Did I miss the obituary in the last ten years?
When I left the corporate IT world eleven plus years ago, the buzzards were beginning to circle. The economic hits of the last tens years have not helped at all.
Yet, no “strategy” for IT is emerging. Instead, all that makes the news and is featured at the premier IT conferences is tactics, and questionable tactics at that. The pundits keep saying these tactics should be universal, adopted by all. The only “breakaway” strategies appear to be “social networks”.
The current “tactic as strategy”? Cloud computing.
First, let me say, that cloud computing in and of itself isn’t bad. There are wonderful and compelling cases for using a “cloud”. There are also some incredibly horrid downsides to it. The two biggest being security and privacy. Least we forget that strategic vector called control.
Cloud = Strategy? No more so than IBM Mainframe = Strategy in the 70s. Or, PC = Strategy in the 80s. Or Internet = Strategy in the 90s. We have no strategic driver for the Oughts. It is the IT Dead Decade. Now it appears to be “social networks” and “clouds”.
Nothing wrong with either one, but they are both tactics.
Strategy = what is IT going to do to leverage the strengths (or create new strengths) for their company? In the context of the current and future business environment?
Ted Turner figured out that IT could create a tower-based broadcast network and use satellites at the same time, with the same programming, and split the advertising feeds – horribly new concepts. Freddy Smith figured out that the Airbill (an invoice) could become a strategic document – and did the horribly insane by delivery letters overnight. Sam Turner (of Life of Virginia fame) figured out that IT could enable a whole new generation of life insurance products that acted more as investment vehicles than death assurance – single premium whole life and term insurance backed by investment vehicles.
They didn’t do this in a vacuum. They had strong and visionary IT people helping them achieve a business vision. And vice-versa.
A graduate level business course could be taught about the synergy of visionary IT and visionary business. The plain and simple of it is IT can’t drive business. Business can’t drive IT. The two have to work together to create that oft talked about, seldom achieved synergy. They have to be so much in sync that opportunities for greatness are created. And it ain’t universal. If everyone can do it, the only strategy is not being left behind.
Until the Great Debt Debacle is resolved, we won’t get back to days of old. Perhaps the strategy of IT should be helping business rationalize and manage the credit crisis?
The alarms have been ringing for 15+ years. It is time to wake up.
Strategy != follower. Strategy = CIO standing in a board meeting enabling the enterprise and having them scramble to invest in the dream. Not to mention the CEO smiling in the corner.
JP
