A Configuration Management Professional Walks into a Bar...

By Steve Easterbrook, CMPIC LLC

After work, a CM professional walks into his neighborhood bar and sits down on his favorite bar stool. The bartender asks, "The usual?" and the CM professional nods in agreement.

(1) The bartender comes back a few seconds later with bad news. "I'm sorry, we ran out of limes, and it could be a month before we get a new shipment. Would you be willing to take your cocktail without a lime?"

The CM Professional, knowing he has little choice (unless he wants to drive a few miles to another bar), agrees to approve a temporary change to the normal cocktail recipe for up to thirty days. The CM Professional agrees to sign some paperwork granting permission to the bartender to build his cocktail differently for up to thirty days, after which the recipe will be back to normal.

According to early CM Standards (such as 480 and 973) the CM Professional approved a deviation. Also according to MIL-HDBK-61A, it was a deviation. But according to EIA-649B, he approved a variance. And according to ISO 10007, it was a concession.

Now a slight variation:

The bartender asks, "The usual?" and the CM professional states, "You bet."

(2) The bartender comes back a few minutes later with the cocktail and there is a lemon in it. The CM Professional asks, “Where's the lime?” The bartender says "Whoops, my mistake, would you be willing to drink this cocktail with a lemon instead of the lime?"

This particular CM Professional, who can’t wait to slam down any cocktail at this point, agrees to accept the change for this cocktail if, and only if, he is given a 25 cent discount. The bartender agrees to the discount and the CM Professional agrees to sign paperwork that he will take the cocktail “as is”, in return for a discount and an explanation of corrective active.

According to early CM Standards (such as 480 and 973) the CM Professional approved a waiver. According to MIL-HDBK-61A, it was a deviation. According to EIA-649B, he approved a variance. According to ISO 10007, it was a concession.

What are (1) and (2) in your environment?

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