Become a Test Pilot, sort of

This past Friday I made a visit to compound de Gates (that's French for Microsoft) and I spent the weekend in Seattle with my wife.  The highlight of the trip, other than some fun with my spouse, was a tour of Boeing.  During the tour, I got to see how a plane is designed, assembled, tested and delivered to customers (airlines, cargo carriers, etc).  It was fascinating to learn a few things that I had not been aware of.  First, Boeing fully implemented a Computer Aided Design software package that automates the 'drawing' and design of all aircraft components.  This application eliminates the need for engineers to build model aircraft for testing of new designs.  Also, I was taken aback by the testing process, where one of thirty-plus test pilots grab the wheels of a newly finished aircraft and take it for a spin.  This is the first time any of the component or the finished product makes it into the air.  And, during the test flight, the pilots test everything from 'dropping engine' (shutting one engine do off) to flying the bird manually (no electronic equipment).

Many IT shops ignore emerging vendors (start-ups) for many reasons including no test environment, lack of staff, and very little time to 'kick the tires'.  These excuses may cost IT organizations the opportunity to realize the value of new technology which could save money, reduce risk of downtime, or optimize another product.  Users that do have a test lab open can still your doors to new as you never know what you may uncover by deploying a new product in controlled fashion.  Those who do not have a test environment, I am pretty sure you could justify one if you thought about the economics of vendor leverage (second sourcing a vendor for particular solution).  If you need help with justifying, a test lab, email me, I will be more than happy to assist.

When selecting what vendors to test, one way to mitigate risk is to look for ones that have OEM relationships with credible system vendors.  Those OEMs tend to kick the tires of any new products before a business deal signed.  In addition, try to plan for the worse case scenario but getting the emerging vendor to commit resources during the testing.  There is no reason why you should do all the heavy lifting.  Finally, look for vendors that may have a third-party test report available to share so you can do some reading before you pick what products to test.  I also recommend limiting the amount of products you test over a given timeframe.  Test new products thoroughly before full implementation to optimize configuration for your shop.  This way you can maximize the benefits and payback of the product.

The next time an emerging vendor knocks on your door, think of the Boeing pilots who do not have a "test environment" or a "copy of data" to work with.  These folks hop into the cockpit and literally pull the plug on many things (in technology jargon this equates to testing all configurations and redundancy) putting themselves at risk so you and I can safely fly the friendly skies.