Purpose:
Secure optimal value from IT-enabled initiatives, services and assets; cost-efficient delivery of solutions and services; and a reliable and accurate picture of costs and likely benefits so that business needs are supported effectively and efficiently.
Objective:
Optimize the value contribution to the business from the business processes, IT services and IT assets resulting from investments made by IT at acceptable costs.
Description:
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Inputs:
- Strategic Road Map
- Investment Return Expectations
- Selected Programs with Return on Investment Milestones
- Benefit Results and Related Communication
- Stage-gate Review Results
- Investment Portfolio Performance Reports
Outputs:
- Evaluation of Strategic Alignment
- Evaluation of Investment and Services Portfolios
- Investment Types and Criteria
- Requirements for Stage-Gate Reviews
- Feedback on Portfolio and Program Performance
- Actions to Improve Value Delivery
Controls:
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Task Instructions:
Evaluate Value Optimization
Understand stakeholder requirements; strategic IT issues, such as dependence on IT; and technology insights and capabilities regarding the actual and potential significance of IT for the enterprise’s strategy.
- Understand the critical elements of governance required for the reliable, secure, and cost-effective delivery of optimal value from the use of existing and new IT services, assets, and resources.
- Understand and regularly discuss the opportunities that could arise from enterprise change enabled by current, new, or emerging technologies, and optimize the value created from those opportunities.
- Understand what constitutes value for the enterprise, and consider how well it is communicated, understood, and applied throughout the enterprise’s processes.
- Evaluate how effectively the enterprise and IT strategies have been integrated and aligned within the enterprise and with enterprise goals for delivering value.
- Understand and consider how effective current roles, responsibilities, accountabilities and decision-making bodies are in ensuring value creation from IT-enabled investments, services and assets.
- Consider how well the management of IT-enabled investments, services and assets aligns with enterprise value management and financial management practices.
- Evaluate the portfolio of investments, services and assets for alignment with the enterprise’s strategic objectives; enterprise worth, both financial and non-financial; risk, both delivery risk and benefits risk; business process alignment; effectiveness in terms of usability, availability and responsiveness; and efficiency in terms of cost, redundancy and technical health.
Direct Value Optimization
- Define and communicate portfolio and investment types, categories, criteria, and relative weightings to the requirements to allow for overall comparable value scores.
- Define requirements for stage-gates and other reviews for the significance of the investment to the enterprise and associated risk, program schedules, funding plans, and the delivery of critical capabilities and benefits and ongoing contribution to value.
- Direct management to consider potential innovative uses of IT that enable the enterprise to respond to new opportunities or challenges, undertake new business, increase competitiveness, or improve processes.
- Direct any required changes in the assignment of accountabilities and responsibilities for executing the investment portfolio and delivering value from business processes and services.
- Define and communicate enterprise-level value delivery goals and outcome measures to enable effective monitoring.
- Direct any required changes to the portfolio of investments and services to realign with current and expected enterprise objectives and constraints.
- Recommend consideration of potential innovations, organizational changes, or operational improvements that could drive increased value for the enterprise from IT-enabled initiatives.
Monitor Value Optimization
- Define a balanced set of performance objectives, metrics, targets, and benchmarks. Metrics should cover activity and outcome measures, including lead and lag indicators for outcomes, as well as an appropriate balance of financial and non-financial measures. Review and agree on them with the IT and other business functions and other relevant stakeholders.
- Collect relevant, timely, complete, credible, and accurate data to report on progress in delivering value against targets. Obtain a succinct, high-level, all-around view of the portfolio, program, and IT (technical and operational capabilities) performance that supports decision making, and ensure that expected results are being achieved.
- Obtain regular and relevant portfolio, program, and IT (technological and functional) performance reports. Review the enterprise’s progress towards identified goals and the extent to which planned objectives have been achieved, deliverables obtained, performance targets met, and risk mitigated.
- Upon review of reports, take appropriate management action as required to ensure that value is optimized.
- Upon review of reports, ensure that appropriate management corrective action is initiated and controlled.
