The business case and methodology for performance management

Abstract

This paper describes a methodology for performance management developed by Athens Group. Several processes are documented within, however, a methodology is not a process. It is the study of how processes operate and relate to one another. Our methodology attempts to answer the questions, "What is the performance of our system?" and "What should it be?" We are speaking generally about computer systems but some discussion of the business process those system supports is inevitable. Performance is measured many ways just as a car's performance includes acceleration, braking, cornering, and the balance among these factors. Unlike riding in a car, the best performing computer systems are those where the performance is least noticeable. Ironically, while we will talk very little about functionality, the goal of performance management is in large part to make the functionality of an application available to everyone who needs it. It is only when we consider the implications of this goal that we learn that we must not make the user wait, burden the system administrator with maintenance, or kill the bottom line with hardware costs. The best performing systems are those whose impact on users, system administrators, and accountants is low, balanced, and well understood.