BCS CMSG Conference 2013

It’s almost here – The BCS CMSG Conference 2013 is on 4 June 2013, and you can register here.

Configuration Management is about a lot more than just delivering software code and the BCS Configuration Management Specialist Group (BCS CMSG) is very excited that Professor David Philp, of the UK Cabinet office, has agreed to be its keynote speaker, providing insights and lessons learned from driving the acceptance of Building Information Management (BIM) in the UK. This initiative involved managing cultural and technological change in an entire industry. He will share his thoughts on the strong parallels between data rich BIM ecosystems and more IT-focussed Configuration Management Systems (CMS) and Service Knowledge Management Systems (SKMS).

If we think our IT-oriented CMDBs and CMSs are complicated, imagine trying to design, construct and operate something as ground-breaking as the Shard, as vital to public health as a hospital, or as safety critical as a nuclear power station. However, by looking outside the IT box, we can learn better ways to make any sort of configuration management work.

Nevertheless, the basics are still important and with the increasing complexity of Software Licensing and Compliance (and vendors’ penchant for taking legal action over non-compliance), Software Asset Management (SAM) Managed Services are very much of interest. AstraZeneca and Specialist Software Services will present a joint case study discussing SSS’s engagement with AstraZeneca (a multinational pharmaceutical company), explaining how engaging a SAM Managed Service Provider has helped it get a grip on its SAM, in a complex, international, software environment.

SAM is often the way into Configuration Management for many organisations, delivering an immediate return on investment and gaining buy-in to configuration management generally. Stuart Dicken, Head of Software Asset Management at Certero (one of the key sponsors of the CMSG Conference 2013), will explain how “just enough” accurate hardware and software asset management is vital in achieving Software Licensing Optimisation – which means getting the best value out of your software assets.

That’s the bottom line for why you should register for the BCS CMSG conference 2013 before places fill up – configuration management isn’t about building a CMDB or implementing ITIL, it’s about delivering reliable service delivery outcomes for the business and getting the best value for the business from its investments.