We develop IT Strategies with the method of strategy map, which categorizes IT capabilities with respect to the satisfaction of customer and owner expectations.

When developing the IT strategy (whether it’s a new strategy or the revision of an existing strategy) there are two major groups of information we need to use for defining the strategic goals.

What are the Company’s Requirements for the IT Function?

The easiest way to answer this question would be by reading a current version of the corporate strategy. Nevertheless, IT Executives rarely get so lucky: either there is no such document at the company, or the required information is simply not included in it. In these cases, the necessary information may be obtained from the senior managers or from opinion leader middle managers (representing the most active customer business units) by means of personal interviews, questionnaires, or from other activities relying on team efforts.

One thing is certain: a successful IT manager must be able to correctly interpret the impact that certain corporate business decisions and market information may have on the performance of the IT Function, and to make the best use of his/her extensive professional knowledge and experience to identify and capitalize on new business opportunities.

What Current Performance Issues are there in the IT Function?

To answer this question, we must assess the strengths and weaknesses of the IT Function. Surprisingly, in most cases IT executives are well aware of the weaknesses, but under the pressure of their operational duties, they cannot find the time or resources to initiate changes at strategic level.

How are these Requirements Met? How can issues be Resolved?

Only after defining customer and owner expectations as well as internal weaknesses, can we develop a plan for implementing changes and setting new goals. These goals may concern

• the organization and its connection points;
• internal operational processes;
• deployed technologies;
• applied resources (financial, human, information).

Strategic goals and their realization are best to be assessed along actually quantifiable indicators. These indicators must be aligned to the standard operational indicators of the organization. The indicators we apply include financial ones in the IT-Controlling system, as well as technical ones which describe the utilization, capacity, and performance of the IT services.