IT Organization Aligns Strategy, Structure, Goals and Rewards
Background
A large, complex information technology organization, which was an integral part of the business strategy for a global financial services company, was not demonstrating a return on investment. Technology capability was a differentiator in the marketplace and key to the company’s competitive advantage and sustainability.
Situation
Despite significant financial and human capital investment in IT, the business units supported by the IT organization questioned the impact and believed there was a lack of return to the business. End-users were seeking more sophisticated solutions and the sales team wanted them faster in order to accelerate customer implementations, and revenue.
Solution
An E.L.I. Partner worked with the CIO and executive team to define the IT strategy in support of the business, and the optimal organization structure and delivery model to realize that strategy. This rigorous process included internal and external customer data collection, best practices research and benchmarking and a series of facilitated strategic planning sessions.
Results
Aided by the E.L.I. Partner, the CIO and executive team articulated a renewed IT strategy in partnership with the business, and aligned both structure and resources. They identified organizational objectives and interdependencies across the leadership team and their functional units, which were cascaded down to managerial and individual performance standards and were tied to rewards at every level of leadership. Some of the greatest outcomes was the accountability and dialogue across the leadership team relative to the shared vision and decision-making. Over a 12-24 month period, IT measures around cost, efficiency and ROI improved as did employee engagement and relationships with business units across the company.