Opportunity Matrix Reloaded

Good IT opportunities don't just come up and bite you on the bottom and say, "We're here!" Finding them takes hard work and good planning. IT organizations are responsible for building a business capability, and keeping programs aligned with the business strategy are essential. But many don't include processes to insure that a common understanding of the business strategy is built between the business stakeholders.

Here we present an example of the Opportunity Matrix, for this is the tool that provides the bridge between the business objectives of the organization and the IT programs required to help achieve them. It is also where high value opportunities are identified and qualified. In short, the Opportunity Matrix provides the basis for both short- and long-term IT planning and portfolio management, and is a key tool for successful IT managers.

Businesses, Chaos, Performance and the Strange Attractor Factor

Most IT managers and CIOs face a mountain of conflicting and difficult challenges: constantly changing business models, business partners pressing for new complex capabilities such as integrated CRM, ECP, procurement management, business system users demanding constant changes and extensions to functionality and features at a granular level...the list goes on and on. All these challenges make it seem that IT is the center of a very chaotic universe and is just …