Business As Usual. In my 16 May entry I provided links to topics that span the IT and business domains, and are excellent resources for business systems analysts for understanding their business process owner constituents. One of the resources was a PowerPoint presentation on TQM, lean methods and 6-sigma. If that presentation piqued your interest you'll love iSixSigma, which is a portal devoted to 6-sigma. If the term has you scratching your head, you can check the short definition or a longer description.

One of the portal's highlights is the collection of articles that cover every industry and topic. For example, if you're a software engineer or project manager, the article titled Is Software Inspection Value Added? will be of interest. If you're more concerned with business or technical process improvement, the article titled DMAIC Versus DMADV gives insights as to which approach to take. DMAIC stands for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control. DMADV stands for Define, Measure, Analyze, Design and Verify. While they seem to be nearly identical there are major differences and the article explains them and gives situations in which to use one over the other.

Other interesting resources that business systems analysts, other IT professionals and project managers will find useful include:

• Musing on Metrics.
• Risk Management: Defining a New Paradigm for Internal Auditors.
• Developing an IS Risk Assessment Process.
• Management Control Concepts: Benchmarking and Internal Auditing.
• Predictable Projects Archive.

The truth is out there. Enjoy the weekend.