Business Intelligence Applied: Implementing an Effective Information and Communications Technology Infrastructure

Preface

It's 4 p.m. on a Friday, and Sally, a manager in your company, comes to her boss and says, “Joe, budgets are due next Friday morning, and I am not sure how much to ask for in our technology lines. Can you help me?”

Joe is the manager of information technology for the organization and thinks, “Umm, I guess I will have her ask for enough money to implement that new idea I have for [insert your favorite project here].” During the week Joe tells Sally to ask for double last year's budget because he wants to [insert your favorite project here].

Next Friday morning, Sally is presenting to the board of directors, and she asks for double last year's budget. The board wants a better rationale for the sum being requested. Sally turns to Joe and asks, “Can you assist with a rationale?”

This situation is not too unreal. We ask for resources to support our favorite projects, but the question should not be “How much is our budget?” but rather “What are the organization's objectives for implementing information and communication technology, and how much is the organization willing to devote to that implementation?” Gone are the days when we can build technology in the belief that it will get used; rather, we must understand why we are building infrastructure and what business imperatives it supports.

Building infrastructure that supports the organization's value propositions takes skills. This book is about creating those skills so the organization can maximize the use of its resources. ...