Managing IT During a Recession

Michael Wood - February 10, 2009 The secret is out: The United States has been in a recession since January 2008. Wow, what a big surprise!  But the real impact didn’t hit home until the economic meltdown in September of 2008.  That is when everyone got real serious and the wheels really started coming off.  Things progressed from bad to worse as unemployment levels began to soar and the U.S. consumption engine starting grinding to a halt.  Now, facing massive layoffs throughout most industry sectors, a new era of cost controls and downsizing is upon us.  So, what does this mean for IT organizations?  What challenges will IT executives face in 2009 and perhaps the majority of 2010?  And what about the IT rank and file?  What does the future hold for them?  In short, what are the challenges facing IT organizations and professionals during a recession and what can be done to overcome the obstacles ahead?

For answers, I turned first to what others have to say and then, along with my own observations, boiled it all down to two challenges and some tactics that might be used to negate their impact.  For starters, consider what some industry pundits have observed:

In a recent CIO.com article “What It Takes to Succeed Now as a CIO”, James Sutter (senior partner at The Peer Consulting Group) observed:

 “IT spending, which this year is…

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