I'm glad to see someone else making this point. As reported by Marc Songini on Computerworld.com.
Top IT executives must work with colleagues in operational posts and then make sure their departments support corporate business processes now and into the future, they (Top IT Execs) said at the Retail Systems 2006 conference in Chicago last week.
Too much of the time there's a disconnect between the technical and business sides of a business.
There are a lot of great nuggets in this article.
The CIOs on the panel all emphasized the need to make technology subservient to business processes. Following that rule, they said, should ensure that IT departments contribute to the corporate bottom line.
Too many times the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing.
"There is a danger for a CIO to be seen as being too much associated with just technology," Jewett said. "Technology rarely delivers a return on investment on its own. Technology facilitates a business vision. It doesn't provide that vision and doesn't make it happen."
Bingo. Re-read that a couple of times and let it sink in.
Added Ken Brame, CIO at AutoZone, an auto parts retailer, "If I haven't delivered the business benefit, I haven't achieved success."
He noted that part of his role is to work with senior executives in other areas of the company, such as merchandising and supply chain operations, to devise practical IT systems.
It's not just about having the fastest, the one with the most bells and whistles, or the most adaptable one. It's about making sure that it's a good fit for the whole enterprise. If your latest technology helps you better manage your supply chain logistics, but frustrates your sales or customer service sides of the business, have you really gained anything? I think not.
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