As the economy slows, stock valuations sink and pressure mounts to reduce IT spending, it's a good time to understand the health of your IT assets. There are warning signs that suggest that an IT department isn't making the strongest, most cost-effective contribution to your business. As with any triage, the first step is a visual inspection. Look at what's on everybody's desktop.
Projects operate in a vacuum, are consistently over budget and miss deadlines.
There's no standard enterprisewide infrastructure or well-structured data environment. Technology and applications go back decades and haven't been consistently renewed and retired. IT expenditures boom and bust, showing inconsistent reinvestment. Map your business strategy against your IT reality and see if they match. Senior management must share a centralized IT vision.