Demands on IT continue to increase, regardless of economic downturns. Requirements for storage, network, and processor capacity grow; management must replace departing staff; and quality expectations increase. Innovative products and efficient internal processes depend on enhanced or new computer applications and corresponding increases in processing capacity. To deliver the services their organizations expect, IT managers must significantly improve their ability to win two types of battles. First, they must protect their ongoing IT operating budget. Second, they must win approval for key new initiatives.
Save The Budget
What should IT managers do when instructed to reduce their IT spending by 5 or 10%? Senior management may impose this direction on the IT director or CIO. He will then distribute the challenge to individual IT groups, such as data center operations, applications, networks, and so on. The impacted IT manager has two possible responses to requested budget cuts: to capitulate or to fight. Organization-wide and within IT, the fighters typically protect more of their budgets at the expense of the capitulators. The successful fighter may suffer no cuts, while another group takes a 10% hit.
