Business Technology Strategy

These services focus on the development and communication of business technology strategies designed to optimize the contribution that technology can make to business. The result is a formal business technology strategy that is published within the client company and the design of an internal “road show” to vet and describe the technology.

It’s impossible to overstate the importance of strategy or the extent to which it’s frequently ignored. Technology investments are inextricably linked to business strategy.

Strategy services look at the existing corporate strategy, the strategy of competitors and the strategic assumptions that should guide the company. We believe that without a coherent business technology strategy it’s difficult if not impossible for technology investments to be optimized.

Strategies should serve at least two primary audiences: the business customers of technology and the providers of technology. If these groups are on the same page, effective technology delivery will be much easier to achieve. Other audiences include vendors, investors, customers and suppliers, but the two primary audiences is the ultimate target of a useful business technology strategy.

A useful strategy contains the following:

• The current business model of the company; if the company is decentralized by business unit, the current business models of each line of business; the business processes that support the enterprise and business unit models
• The “to be” business models of the company and its lines of business with a focus on the next 2 – 3 years
• The identification of operational and strategic technologies (hardware, software & communications) that support the business strategy, models and processes
• A description of the management best practices for the acquisition, deployment and support of the technology
• A measurement strategy to determine how technology performs at the company
• An organizational strategy
• A human capital strategy
• A sourcing strategy
• Projects (programs and portfolios, as appropriate) that execute the strategy
• A vendor management strategy
• A risk assessment
• An internal and external communications strategy