Forrester's Approach To IT Investment Optimization

IT organizations often face the task of evaluating investment opportunities that run the gamut from infrastructure improvements to new business applications and from risk mitigation to strategic outsourcing. Over the years, a number of frameworks for the evaluation of potential investments were created that categorize the type of investment, much as stocks, bonds, money market accounts, and annuities are categorized in the investment world. With a slight tweaking of these models, a practical framework that can be easily applied to IT investments emerges. This framework should be used to: classify technology investments, insure that the proper metrics and SLAs are in place, group spending by goals to confirm portfolio balance and asset allocations, and enhance the communication process about the role and responsibilities of the IT organization.