Setting IT Prioritization Roadmap

 IT leaders today should develop a comprehensive prioritization roadmap, look beyond immediate problem resolution, build IT-enabled strategic capabilities, and become an integral part of strategic management to achieve the business’s long-term vision.

A roadmap shows the transition plan, which includes a set of investments, programs, projects, and milestones that take you from the current state to the target state of the business.

Roadmaps can sometimes be just technology transitions, but usually, have social and organizational components of change as well. The IT prioritization roadmap is a methodology that every IT organization needs to create according to their own realities and capacities, to help the IT management stay focused, manage a balanced “run, grow, transform” portfolio and improve the overall IT organizational maturity at the steadfast pace.

To have vision and strategy deployed in short-term and long-term defined including its level of importance among them: Prioritization helps to focus on the strategy of the organization, which has huge benefits in terms of execution. To keep IT relevant, IT leaders shouldn’t just spend all resources on gaining some short-term results. A well defined IT prioritization roadmap helps IT leaders sustain the technological vision, enable business strategy, and take commitment and discipline to stay focused on the real priorities of the business instead of being distracted by what seems to be more urgent at any given moment.

Often, the gap between IT and business is a reality. Without effective communication and prioritization skills, the business often doesn't understand how IT can help to solve their issues and IT doesn't know what the business needs. Prioritization brings transparency to the organization, creating internal competition among projects. A prioritization roadmap helps IT management prioritize across all projects, so they know which projects should get an increment of analysis and design effort, assign resources scientifically, and manage a balanced portfolio effectively to make continuous deliveries.

To have related experience, or have a scientific methodology to standardize corporate financial analysis as "investment, profit, and rate of return of the projects”: Organizations are highly dependent on IT executives who make the proposal to update the technology based on the need of the business. Part of the problem is most internal IT organizations still don't do a good job at financial management. Consequently, no one knows if those legacy systems are still contributing to the top and bottom line or not and by how much. Information, technology, and other IT assets need to be centralized, re-allocated, updated, or replaced if needed to optimize “people and process.” Thus, IT management should continue to review IT assets and investment, standardize corporate financial analysis as "investment, profit, and rate of return of the projects.”

Prioritization is critical, as the alternative is a land grab for resources. It is usually suboptimal and damaging, especially when legitimate top priorities are delayed. Since the projects usually have different investment considerations. For example, risk reduction for maintenance work, ROI for tactical, and some strategic work. A comprehensive IT prioritization roadmap enables the management to have a respected intra-organizational agreement of priorities and resources, keep the teams and employees focusing on the most important things, boost the energy and excitement to achieve the ultimate business results.

To have a modern IT budget scenario for "wise investments," etc: Statistically, in many organizations, 70% of IT budget is being spent on “keeping the lights on,” only leaving 30% for “keeping business growth and innovation” IT budgeting process still gets stuck in the past, the management thinks their company’s budget process isn’t consistent with what CIOs are planning to drive significant change and run IT as a strategic business partner. To survive and thrive for the long-term perspective, IT management should involve more planning, more compromise on budget expenditures, and changing outlooks on profit margins as a result.

A well-set prioritization roadmap helps CIOs make a priority choice based on ROI and calculated risks. Technically, to mitigate risks and make continuous delivery, the lT management knows that complex projects should be broken up into smaller pieces, the phases of a project life-cycle, and sub-projects whose main purpose is to provide proof-of-concept or to otherwise develop a better understanding of the unknowns. In short, running a budget smart IT organization takes discipline, methodology, and practice.

The organizational management short-sightedness and running the business in a transactional mode only can cause digital ineffectiveness in the long run. IT leaders today should develop a comprehensive prioritization roadmap, look beyond immediate problem resolution, build IT-enabled strategic capabilities, and become an integral part of strategic management to achieve the business’s long-term vision.

Posted in: IT Finance,IT Transformation