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Developing an IT Strategy and Plan |
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The Need: |
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IT Strategy is
needed when changes in an organization’s business environment or structure
require realignment or redeployment of IT resources. It may also be
indicated when Senior Executives are found to be uncertain as to the value
their organization receives from its IT investment. Other questions about
IT heard from Senior Executives that are indicative of the need for an IT
Strategy include: |
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“Are the right areas of
the business receiving the right support from IT?” |
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“How effective is my IT
organization relative to others in my industry?” |
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“Where can we get large
improvements with small diversions in resources?” |
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“What should our
direction be? What competencies should we build?” |
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“Does industry
partnerships or outsourcing make sense for us?” |
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“How can I improve the
relationship between the business users of the systems and our IT
department?” |
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The prevalence of such
questions suggest the need to embark on a project to create an IT Strategy
that is linked to the strategies and plans of the business and business units.
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The
Objective: |
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The objective of an IT
strategic plan is to put in place a roadmap that ensures IT’s direction is
linked to the organization's business plans and strategy. The plan must be
compelling and at the same time practical, working with the capabilities of
IT to deliver and the organization’s capacity to absorb change. |
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Approach: |
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As depicted in the
figure, The Winchester Group follows a six phased approach to meeting the
objectives of IT Strategic Planning. The approach is based upon practices,
techniques and methods that have evolved over the last thirty years, follows
a structured methodology that is tuned to your specific needs, and
incorporates a combined top-down (visioning, architecture) and bottoms-up
(opportunity identification and prioritization) approach. The result is a
plan which specifies not only the development and infrastructure projects
required to achieve the desired end-state, but also balances resource
availability, risks, funding constraints and precedent requirements. The
approach also recognizes the importance of viewing IT Strategic Planning as
an on-going process by designing and implementing the processes needed to
maintain, revise and keep the plan current. |
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Benefits: |
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The benefits of
developing an IT Strategic Plan and planning process include: |
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the creation of a
consensus roadmap for exploiting technology that links business and IT
direction |
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the establishment of a
sound decision making approach that helps your organization realize the
expected business benefits from technology |
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the mitigation of the
risks surrounding IT investment decisions that could otherwise mean costly
re-deployment of technologies, loss of competitive advantage, and failure to
realize the full value of the firm's investment in technology |
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To see examples of this service in
action, click on the buttons below to view Success Stories: |
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Bio-medical
Device Manufacturer |
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Municipal
Power Company |
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Integrated Circuit Manufacturer and
Distributor |
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International
Freight Forwarder |
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International
Freight Forwarder |
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Pharmaceutical Manufacturer |
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