Whether your team uses Waterfall or Agile methodologies, software development and maintenance may be the IT function that is most visible to the business. Current State I am continuously surprised by the state of software development in IT organizations ranging from...

The CIO is concerned about infrastructure resilience and reliability, and with data quality. Every CIO is navigating the IT Value Journey. In this CIO Handbook series, we previously wrote about: Rapid Assessment, Triage, Strategic Planning, and Customer Service. This...

The successful CIO has a healthy obsession for his or her customers and permeates that into the culture of IT. IT Customer Service Research we did a few years ago showed that 80% of employees believe the Help Desk “is” IT. That’s likely because the Help Desk is the...

A well-executed IT strategy provides focus, alignment, and measurability, and is key to navigating the IT Value Journey. Introduction Strategy without execution is just a dream. Execution without strategy is a nightmare. Strategy Management refers to the marriage of...

Triage is defined as assigning degrees of urgency. When triage is done well, it enables us to measure the value that IT contributes to the business. Sorting it All Out Whether you’re in a new CIO role or have been with your organization for years, you’re actually...

Rapid assessment of an IT environment is the first step a CIO will perform. A comprehensive understanding of risks and associated business impact is necessary before any actions are taken. Seeing the Big Picture The initial IT assessment gives us the complete view of...

You may already be a CIO or perhaps you’re striving for that role. There are ten important steps that will help you develop and lead a world-class IT organization that drives measurable value for the business. Survive or Thrive I’ve led many IT organizations and a few...

Successful achievement of your IT strategy depends on frequent communication throughout the planning and execution, and that communication needs to be tailored to a variety of audiences. Communication Wraps Around the Entire Strategy Management Process Our previous...

Fully transparent Program Management ensures that strategic initiatives stay on track, management remains informed, and corrective action, when needed, is quickly approved. Full Transparency There is a famous scene in the movie “Animal House” in which the marching...

Amazing results occur when a team is aligned with a strategy and with each other. Performance Planning creates that alignment. Translating Strategy into Performance Objectives Strategy without execution is just a dream. Strategy Management represents the marriage of...

Strategy without Execution is just a dream. Resource Planning ensures that we have the people needed to deliver on our Strategy. From Strategy to Execution Harvard Business Review reported that, on average, companies deliver about 63% of the financial results that...

Action Plans describe what we will do to achieve our goals and meet our objectives. They are the projects, or initiatives, that we execute to navigate the IT Value Journey. From Strategic Objectives to Goals to Action Plans We discussed strategic objectives and goals...