Avoid Tactical, Narrow IT Infrastructure Strategies

This report outlines Forrester's solution for IT infrastructure and operations (I&O) leaders to develop their IT infrastructure strategic plan for their facilities and the server, storage, and network investments inside of them. This is important, as the evolution and deployment of IT infrastructure have historically been reactive in nature and handicapped by divided management responsibilities. Over time, this has led to a number of issues, most notably improper balancing of capex versus opex, slow deployment times, and lack of appropriate monitoring and management tools that affect resiliency. This is where a strategic plan can help: A strategic plan determines where the organization is going and provides the means to verify whether it will get there or not. This report defines and justifies the need for an IT infrastructure strategic plan, identifies the key elements of such a plan, and offers I&O leaders a step-by-step process to build and maintain their strategic plan.