I’m a bit surprised that this is just beginning to be a trend… but nevertheless…
A recent survey of business leaders, conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and commissioned by Accenture, revealed what those IT and business leaders are discussing in their closed-door budget meetings. The results hint at one thing when it comes to IT: strategy.
via BlueLock - IT to go “strategic” in 2010.
In fact, when discussing technology and the role of IT in an organization, strategic partnerships with the other functional areas should be a primary goal, as technology can directly influence behavior in the organization and more importantly revenue streams.
For example, technical oversight via systems processes can ensure proper and legal behaviors of the staff, integration between business models can influence collaboration and timeliness, and an IS&T strategy can ensure that the functional roles and tactical behaviors of employees are focused on clear value added jobs and responsibilities.
IS&T can also affect customer behavior and employee attitudes towards customers when they have a clear view into each interaction between the firm and those respective customers through proper CRM implementation and how the customer has responded through business intelligence and analytics.
Proper implementation and strategy of information technology and systems is one of the primary strategic goals that any global Fortune 100/500 firm can implement in order to ensure sustained competitive advantage, even if they are focused in other areas for profit.
One reason why this may not have been a trend until recently, is I that it can be incredibly difficult to identify the causal relationship of IT to behavior in an organization and most if not all will be anecdotal. That can cause problems for many ‘quants’ out there.
I would guess — while I believe these systems can and do impact tangible returns like an increase in revenue and a decrease in expenses — there is really no way that you can eliminate (at least in a real business climate) the variables that affect behavior. But with enough anecdotal evidence, you can piece together a proper idea of the effects of information technology on said business climate.
If we look at a case in which an industry that is primarily driven by other means, such as the Banking sector, one can’t imagine an environment where technology wasn’t a strategic asset. Banks certainly can’t focus on their trading and asset management without a proper IT strategy, and it needs to go to the heart of the organization so that it influences individual behaviors and roles. Otherwise, focusing on any other opportunity or strength is in vain, and the firm is destined to fail regardless. This can be related to any number of industries including the energy sector.
And when they fail at IS&T it can be disastrous for the firm, and should be noted when determining any future strategy.
GREEN BUSINESS – It’s no secret that America is going green. Green jobs are popping up everywhere, whether it’s the technician installing solar panels on a home, the scientist researching ways to build better batteries for electric cars, or the executive looking for ways to reduce waste, eliminate unnecessary packaging, and cut costs. Job growth in this area is expected to top 50% by 2016, nearly four times the job growth for all other occupations combined, according to the federal government. And a number of Presidential initiatives, including billions in new investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency, and energy research, are likely to accelerate that job growth.
[via BusinessWeek]
Thomas Friedman is an interesting man. For one, his book on globalization: The World Is Flat was mandatory reading at Lehigh in an intro course to Information Systems, and caused a great deal of debate on the topic during many a class session. But, his current op-ed in the New York Times this weekend has a very real message for the west: follow the path to a cleaner, smarter planet, or face an inevitable decline in power and wealth.
Over the past decade, whenever I went to China and engaged Chinese on their pollution and energy problems, inevitably some young Chinese would say: “Hey, you Americans got to grow dirty for 150 years, using cheap coal and oil. Now it is our turn.”
It’s a hard argument to refute. Eventually, I decided that the only way to respond was with some variation of the following: “You’re right. It’s your turn. Grow as dirty as you want. Take your time. Because I think America just needs five years to invent all the clean-power technologies you Chinese are going to need as you choke to death on pollution. Then we’re going to come over here and sell them all to you, and we are going to clean your clock — how do you say ‘clean your clock’ in Chinese? — in the next great global industry: clean power technologies. So if you all want to give us a five-year lead, that would be great. I’d prefer 10. So take your time. Grow as dirty as you want.”
Whenever you frame it that way, Chinese are quizzical at first, and then they totally get it: Wow, this energy thing isn’t just about global warming! In a world that is adding one billion people every 15 years or so — more and more of whom will be able to live high-energy-consuming lifestyles — the demands for energy and natural resources are going to go through the roof. Therefore, E.T.— energy technologies that produce clean power and energy efficiency — is going to be the next great global industry, and China needs to be on board.
Well, China has gotten on board — big-time. Now I am worried that China will, dare I say, “clean our clock” in E.T.
Few companies have had the foresight to grow a green business model, and I believe that Mr. Friedman is right on this point. If the United States wants to continue to develop and lead the world in “global citizenship,” then we must do what’s best for the planet, and in the end, our future. E.T. is going to be the next big thing and we must get on board. And like I’ve said before, it makes good business sense, just ask IBM what they think.
