Strategies and Trends for Information Technology Leaders
As 2011 gets into high-gear, we are seeing the predicted IT spending increases come to pass; with companies often shifting their focus from cost-cutting initiatives to growth and innovation projects. Accompanying this spending increase is a shift in the role of the CIO towards an architect for business innovation. This increased, highly visible responsibility creates…
Would you describe your own team as creative? Do your employees help set industry trends, or do they just follow them? With everyone focused intently on the day-to-day aspects of their jobs, your staff simply may not be thinking about developing new ideas or recommendations. As a leader, you can change that by setting the…
The cloud has changed the role of IT, of that there is no doubt. But fears that the CIO will become extinct because of it are overblown. Instead, the role will likely be redefined. “The traditional CIO must shift his or her focus from cost efficient delivery of infrastructure to strategic utilization of infrastructure,” explained…
Face facts: CEOs do not trust CIOs. To them, a call from the CIO is like a call from their auto mechanic. Before he hangs up, the CEO knows he will be pressured to spend money on something he doesn’t understand but probably needs. He’s just not sure why. What’s a “valve job”? What’s a…
In the past, life for a CIO was hard work but not an impossible undertaking. Today, however, things are getting more and more difficult faster and faster. But, for those who love a challenge, the CIO is the best seat in the house. The main challenges CIOs face can be summed up with the 3Cs:…
America has led the world in technology innovation for almost two centuries. While Europe kick-started the industrial revolution, America took it into high gear: Mississippi steamboats, giant steam shovels, the telephone, the assembly line, the light bulb, typewriter, sewing machine and so more came out of the USA. That trend continued in the 20th Century…
I’m sure that the “finger pointing” blame-game approach for determining responsibility dates back well into prehistoric times. Battles between Harry B. Barbarian and Charlie Q. Savage were likely fought because neither would accept blame for a poorly tied rope or poisoned arrows that did not kill the prey quickly enough. It is not hard envisioning…
There has been a lot of discussion in many forums about the role of the modern CIO. To me it’s fairly simple and it’s in the title: Information. The CIO’s role is about information. Information to make strategic business decisions; Information to make tactical business decisions; Information about the state of the business; Information about…
Successful IT service management (ITSM) builds a bridge between technology services and business leadership, resulting in an ongoing dialogue that promotes new thinking and drives continuous improvement. ITSM is a concept aimed at forging an efficient relationship between IT, its business customers, and its corporate sponsors. Its evolution was driven by the historical problems of…