The Business of IT
by Jim Metzler, Ashton, Metzler & Associates

Abstract:

Many industry pundits advocate an approach, called the IT Utility Model, in which IT is positioned inside of a company as a utility, similar to electricity or water utility companies. Other pundits advocate the Value-Add Model, in which IT is a strategic asset that must be leveraged for business success. 

It would be relatively easy for an IT organization to be successful if it were mandated to implement either the IT Utility Model or the Value-Add Model. However, the Business of IT demands that the IT organization must simultaneously operate as a utility, as well as provide incremental functionality that helps the company to better compete in the marketplace. This article will develop a model that discusses the key components of the business of IT, and will provide an example to illustrate each component. The article will also focus on how IT organizations continually demonstrate incremental business value.

About the Author:

Dr. Jim Metzler of Ashton, Metzler & Associates is widely recognized as an authority on both network technology and its business applications. Over the past 28 years, he has helped over one hundred enterprises evolve their network infrastructures. Metzler has worked in software tool development, network design, engineering management for high-speed data services, and network hardware product management. He conducts tutorials on local area networking, wide area networking, and e-business around the world. And he is on the faculty at Northeastern University’s State of the Art Program in Networking.