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Letters to a Young Manager


The '57 Chevy, #622
LTYM >

Please note that this letter is in-process; the following are my notes

Dear Sophie,
***
Based on an interview I gave CIO magazine in 2007 [1]

"When he presents his technology budget to senior management, Edward Granger-Happ likes to talk about a ’57 Chevy.
“I tell them that we have to polish it and take care of it, and [because] it’s a ’57 Chevy, we’re living on borrowed time, especially if we’re using it for the daily commute,” says Granger-Happ, CTO at Save the Children.
The [old] spiffy car is a metaphor for a legacy system in use at the foundation, and it helps Granger-Happ make several points. First, it puts the old system in a context everyone on the business side understands. Second, it helps him make the argument that systems not only come with maintenance costs but that those costs grow (and take up more of his budget) as the systems age. Third, he can tie maintaining or replacing the “Chevy” to his strategic IT plan, priming the group for a future discussion."
***
Sincerely yours,
Ed
________________________

[1] Michael Fitzgerald, "How to Present Your IT Budget," CIO Apr. 17, 2007, https://www.cio.com/article/272186/budget-how-to-present-your-it-budget.html

Takeaways:

Old, spiffy systems need maintenance like classic cars

Discussion Questions:


For Further Reading:





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