Pointers: Recommended reading 11-03-08

A LinkedIn spokeswoman recently said users should think more about the quality rather than the quantity of their LinkedIn connections, CIO magazine reports.Ideally, you should be able to ask a current connection for a note of introduction to any of that person’s connections. But if you don’t know that person well, how do you know whether that introduction will carry any weight — or worse yet, that it won’t have a negative impact?Also, you run the risk of having a boss or colleague find noncredible contacts on your list. “Being connected with someone you don’t know won’t give you much credibility with the people you do know and are connected with,” the spokeswoman said.Network World asked experts for tips on how information technology departments can reduce costs during tough economic times. Some tips would not be practical for agencies, such as flattening the organization, but others would.One idea is to take a fresh look at contractors’ invoices. “An example would be if your wireless vendor agreed to give you free shipping when it sends new cell phones to remote workers,” the article states. “A few months later, shipping charges might start appearing on your cell phone bill, and if you don’t check, you’ll never know.” Another idea is to buy a telecommunications expense management service, “which pays for itself and more.” Navy Chief Information Officer Robert Carey discusses how federal information technology leaders can contribute to the upcoming change in administrations.Besides addressing the necessary IT management challenges that come with the transition, Carey encourages readers to consider how technology might help people who must manage the process.“Collaboration sites, such as wikis, offer a place to collect an agency’s pertinent information,” Carey writes. “This information can then be made available (in a controlled way) to a broad audience, which affords a smoother and faster transition.”The National Association of State Chief Information Officers released its annual list of policy and technology priorities based on a survey of state CIOs.The three top priorities have a common theme: saving money. The first priority is consolidation, which includes centralizing services, operations and resources. The second is the use of shared services across organizations. Priority No. 3? It’s budget and cost control.Along hose lines, the top technology priority is virtualization. Othe technologies on the list include document/content/e-mail management, Web 2.0, green IT and identity management.