In his view, Horrocks says, public companies should be required to report major systems changes to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such a public reporting rule would encourage greater involvement among senior management in IT planning, he explains. N.J. For example, Panasonic will approve IT projects with returns as far as three years from their implementation dates, he says, whereas U.S. companies typically look for a return within 18 to 24 months. Sometimes IT projects are just deemed necessary. Tricks of the Trade IT planning and budgeting holds a number of pitfalls - for IT managers and general managers alike, Ditchfield says.
Some companies have blinders on.
The CIO has to have an understanding with the user counterparts that this thing ain't coming just for the development cost. Ditchfield also cautions IT managers to recognize that financial pressures demand that they pay attention to political as well as fiscal matters. Another political hurdle for IT leaders, says Schwartz, is that the financial justification for an IT project often requires business process improvements that aren't under the direct control of IT managers. Now isn't the time to cut IT spending, even if your company is retrenching overall, May says. That's a view shared by Mercer Management Consulting Inc. in New York.