From Business Strategy to IT Action: Right Decisions for a Better Bottom Line

From Business Strategy to IT Action gives companies of all sizes the tools to effectively link IT to business strategy and produce effective, actionable strategies for bottom-line results. The authors present CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, and IT managers with a powerful and accessible resource packed with such useful material as: * The Strategy-to-Bottom-Line Value Chain, which integrates the management practices relating to planning, prioritization, alignment, and assessing a company's entire IT budget * Methods for using IT Impact Management to establish IT culture and performance models for the business/IT connection * The IT Improvement Zone, which quickly identifies where a company can focus its energies for maximum results * And much more

Table of Contents:
Preface xxi Acknowledgments xxiii Chapter 1 Define the Goals 1 Today’s Reality 2 The Entire IT Spend: Reducing Cost and Improving Bottom-Line Impact 4 The Strategy-to-Bottom-Line Value Chain 5 Disconnects 6 Critical Success Factors 7 Completing the Picture: The New Information Economics Practices 8 Summary of the Book 13 Define the Goals: Management Agenda 14 Chapter 2 Ask the Right Questions 17 The Right Questions Focus on Affordability and Impact 18 Affordability Questions: The Starting Point for the Right Actions 20 Impact Questions: The Roadmap for the Right Actions 22 Examples: Answering the Questions 24 The Contexts for Management Questions Are Planning and Budgeting Processes 26 Why Ask Affordability and Impact Questions? 26 Taking Action 28 Chapter Summary 29 Ask the Right Questions: Management Agenda 30 Chapter 3 Connect to the Bottom Line 33 Bottom-Line Impact Based on Cause and Effect 35 Cause and Effect Is Based on Management’s Intentions 36 Management’s Strategic Intentions 37 Principles of IT’s Bottom-Line Impact 39 Summary and Additional Implications 43 Connect to the Bottom Line: Management Agenda 45 Chapter 4 Understand Costs and Resources 47 Introduction 47 Origins of Portfolio Management 49 IT Portfolio Management in Prioritization 51 Portfolios in NIE Practices 52 Four IT Portfolio Concepts 56 Practical Problems in Applying Portfolio Management 62 Summing Up Portfolios and Portfolio Management in Information Technology 67 Chapter Summary 68 Understand Costs and Resources: Management Agenda 70 Chapter 5 Focus on the Right Things 73 The Goals and Principles for Right Decisions/Right Results 74 Goal 1: Actionable, Commonly Understood Strategic Intentions 74 Goal 2: The Right Bottom-Line Results from IT 79 Goal 3: The Right Management Culture and Management Roles 81 Goal 4: Portfolios and Portfolio Management 83 Goal 5: Actions and Results 84 Summary of Right Decisions/Right Results—Goals and Principles 85 Goals and Principles Applied to the Strategy-to-Bottom-Line Value Chain and NIE Practices 86 Focus on the Right Things: Management Agenda 88 Chapter 6 Adopt Effective Process to Produce Action 91 The Strategy-to-Bottom-Line Value Chain 92 Establishing the Process Connections 98 Management Roles 98 New Information Economics Practices 99 Summing Up New Information Economics Practices 106 Summing Up: Adopt Effective Process to Produce Action 107 Adopt Effective Process to Produce Action: Management Agenda 109 Chapter 7 Tackle the Practical Problems 111 A Practical Perspective 111 The Practical Problems Revolve around People 112 Addressing Practical Problems: IT Impact Management 113 Practical Problems Getting from Strategy to Bottom-Line Impact 113 The Role of IT Impact Management 126 Tackle the Practical Problems: Management Agenda 127 Chapter 8 Make the Right Decisions 129 The Management Context for “Make the Right Decisions” 130 Elements of Right Decisions 132 Make the Right Decisions: Two NIE Practices 141 The Prioritization Practice 141 The Alignment Practice 150 Make the Right Decisions with Prioritization and Alignment 160 Chapter Summary 162 Make the Right Decisions: Management Agenda 164 Chapter 9 Plan for the Right Results 167 Two Planning Processes 168 The Strategic Demand/Supply Planning Practice 172 The Innovation Planning Practice 187 Chapter Summary: Plan for the Right Results 194 Plan for the Right Results: Management Agenda 196 Chapter 10 Keep Score 199 Management Issues 201 Frameworks and Process Overview 202 Result 207 Critical Success Factors: Right Decisions/Right Results Principles in Performance Measurement 208 Summary: Performance Measurement Practice 210 Keep Score: Management Agenda 211 Chapter 11 Deal with Culture 213 Part 1: The Impact of Management Culture 214 Part 2: The Need for Culture Change 217 Part 3: Classification of Business/IT Culture 218 Part 4: Applying Culture Management Concepts 225 Deal with Culture: Management Agenda 230 Chapter 12 Chart the Path to Implementation 233 Introduction to the Business Value Maturity Model 235 Maturity Model Goals 237 Requirement for Management Action 238 Embedding NIE Practices into Management Processes 240 Using the Business Value Maturity Model 242 Summary: The Business Value Maturity Model 245 Chapter 12 Appendix A: Details of the Business Value Maturity Model 246 Chapter 12 Appendix B: The Development of Maturity Models 250 Chapter 13 Define What’s Next 253 Three Methods to Establish Right Decisions/ Right Results Goals 254 Setting Goals from a Corporate Governance and Process Perspective 261 The IT Impact Management Program to Implement Right Decisions/Right Results and NIE Practices 263 Conclusion to Chapter 13 267 Chapter 14 Answer the “So What?” Question 271 Why This Trip Is Necessary 271 First, Hit the IT Improvement Zone 272 The “So What?” for the Company 273 The “So What?” for the CEO 273 The “So What?” for the CFO 274 The “So What?” for Line of Business Management 274 The “So What?” for IT Management 275 The “So What?” for the Business 276 Continuing Development 276 Appendices 277 Appendix A The Role of Enterprise Architecture in Right Decisions/Right Results 277 Appendix B Management Team Roles in Right Decisions/ Right Results 283 Appendix C The Development of Strategic Intentions, with Examples 289 Appendix D Applying Strategic Intentions in Prioritization 297 Appendix E The CFO Role in Right Decisions/Right Results 299 Appendix F The Details of the Business Value Maturity Model TM 301 Bibliography 313 Index 323

About the Author :
Robert J. Benson is a principal with The Beta Group, a consulting firm with clients in the United States and throughout the world. He is affiliate professor of computer science at Washington University and part-time professor of information management at Tilburg University in the Netherlands. He is coauthor of Information Economics: Linking Information Technology and Business Performance and Information Strategy and Economics. Thomas L. Bugnitz is President of The Beta Group. He is a frequent speaker on technology management and an adjunct professor at Washington University. William B. Walton is a principal with The Beta Group. Prior to joining The Beta Group, he spent seventeen years with Gartner Group, where he developed IT measurement services and associated analytical methods.

Review :
"The book provides a road map for C-level executives, including CIOs, on how to manage and invest in IT to deliver business value." (COMPUTERWORLD; 11/29/04)