On-Demand IT Governance: 5 Steps to Driving Business Value

SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire - September 29, 2009) - Paradoxically, while the majority of IT budgets and resources are focused on non-project, run-the-business work like maintenance and operations activities, organizations instead need IT departments to focus their energies on strategic project work that drives business initiatives forward. Such misallocations are in part why IT departments are usually viewed as business offshoots -- ad hoc shops putting out technological fires -- rather than an integral driver helping grow the business instead of merely running it.

It can be a very different story, however, when departments employ on-demand IT Governance, which can help ensure IT is working on the right projects at the right time and in the right way. Moreover, IT Governance provides managers and company leaders with deep, real-time visibility into the status of initiatives across the portfolio on a daily basis; can identify how these efforts are being distributed; can quantify which projects are providing the most organizational benefit; and can accordingly devote resources toward those initiatives deemed most valuable to the organization.

IT organizations that are considering an IT Governance solution (or are already in the process of deploying one) should keep in mind the following five steps, offered by leading on-demand IT Governance provider Innotas, in order to realize maximum benefits:

1. Catalog

Many IT departments don't have a clear picture of everything that's being worked on; they simply don't have a mechanism in place to capture every piece of work performed by every single person on every single day, nor do they account for time spent on maintenance or sustaining operations. Even departments that do track such details usually rely on archaic, time-consuming technology.

The first step in this process is to change that. Take inventory of and catalog everything the department is working on: not just project work, but applications, resources, requests, etc. Avoid spreadsheets -- which are cumbersome and only accessible on specific work stations -- in favor of a centralized repository that provides a panoramic view across the entire organization.

2. Prioritize

Once everything is cataloged and centralized, and managers have visibility across the portfolio, they can start making strategic decisions regarding where time, personnel and other resources should be allocated. What makes the most sense to work on? What's going to drive the most business value? Where will the organization reap the highest ROI? Is the department in line with the organization's strategic objectives? By defining what was just cataloged and putting prioritization criteria in place, the organization can start working on the most important initiatives first.

3. Execute

During the execution phase, while work is being delivered, managers and personnel should monitor their performance real-time. Are they working on the right things? Are they performing at a high level? Is their work on time, on budget, in scope, within resource expectations, to the customer's satisfaction, and delivering value?

4. Control

Control refers to monitoring and measuring performance and managing resources and work accordingly. Is the department delivering business value? Are its customers satisfied? Are there any redundant or duplicate applications? Are the existing processes working?

5. Optimize

Now that all the work is cataloged, prioritized, monitored and measured, IT managers have the data they need to make smart, fact-based, strategic business decisions. They can identify which initiatives don't drive value, revenue or customer satisfaction, and can make real-time adjustments as necessary. Does the department need to re-allocate resources? Does it need to retire an application, or perhaps reduce time spent enhancing it, because it doesn't deliver business value? Is the department spending too much time upgrading infrastructure?

IT organizations that follow these five steps -- that catalog everything the department is working on, prioritize projects and activities, monitor initiatives in real time, set controls to measure performance and manage resources, and adjust business operations based on what makes the most strategic sense -- will undoubtedly reap the most significant benefit from their IT Governance investment.

Innotas was recently placed by Gartner (www.gartner.com) in the Visionaries Quadrant in the June 2, 2009 Gartner analysis, "Magic Quadrant for IT Project and Portfolio Management" by Dan Stang, principal research analyst and Michael Hanford, research director.

Additionally, analyst firm IDC (www.idc.com) positioned Innotas as an industry leader in its IDC MarketScape SaaS/On Demand ITPPM Market View and noted that the company is helping drive SaaS adoption and innovation. The report, "IDC MarketScape: IT Project and Portfolio Management, 2009 Vendor Analysis," was released on July 24 and is authored by Melinda-Carol Ballou program director and Joseph C. Pucciarelli program director.

To learn more about how customers are using Innotas on-demand IT Governance, download the Innotas eBook, "The 7 Undeniable Truths of IT Governance: Success stories from companies that didn't wait until it was too late."

Follow Innotas on Twitter at www.twitter.com/innotas.

About IDC MarketScape

The IDC MarketScape vendor analysis model is designed to provide an overview of the competitive fitness of ICT (information and communications technology) suppliers in a given market. The research methodology utilizes a rigorous scoring methodology based on both qualitative and quantitative criteria that results in a single graphical illustration of each vendor's position within a given market. IDC MarketScape provides a clear framework in which the product and service offerings, capabilities and strategies, and current and future market success factors of IT and telecommunications vendors can be meaningfully compared. The framework also provides technology buyers with a 360-degree assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of current and prospective vendors.

About the Magic Quadrant

The Gartner Magic Quadrant is copyrighted 2009 by Gartner, Inc., and is reused with permission. The Magic Quadrant is a graphical representation of a marketplace at and for a specific time period. It depicts Gartner's analysis of how certain vendors measure against criteria for that marketplace, as defined by Gartner. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in the Magic Quadrant, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors placed in the "Leaders" quadrant. The Magic Quadrant is intended solely as a research tool, and is not meant to be a specific guide to action. Gartner disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

About Innotas

The Innotas on-demand IT Governance solution is an easy-to-use, rapid-to-deploy, and cost-effective way to manage resources and budgets across an IT department's entire inventory of projects, portfolios, applications, assets, and service requests. With its strong foundation in Project Portfolio Management and Application Portfolio Management, Innotas provides CIOs and IT management with visibility across both strategic initiatives and sustaining operations for improved decision making across the entire IT portfolio. Our customers, including the City of Memphis, Crayola, Forbes, Hamilton Beach, Jo-Ann Stores, The Northwest Company Inc., World Vision and many others, span a wide range of industries including financial services, government, healthcare, retail, technology, telecommunications and energy. For more information please visit www.innotas.com or contact us at +1 415.814.7700.

Contact Information: Contact: Seth Geisler Martin Levy Public Relations 858.610.9860