It is.
Sure, you can just wank out a couple of PCs, some switches, some servers-that-ought-to-be-PCs, play Quake and wait for users to call so that you can sneer at them. But that doesn't mean that you're running an IT Department. It means that you have your definition of IT wrong.
Doing it right is frickin' hard.
If you're doing it right, you're at least thinking about the following (and, man, I shoulda never started this... I keep thinking about more and more):
Application deployment & imaging
Printing
Backup
Network Management
Storage & backup
Time synchronization
Operating systems
- Current
- Planned
- Patch management
- Security
- Internal hosts
- Bastion hosts
Polling & Paging
Statistical analysis
- Physical resource
- Datalink
- Network
- Application
Security - general
- Perimeter
- Internal LAN/WAN
- External sites
- Remote access
- Active content
- Partitioning
- Logging
- Authentication
- Awareness / staffing
- Auditing
- Scofflaw issues
Change control
- Scheduling
- Logging
- Automation
Addressing
Directory services/Authentication
Problem resolution tools & standards
Physical Plant
Data Centers & Closets
- Uninterruptable power
- Battery
- Generator
- Automated shutdown & notification
Climate control
Cable routing
Building codes
Telecomm
Hardware maintenance
Tools
Inventory control
Physical security
Internal Staff Work Flow
Primary/Backup responsiblity system
Work order system
Quality of work
Follow up
Staff capacity
Efficiency
- Economies of scale
- Remote work travel
Work Measurement / Metrics
Experience, training, and retention
Post-employment deprovisioning
Gimme a while to hardlink here... ;-)