Connecting IT to Business Value
shiftavenue
Modern Infrastructure | Artificial Intelligence - Automate the future. Achieve more.
Hi everyone,
Today we are focusing on an urgently important topic which is also a differentiator for shiftavenue, as IT should and needs to drive value for the business.
IT dilemma
Unfortunately, IT is often seen as a cost center - a commodity like electricity. It doesn′t matter where you get the electricity from and how much it costs as long there is electricity and it is cheap.
One reason is that the key KPI for the CIOs (and sometimes CTOs) is the sole focus on the IT budget, often due to the reporting line to a CFO or COO or historically grown.
In parallel, Digital Transformations tend to have an ROI in the long future, not rarely in 3-5 years from its starting point. But IT management has much shorter feedback cycles, and management is typically very reluctant to these risks as they don′t know if they will be working for the company anymore when the ROI is amortizing.
And the last typical reason, or very often the resulting symptom, is the outsourcing initiatives by the customers trying to save money and treating IT as a commodity without even considering value. Typically, you will see managed services focused on SLAs / availability and rarely on qualitative measures. But almost never will they be measured on business value due to innovation.
And this is a pity because it is a missed opportunity!
The Value of Digital Transformation
This brings us to Digital Transformation, where we want to disruptively change processes, technologies, and people for an improved outcome, with IT playing a key role. And this is a significant paradox, as Digital Transformation only focuses on resulting business value, and the transformation will almost always require a dedicated investment to reach their goals.
So, what are the targeted outcomes?
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But to reach these goals, IT investments are required, and many IT managers will need help negotiating these, as they are personally measured on their IT budget, limiting the right investments.
Measuring Business Value
The solution is to measure the business value resulting from the IT investments. Therefore, we created the following seven areas for you to understand what "value" actually means.
As you can see, there are ways to measure it. We at shiftavenue also have a full list of KPIs for each area and a plan to implement IT as a Business Enabler. Don′t hesitate to reach out.
Final Words
As a result, we hope you understand the possibility and, more importantly, the reason and need to start measuring IT investments by Business Value and not just based on IT costs. There are KPIs to help you start this approach, and it will also help you to understand if your Digital Transformation is heading in the right direction.
Best regards,
David das Neves
Award Winner Cybersecurity Rising Star of the Year 2024 | Google WTM Ambassador | Cybersecurity Enthusiast | Cybersecurity Evangelist| Security Architect | Security Advocate | Speaker | Blogger
1 年?????? David das Neves Wonderful Article on Connecting IT in Assessing the Business Value. In addition to above factors -I have few more to be recommending in order to see realistic change in the Business Value in all Business. Skill investment:?Businesses need to invest in the skills of their employees so that they can use IT effectively. This includes training employees on new technologies and software, as well as developing their business acumen Opportunities for growth:?Businesses need to identify opportunities for growth that can be enabled by IT. This could include expanding into new markets, launching new products or services, or improving customer service. Increased productivity:?IT can help businesses to increase productivity by automating tasks, streamlining processes, and providing access to information and resources. Communication investments:?Businesses need to invest in communication so that employees, customers, and partners can understand the benefits of IT and how it can be used to achieve business goals. Some more things to be carried effectively includes, - Align IT with business goals - Measure the return on investment - Communicate the value of IT
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1 年Excellent article ?????? David das Neves Thank you for posting this :)