you aren’t there to create the architecture, or if the architecture you create isn’t used, then the good stuff it could deliver won’t be there when it is needed.
Fastest isn’t always “bestest”. In running George and Clarence out of his Pottersville bar, Nick the Bartender explains what works in the bad world: Hey look, mister - we code fast here for people who want to get lots of stuff done fast, and we don't need any characters around to give the joint "atmosphere". Is that clear, or do I have to slip you my left for a convincer? Well, I paraphrased that quote. But you get the point. Perhaps that was Nick’s collaboration method – using bouncers to run people out. Some people feel that data and other architectures are just there for some sort of religious checklist nirvana. It’s our jobs, as architects, to show them why architecture plays a key role project success. A left convincer might work in the short run, but the best way to get support for an architecture is have one that works. Good architectures need to be designed. Hacking away on a pseudo architecture is more Pottersville than Bedford Falls.
Architecture is more than drawing boxes and lines. George was fabulous at motivating people to do the right thing. The first way he did this was by living by his own principles. When put in a tight spot, he did the right thing. We architects need to do the same thing. We can’t tell development teams that they must treat data with respect and then treat our own meta data as if it weren’t important. This means ensuring that our architectures are managed with real tools, backed up, disaster-proofed, and generally treated as production data – which they are.
Sharing a vision is important. George was also great with expressing vision. He could get people to rally ‘round a cause by getting others to see what was in it for them. His monologue to Potter about why the Bailey Building and Loan should carry on after his father’s death is a classic. But his best was saved for Mary, in the moonlight:

George: What is it you want, Mary? What do you want? You want the moon? Just say the word and I'll throw a lasso around it and pull it down. Hey. That's a pretty good idea. I'll give you the moon, Mary.

Mary: I'll take it. Then what?

George: Well, then you can swallow it, and it'll all dissolve, see... and the moonbeams would shoot out of your fingers and your toes and the ends of your hair... am I talking too much?

I’m still not sure how I’m going to work that line in with one my vision/architectural reviews, but I’m still thinking about it. Look for it on call soon.

For those of you who have seen IAWL and might appreciate some derivative works, I leave you with:

Carolyn’s Sill’s video and song “George Bailey”. This is one of my favourite holiday running songs for the tempo and overall good feelings it leaves me with. Her songs are available on iTunes. While you are watching this video, head over to iTunes and buy it. As an independent artist, she deserves the 99 cents for putting this together.

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Next up is Angry Alien’s It’s A Wonderful Life in 30 Seconds with Bunnies. A 30 second overview of the film. Be sure to click on the bunny outlines at the end to see some clips that couldn’t be part of the 30 second summary.

Finally, dear reader, I want you to know that you personally touch many lives by being part of our communities, both here and on Twitter. Happy Wonderful Life, everyone.

Technorati Tags: Wonderful Life,George Bailey,Architecture,Classic Film,Data Architecture,Collaboration

CA ERwin Data Modeler Enhancement Voting

website@infoadvisors.com — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 20:57:55 GMT

As posted earlier, The CA Product Line Community (user group) is following a user-driven enhancement process. Voting is now open for the enhancements.

CA Modeling Global User Community

Once the voting is complete, the enhancements will be prioritized based on the votes. The prioritized list will be presented to ERwin Development and Product Managers at the CARE Conference that precedes CA World in May 2010. Prior to CARE, this same list will be sent out to GUC members for their information.

So to give a highlight of the time table:

- Voting process for all Global User Community Members takes place during the time frame shown below:

December 1, 2009 – January 8, 2010

Note that even though enhancements will be gathered from all users, only Global User Community members will vote on the priority of each. If a user wishes to vote during the enhancement process, they will need to join the Modeling Global User Community.

- Votes will be tabulated and the top items identified during the time frame below:

January 11, 2010 – February 28, 2010

- The results will be published to the members:

March 1, 2010

- The results will be presented to ERwin Development and Product Management at the CARE Conference (that is held in conjunction with CA World)

May 2010

http://www.casurveys.com/wsb.dll/156/GUCModelingER2010.htm

…and, yes, it is fine to post your requests for supporting votes to our ERwin discussion group. Make your business case there, as the supporting documents for each option don’t always allow enough room to give a good description of why the enhancement is needed.

Some of the requests that we’ve discussed in our groups are:

Complete compare enhancements
ERwin Navigator enhancements
Resizability of dialogs

Get Voting. This of this as your holiday wish list, CA-style. Be nice, vote, and you will get something good next year.

Technorati Tags: CA ERwin Data Modeler,enhancements,Complete Compare

Reading - Viral Data in SOA: An Enterprise Pandemic

website@infoadvisors.com — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:19:14 GMT

Viral Data in SOA: An Enterprise Pandemic (9780137001804): Neal A. Fishman: Books

ISBN: 0137001800
ISBN-13: 9780137001804

I’m currently reading Neal Fishman’s Viral Data in SOA and really enjoying it. What great timing on the analogy he’s using: the fact that data tends to move around from person to system to system to person in a manner that isn’t always controllable, at least not the way most people think it is.

Fishman is the Program Director for Information and Integration Forensics at IBM. I’ve always said that data architecture is much more about forensics and archeology than it is about creating something from scratch. Maybe that’s why I’m enjoying this work so much. Fishman is also one of the authors of Enterprise Architecture Using the Zachman Framework.

Watch for a full review once I’m finished.

Technorati Tags: Neal Fishman,IBM,Data Quality,SOA,Enterprise Architecture,Data Architecture,Data Modeling

More Mr. Blandings – A Consultant’s Assessment After the Fact

website@infoadvisors.com — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:01:00 GMT

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This clip is a bit longer than other ones.

Mr. Blandings has purchased a house, visioning

I love the scenes where outside consultants have been brought in to evaluate the new purchase, after the fact. My favourite quotes:

“Who needs engineers; it’s not a train you know?”

“Tear it down”

“I don’t see how we can bring it in for less than 12, or 12,500”

(This clip includes the previous clip about marking up the architectural diagrams at about 6 minutes in)

I do love, though, when business users work right on their own models, marking them up, making them their own. That’s my sign that modeling has truly been adopted in an organization.

Technorati Tags: Mr. Blandings,data model,enterprise architecture,requirements,consultant

I So Hope I Don’t Sound Like this: Turbo Encabulor

Karen Lopez - karen@Infoadvisors.com — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:50:00 GMT

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I work really hard when I present to business users to avoid the normal IT bafflegab / dujamakicey lingo, but I know that we struggle with this.

When I present at groups like DAMA (dama.org) , I sometimes get feedback that I’ve used a term, such as ERD or LDM that might not be clearly understood by everyone in the crowd. This is a tough call, as I want to make some assumptions about the audience at DAMA meetings so as to balance time allotted against the desire to deliver content that is useful for data architects. It’s very painful to have a presenter speak at a DAMA or IRMAC meeting and have him spend half the time explaining what a database is and what a data model is.

So while I do encourage attendees to ask if I use a term or concept that is unfamiliar to them, most won’t ask.

Remember to watch your turbo encabulators when collaborating with others. We are all guilty of this.

Thanks to @ldbjorh for the link to this video.

Technorati Tags: Video,turbo encabulator,jargon,TLA,business users

More on Business Requirements from Mr. Blandings

Karen Lopez - karen@Infoadvisors.com — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:40:00 GMT

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Another video clip from Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House.

I’ve worked with people who spend time with business users and can only hear “Red, Green Blue, Yellow, White. Check” after business rules have been explained many times. It’s no wonder business people think that we don’t listen.

Models are such a great resource for the business because we can show them that we heard what they said. Or that we didn’t. At least that issue comes up much earlier.

Technorati Tags: Mr. Blandings,requirements,enterprise architecture,data model

My Favourite Requirements Elicitation Scene from 1948 Mr. Blandings film

Karen Lopez - karen@Infoadvisors.com — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:34:15 GMT

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As I posted previously, I think that Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House is the perfect classic film for enterprise, data, and process architects. In this scene, Myrna Loy and Cary Grant work with an architect in reviewing his models for a new home in the country.

Of course, they don’t have a lot of money to spend on their new digs, but they sure have lots of requirements. It appears that most of the film is available for viewing on YouTube, but I still highly recommend you add a copy to your personal library. It’s that good.

Technorati Tags: Mr. Blandings,film,requirements,data modeling,enterprise architecture

A 1948 Film About IT Systems Development: Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House

website@infoadvisors.com — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:55:00 GMT

Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House: Cary Grant, Myrna Loy, Melvyn Douglas, Reginald Denny, Sharyn Moffett, Connie Marshall, Louise Beavers, Ian Wolfe, Harry Shannon, Tito Vuolo, Nestor Paiva, Jason Robards Sr., H.C. Potter, Tex Avery, Dore Schary, Eric Hodgins, Jack Cosgriff, Melvin Frank, Norman Panama, Rich Hogan: Movies & TV

I'm a real fan of classic movies as you can tell from some of my quotes from presentations or articles.

Mr. Blandings Build His Dream House makes a great analogy for systems and software development. Even though this film hit the street in 1948, the situations in which the Blandings find themselves is relevant for any project today. This story of a man who wishes to fulfill his life dream of ruling his estate in the country contains almost every gotcha ever seen on a project:

- Scope changes
- Conflicting executive sponsorship
- Changes, Changes control, and the cost of change
- Conflicting goals
- Users who want it all for almost nothing
- Poor project planning

My favourite scene is when Mr. and Mrs. Blandings grab some pencils and start 'tweaking' the architect's drawings.

This film was remade as 'The Money Pit', but I wouldn't recommend that film. I doubt any remakes could live up to the tempered chaos shown by Cary Grant nor the calm, straight faced comedy of Myrna Loy.

If you see this film you won't regret it. If you buy it you will watch it often

Technorati Tags: Film,Movie,Systems development,Mr. Blandings

Value Review, Sort of: MDM: Why all the Attention Now

website@infoadvisors.com — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:47:00 GMT

Master Data Management: Why All the Attention Now?: IDC: Books

I hope this document tells us how to print money, especially since it costs $437.50 a page. $3,500 for an 8 page PDF written in 2005?

Technorati Tags: Book Review,Value,MDM

QOTD: Believe versus Truth and Governance

website@infoadvisors.com — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:36:00 GMT

Quote of the day:

“The world is governed more by appearances than realities, so that it is fully as necessary to seem to know something as to know it.” - Daniel Webster

I have a feeling that this appearances versus reality thinking applies to many of our projects, especially reporting and BI. If I had a nickel for every time someone was searching for the right logic / business rule to come up with the desired answer instead of trying to figure out why the data gave them that answer…I’d be a nickel smarter.

Book Review: Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office

website@infoadvisors.com — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:42:00 GMT

Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office: 101 Unconscious Mistakes Women Make That Sabotage Their Careers (9780446531320): Lois P. Frankel: Books

I must have picked up and put back this book 10 times on 10 visits to the bookstore before I actually purchased it. I mean, I've been doing this working in an office shtick for 20 years and you'd think I'd have learned the types of behaviors that work and the ones that don't. But the better part of me won out.

Frankel is an executive coach who has written what I believe is the most valuable book one could give to new professional, female or male. For each mistake, she tells a story of someone who has made the mistake and the price they pay. Then on the next page she gives tips on how to correct or avoid the behavior. I can see myself in some of these situations, especially early in my career.

Chapter 1 contains a self assessment, along with a description of how people learn to change their behaviors. I especially like the discussion about unconscious competence.

Chapter 2, How You Play the Game, discusses the types of work styles and approaches that get women into trouble - pinching company pennies, doing the work of others, working too hard, among others.
How You Act, Chapter 3, covers the tough problems that I constantly see women project: polling others before making a decision, needing to be liked, sharing too much personal information, decorating your office like a living room, and more.

Chapter 4, How You Think, delves into the problems women face when they think too much: viewing men as father figures, refusing perks, and making up negative stories. I found this chapter to be right on the button when comes to how women think.

The fifth chapter, How You Brand and Market Yourself keyed in on important aspects of how women diminish their position in order to be "nice". Minimizing your work or position, using only your nickname or first name, waiting to be noticed, working in stereotypical roles or departments were some of the most common mistakes I see women make.

Chapter 6, How You Sound, focused on how we women communicate: too much explaining, asking permission (we know what Grace Hopper said about this), apologizing, talking too fast, speaking softly, using touchy-feely language. Two of the mistakes are ones that I see all the time and I have witnessed how they negatively affect a women's chances for promotion: couching statements as questions, and the killer mistake, using long preambles. If you make these two mistakes on a regular basis, you need to get your hands on this book.

Chapter 7, How You Look, discusses how you present yourself, makeup mistakes, how you sit, how you dress.

Chapter 8, How You Respond, deals with how you respond to awkward and tough situations. One of my favourites here is what to say when you are asked to make coffee, get copies, or take notes. I learned very early in my career to choose to do these tasks poorly. My direct boss knew right away that I was faking it, but his bosses learned to ask some other woman to do it. Frankel here suggest to refuse and I'm not sure how that would go over. My rule is "never be good at something you don't want to do for the rest of your career."

The appendix has resources for further development.

I read this book thinking "do I do that?" much of the way through and I believe that's a great thing to get out of this book. I highly recommend this to all new professionals, as many of the mistakes are made by men as well.

Technorati Tags: Career Advancement,Mistakes,Nice Girls,Sabotage,Book Review

QOTD: Just the Facts, Ma’am…

website@infoadvisors.com — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:32:00 GMT

Quote of the day:
Get the facts, or the facts will get you. And when you get them, get them right, or they will get you wrong. - Dr. Thomas Fuller