This continues a series of guest columns from practitioners and bloggers I respect. The category - The Real Deal describes them well.
Jackie Bassett is founder and CEO of BT Industrials Inc., a strategic management and technology consulting firm that helps CEOs and CIOs of global companies integrate technology into business strategy. She is a co-author of the book "A Seat at the Table for CEOs and CSOs"
"Why stop? It’s not working – and it will never work.
We need to stop selling FUD to the fearless. We need to stop leading with compliance to justify IT spend (when was the last time you bought stock in a company using compliance as a key motivator?)
We need to stop focusing on emergencies and efficiencies or we become the very definition of a cost center. The only thing a CEO (or CFO) will ever look to do with a cost center is cut it.
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over, expecting a different result.” - Albert Einstein.
Globalization has just met digitalization and we’ve just run out of time.The average tenure for a CEO at a Fortune 500 company is 3 years. He doesn’t have time for Linux or Vista or patch Tuesday or SOA– he must deliver the results that the Board, the shareholders and the market are looking for.
He needs to deliver what customers want, when they want it and how they want it or he will miss the market. He knows that if he can’t deliver, he will lose customer business to someone who can.
Want a seat at the table? Take the lead here!
Your CEO won’t return your call asking for $100K on WAN optimization but he’ll chase you down the hall when you offer to help build a product that will win new international customers.
IT knows what customers want or at least knows how to figure it out. Customer conversations, requests and insights are right in the network! The right answers are in their emails to your sales teams and their phone calls to customer support.
They’re in every transaction between your customers, partners and suppliers. They’re in structured and unstructured data. They’re right in the hands of IT!
It’s not what keeps the CEO up at night that matters. It’s what gets him up in the morning that matters – the sound of Ka-Ching!
Focus on the many, many ways we can turn IT into a Profit Center. Ka-Ching! No CEO or CFO ever looks to cut their profit center. As Rudy Provoost CEO, Philips Lighting says:
“Technologies are just a vehicle to respond to needs and come up with absolutely brilliant solutions and applications.”
Jackie can be reached at: jackieb@btind.com
Jackie is right on. It seems most in IT are driving on the wrong side of the road. It will feel lonely on the other side, but that is where the money is. It is also the lane where the CEO and CFO are driving in. Get in their lane, because why would any CEO or CFO want to merge into the busy slow IT lane?
Posted by: Brian | May 27, 2008 at 03:58 PM
Great post and a great subject! There are caveats to this strategy which need to be realized IMHO. I would absolutely agree that in many circumstances that is the only meaningful approach, however there are some businesses which could not technological solution regardless how you attempt to apply it. Yet people keep trying. The other complex issue is management of change in perception and expectations. I have attempted in the past to turn IT organization, under my leadership, into a profit center with a partial success. It was a very challenging operational exercise. Not everyone cherishes an idea of personal accountability.
Posted by: Gregory Y | May 27, 2008 at 06:11 PM
Totally agree with Brian & Gregory and thanks for sharing your insights. The recession is really accelerating the adoption of this model - the CFO is also a good target for this, especially the type that wants to be the next CEO.
There are 3 distinct stages of change:
1) Complete & utter denial of any need to
2) Total and violent rejection of change
The third always astounds me as I can never predict when it's going to hit and it comes loudest from those most resistant...
3)"Hey, that was my idea"
Posted by: Jackie Bassett | May 27, 2008 at 06:37 PM
Jackie gets it because the business drives the bus always. Success is measured by profit not IT success. Even a 100% IT shop it comes down to the Ka-Ching!
Posted by: Bob R | May 27, 2008 at 08:06 PM
Jackie,
Well said! IT's job should be all about adding value not just being efficient and value is measured by the business result.
Posted by: Mike | May 27, 2008 at 09:55 PM
Perhaps try using software as a service and platform as a service that delivers time to value in weeks not years.
Look how Starbucks has delivered a new customer facing site using software as a service from Salesforce.com (Disclaimer: I work for this company) within months of their old CEO's return.
And its not just salesforce.com, you don't have to wait for half a decade for improving email - Google and other SaaS providers are leading the pack.
But, there will always be long strategic projects that require investment over a period of time - the key is to start delivering results soon and improve over time rather than engage in decade long project where all the gold lies at the end of the rainbow.
Posted by: Anshu Sharma | May 31, 2008 at 11:49 PM
SF.com's a great example, Anshu.
In fact, SF.com was a real tipping point for IT. Some saw SF.com and said 'Great-glad we don't have to waste cycles babysitting those whiny, techno-illiterate sales people anymore'.
What they should have seen is the writing on the wall. They were really saying "Help me or get out of my way". No more waiting for IT to reach the top of Interoperability Mountain.
Agreed - Platform as a service frees IT up to focus on ways to drive the revenue bus and those that can drive - actually get to!
Posted by: Jackie Bassett | June 01, 2008 at 03:44 PM