Virtual CIO/Rent-a-CIO
The Problem
Small and medium
enterprises (SMEs) follow a sensible “lean and mean” model of business –
they maintain a bare minimum staff and operate on frugal budgets to get the
job done. Contribution to the bottom line is key – and the role of the CIO
is often ignored as CEOs shoulder the load of managing the IT staff, in
addition to the myriad other things they do.
And yet, as the
business grows, many SME leaders find it frustrating to deal with a
non-responsive IT department – a seeming “black hole” into which precious
money disappears, with very little to contribute in terms of direct results.
The rest of the staff is often left wondering where the promised
productivity gains went as computer systems are purchased which just don’t
do the intended job, or do it too slowly.
By the same token,
the IT department (often understaffed or consisting of inexperienced
personnel) always feels rushed off its feet, fighting fires everywhere, and
with no place at the decision-making table. IT staff are ignorant of crucial
business objectives and experience the frustration of being “second-hand”
citizens.
Add a possible
recession into the mix and the result is chaos:
frightening chaos that can lead to lost man hours working on projects
that lead nowhere, precious revenue wasted on purchasing the wrong systems,
or cancelled IT projects that could have helped the company weather the
economic downturn.
The Analysis
The core of the
problem is the well-known
misalignment between business and IT. Often talked about, analyzed and
taken apart, this problem can nevertheless have frightening implications for
an SME. A company where IT and business are at cross-purposes is a company
on the road to nowhere.
What’s the
solution? As a CEO, when you’re already worried about cutting costs,
increasing margins, and gaining as much in productivity as you can; you
really can’t afford to hire an expensive CIO.
The Solution
Talk to us. At
Strategic Data Management, we can staff your team with a “Virtual CIO” – a
person with over 25 years of experience in the IT sector, and one who knows
their way around a downturn or two. The Virtual CIO can provide much-needed
technical leadership and communication
to and from your IT department,
assess the needs of your business, survey your ongoing IT projects and tell
you what you need to do. The CIO can bring discipline to your IT shop and
help other employees get on with their job. In short, the Virtual CIO can
correct the business-IT misalignment.
Our Approach
At SDM, we actively
practice the IT Capability Maturity
Framework and Model (IT-CMM and IT-CMF) developed by leading academics
and industry-leading practitioners of IT value management at the
Innovation Value
Institute.
Our Virtual CIOs
apply the tenets of this model to all the projects they handle. At its core,
IT-CMM details four IT management strategies for the CIO, and equips him/her
with the necessary tools and information to run the IT shop.
The four strategies
are:
-
Manage the IT budget:
The Virtual CIO will implement a set of IT-CMF practices and
tools that can be used to
control costs, as well as free up monies that can be better used to
invest in innovative IT
solutions that directly impact the performance of the company.
-
Manage the IT capability:
This is a strategy that really hits at the heart of the IT/Business
misalignment problem. When the Virtual CIO manages the IT organization
using IT-CMM, it can rise from being a mere technology supplier to a
strategic player at the
corporate level. The CIO will do this by
managing IT assets and
developing core competencies
and strategies that
positively impact the bottom line of the company.
-
Manage IT like a business:
Most IT shops operate in isolation from business groups: their projects
and priorities often have little to do with the profit and loss of the
company. When asked, many IT organizations will say their customers are
the other internal departments in on organization.
The reality is
IT’s customers are the same as a
company’s customers.
SDM’s approach is
to directly tie the objectives and results of IT projects to the profits and
expenses of an organization using IT-CMF prescribed techniques such as
Business Value Management. Using parameters such as Total Cost of Ownership
(TCO) and Return on Investment (ROI), the CIO will determine the
real
value delivered by IT to the
company; and then work to improve that value.
- Manage IT for business value: Intricately connected with the previous strategy, the CIO will employ the practices required to shift the focus of the IT group from production and technology to business value and service to customers. This enables the CIO to transform IT from a cost center to a value center, providing tangible business value to the company.
THE SDM "VIRTUAL CIO” APPROACH: EXPLOITING THE SYNERGIES BETWEEN BUSINESS AND IT
As the diagram above
illustrates, SDM’s approach is to explore and exploit the synergies between
IT and business groups to the hilt - to the mutual benefit of both; and
ultimately to the company’s bottom line.
Strategic Data Management (SDM) can
help. Via our “Virtual CIO” service, we provide SMEs the services of an
experienced IT leader who can drive your IT decisions and contribute
directly to your bottom line for much less than the cost of a full-time CIO.
With over 25 years of experience, the Virtual CIO will fit in seamlessly, to
lead your IT organization while keeping the strategic interests of your
business in mind.
“We discuss strategy and vision with our customers then design tactical IT solutions to meet the needs of the business. We unite business and IT around these strategies to make sure technology investments enable the business - not hinder it”, says SDM President James Jordan.
Incorporating these strategies, the services provided by SDM’s Virtual CIO include:
- Leveraging technology for business development
- Strategic Planning
- Technology business alignment
- Technology assessment and roadmap
- Technology Budgeting
- Vendor Negotiation and Management
- IT staff assessment and management
- Information Life Cycle management
- Business Continuity planning
-
- Project management
- Intern CIO and CIO replacement
To discuss how our
Virtual CIO services can help your company,
contact us
today. Let us help you realign your IT and business, and help you focus
on job #1. Let us help you make
sound IT decisions that will help your business weather the economic crisis.
