For CIOs

Catalog Of Technical Services  (66 KB XLS)

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., Wolfgang Benkel, November 6, 2009

The workbook defines 10 generic profiles of technical services and associates provisioning processes and activities with each of them. The activity-based descriptions enable IT executives to establish the link between technology assets, resources, and . . .

For CIOs

A Catalog Of Technical Services Improves The Manageability Of The BT Service Portfolio

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., November 6, 2009

Business technology (BT) changes IT's roles within the enterprise, forcing IT leaders to deploy business service processes and technology demand management. CIOs are embarking on the IT-to-BT journey by concentrating their efforts on the consolidation . . .

For Vendor Strategy Professionals

What Vendor Strategists Need To Know About Lean — The Hot Topic For CIOs Right Now

by Thomas Mendel, Ph.D., Alexander Peters, Ph.D., October 29, 2009

As smart executives delve into the core of Lean Thinking, the role of technology in Lean-based performance improvements becomes abundantly clear. Senior executives expect their chief information officers (CIOs) to drive improvements in the effectiveness . . .

For CIOs

What CIOs Should Know About Lean

Case Studies Illustrate How CIOs Can Use Lean Inside And Outside IT

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., October 27, 2009

As smart executives delve into the core of Lean Thinking, the role of technology in Lean-based performance improvements becomes abundantly clear. Senior executives expect their CIOs to drive improvements in the effectiveness and efficiency of technology . . .

For CIOs

Driving Value With Process Improvement

CIOs Recommend Nine Best Practices For Business Processes Management

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., October 6, 2009

Senior business executives recognize the value of technology in supporting business operations and expect CIOs to help drive process improvement efforts — all while tuning and elevating IT's relationship with the business. CIOs from various industries . . .

For CIOs

CIOs: Take Control Of Your BPM Destiny

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., September 21, 2009

Competitive pressures, both locally and globally, have put business process management (BPM) at the top of corporate agendas. Business executives are tasked with finding new ways to drive strategic efficiency and increased levels of business innovation. . . .

For CIOs

Market The BT Service Portfolio To Fuel Innovation And Utility

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., July 24, 2009

As businesses become infused with technology, CIOs are expected to provide portfolios of business technology (BT) services, which sustain the competitive advantage of their firms. To improve IT's responsiveness to this increasingly complex and dynamic . . .

For CIOs

The IT To Business Technology Transformation — Learning From Utilities

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., June 2, 2009

Evolving business, political, regulatory, ecological, and financial challenges are accelerating the utility industry's transformation to a new business technology model. As the industry adapts to these pressures and new technologies such as X Internet . . .

For CIOs

Business Satisfaction Survey Tool  (168 KB XLS)

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., April 9, 2009

To help IT executives who want to address business satisfaction through a systematic approach, Forrester has developed a list of questions to guide them through the deployment of a list of business satisfaction questions.

For CIOs

Is IT Qualified To Satisfy The Business?

Use Forrester's Systematic Approach To Understanding Business Satisfaction

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., April 9, 2009

IT executives increasingly implement marketing initiatives to improve the communications with their business customers. But these efforts often focus solely on the brand aspects of the services under the IT's control without understanding the business' . . .

For CIOs

IT Must "Get" Business Satisfaction

Measuring And Improving Business Satisfaction Requires A Framework

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., March 20, 2009

Today's business execs have high expectations for technology's contribution to their organizations, but they tend to be dissatisfied with IT's delivery. In order to close this gap, IT must be able to understand the components of business satisfaction . . .

For CIOs

Back To Basics — IT Strategy In Turbulent Times

Service Archetypes Focus IT Delivery Strategy

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., February 4, 2009

Budget pressures and business expectations are squeezing IT as CIOs grapple with balancing efficiency and business enablement. CIOs can strengthen their position by mastering the business management practices identified by Harvard Business School's Evergreen . . .

For CIOs

The Lean Foundation For Business Service Portfolio Management

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., December 24, 2008

In a time when resources are scarce and expensive, the portfolio of business services constitutes a powerful framework for maximizing the business value of IT capabilities. This portfolio must display a holistic but sharp picture of how IT's capabilities . . .

For CIOs

Closing The Business Technology Alignment Gap

Insights From CIOs In The Forrester Leadership Boards

by Alex Cullen, Alexander Peters, Ph.D., December 18, 2008

Business execs have high expectations of technology — but lower confidence that IT can deliver to these expectations. This is the new business technology alignment gap — a gap between expectations for technology and confidence in the IT organization. . . .

For CIOs

Guidance For The Development Of BT Service Catalogs

The Catalog Is An Integral Part Of The BT Service Portfolio

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., October 17, 2008

The catalog of business technology (BT) services is a subset of the enterprise BT portfolio, aimed to present all live enterprise technology services from a business perspective. It consists of two logically connected building blocks: the catalog of business-facing . . .

For CIOs

Governing The Business Technology Service Portfolio

BT Portfolio Management Requires Demand-Supply Governance

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., October 10, 2008

The business technology service portfolio is a management tool that enables firms to develop a holistic perspective of their technology usage and maximize business value. To develop its potential, IT executives must implement a demand-supply model, making . . .

For CIOs

Topic Overview: Service-Oriented Architecture For CIOs

by Randy Heffner, Alexander Peters, Ph.D., August 15, 2008

The worst CIO misunderstanding about service-oriented architecture (SOA) is to think of it only as another technical initiative for software reuse. Although SOA's reuse potential is real and good, its business impact goes much further: In Forrester surveys, . . .

For CIOs

BT-As-A-Service Accelerates IT's BT Transformation

CIOs Should Exploit ITIL V3 And ITaaS To Change An Obsolete IT Delivery Model

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., July 30, 2008

A new business-technology-as-a-service (BTaaS) model enables IT to get more involved with business innovation and less with pushing the IT machinery through the Sisyphean develop-to-operate technology cycles. BTaaS establishes a strategic framework for . . .

For CIOs

The IT To Business Technology Transformation — Learning From Telcos

The Telecom Industry Is A Case Study For Other Industries To Learn From

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., Phil Sayer, July 9, 2008

The convergence of technologies and new types of competition is forcing telecom operators (telcos) to integrate IT into business functions, providing interesting case studies for what Forrester has described as the move from IT to business technology. . . .

For CIOs

Five Essential Best Practices For The IT-To-BT Transformation

CIOs Must Prepare IT For Its Future Role As BT Enabler

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., May 13, 2008

Each wave of technology change challenges IT's management practices. Two forces coming together will frame IT's next set of challenges: ubiquitous computing and business technology (BT). Each will affect the CIO's organization differently, but the end . . .

For CIOs

Case Study: A Manufacturing Company Positions IT For BT

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., May 13, 2008

A global manufacturing firm had a highly fragmented IT organization with redundant functions, nonexistent standards, and a management structure that viewed IT as a cost rather than as an enabler of success. This case study describes how a new CIO transformed . . .

For CIOs

A Best Practices Sample IT Strategic Plan

A Complete And Effective Plan Should Be Short And To The Point

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., Lewis Cardin, May 1, 2008

Every IT organization must develop and maintain a strategic plan; without one, IT will struggle with being the "master of its own destiny" — it will not have a means to document and communicate priorities and constraints nor to get business support for . . .

For CIOs

Sample IT Strategic Plan  (3.3 MB PPT)

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., Lewis Cardin, May 1, 2008

This sample strategic plan for a fictional company can be used as a template for companies wishing to create their own strategic plans. Use the May 1, 2008, "Best Practices Strategic Plan" report for guidance through the powerpoint.

For CIOs

The State Of IT Governance In North American And European Enterprises

by Marc Cecere, Alexander Peters, Ph.D., February 28, 2008

More so in 2007 than in recent years, IT departments and their business partners in North America and Europe are generally in sync on strategic priorities. From our survey of more than 500 IT executives on both sides of the Atlantic, we found that the . . .

For CIOs

EA Adds A Fourth Pillar To IT Value Management

Enterprise Architecture Is Fundamental To Good IT Governance

by Alexander Peters, Ph.D., January 18, 2008

Maximizing IT's contribution to business results requires reliable governance structures combined with mature processes for evaluating investment options and making prudent decisions. But if the evaluation of initiatives vying for funding is too narrow, . . .