IT muscles in on the business

In this article, IT Muscles in on the Business, IT World Canada discusses how businesses are beginning to make progress in aligning business & technology related decisions. IT and business managers are finding better ways to communicate - but we still have a long way to go.

IT World makes some great suggestions on how to further the cause. Good read.

Cutting Costs, Inproving I.T. Efficiency During Lean Times

There are times when business need to make very difficult decisions. How do we cut costs? Do we remove people, put off spending on important projects? Most balk at the suggesting of spending some money now, in order to save much money later - particularly during difficult times.

This article offers some excellent insight on how to approach such circumstances - and achieve measurable results.

What is the bottom line and key to success: Focus on the needs of the business and the people that make the business run. I.T. administrators and executives alike must make a concerted effort to fully understand exactly how technology support each and every function of the business - then intelligent decisions can be made on how best to apply technology to achieve business objectives.

How a Mid-Sized Textle Maker Used I.T. to Compete Globally

Glen Raven, headquartered in Burlington, N.C. is one of the few textile manufacturing organizations that are excelling in an environment where overseas outsourcing predominates.

How have they done it? Relentless focus on applying information technology to support innovative business processes. These investments have focused on two key things:

- enabling new sources of revenue
- enabling more efficient business operations

This article provides an excellent case study to any manufacturer struggling to compete in a highly competitive business, during highly competitive times.

Work Force? What Work Force?

There has been significant press over the past few years about declining labour rates as a result of reduced fertility rates and an aging population in Canada. This article puts a pretty fine point on the extent of the issue and what we might expect in future.

The repercussions can be significant and affect many aspects of a companies ability to conduct business. From servicing customers, order entry to I.T. management - shortages can have major impacts. The business case to start thinking about this looms large:

1. What employee retention strategies are in place? Are there plans to change? This article provides an excellent overview what companies are and are not doing in regards to recruitment & retention strategies.
   
2. How do you plan on adapting recruitment practices to adjust to changing circumstances?
3. How does your organization plan on augmenting skills gaps where talent cannot be readily found?

Outsourcing is one major consideration that has received much attention over the years. Offloading "non-core" competencies sounds great in theory - but history has shown that outsourcing is fraught with peril if not approached pragmatically. Here are a couple of things to consider before deciding whether outsourcing is right for you:

1. Is the process under consideration for outsourcing easily extractable from the organization? An example of "easily extractable" is payroll processing.
2. Is your company experiencing a skills shortage now? Has this resulting in service deficiencies?
   
3. Is there a plan to better use internal resources to achieve business objectives?
4. Are current costs and service levels well understood?
5. Is there an opportunity to add value beyond just dollars and cents?? (improved employee and customer experiences, etc)
6. Does everyone involved understand how outsourcing can improve the organization's performance and their roles in the new arrangement?
   

While outsourcing will prove to be a viable strategy to address skills shortages now and into the future - it will not ever be a panacea for all that ails. This is especially true if organizations do not consider the fine tactical details of the approach. After all, as they say, the devil is in the details.

The CIO's Role is Evolving

The CIO's Role is Ramping up...

Good article on what role today's and tomorrow's I.T. leaders will be expected to play.

Does there remain a dearth of I.T. leaders in executive positions with business acumen?