At G&T, for instance, most of Owen's 10-person staff is dedicated to day-to-day operations, including helpdesk and network support, but Owen would like to get IT more involved in growing the business and opening new markets. To that end he's deploying tools to improve operations. "We automate as much as we can, including antivirus rollouts and software updates," he says. "As you stabilize and get a foundation in place, you can work more at the strategic level."
Misunderstood
It's impossible to minimize the problem of business execs who don't "get" IT--who think the IT department's sole purpose is to keep the network up and running--and refuse to fund it appropriately. Thirty-five percent of survey respondents say they disagree with the statement that top management understands IT issues and challenges, a factor that often makes it difficult for them to understand IT's potential as well. And whether or not that potential is understood, 30 percent of respondents say they don't have sufficient budgets to achieve the goals laid out by top management.
Alice Nesbitt, director of technology at Broad and Cassel, a law firm with offices in eight Florida cities, doesn't quibble with her company's basic belief that the firm should stay focused on law, not technology. But she does take issue with the idea that technology is just something that happens "back in the computer room."
"Our goal is to align IT objectives with business objectives," she says. "We are talking about business processes, and the flow of business through the office can be facilitated by technology." Nesbitt bemoans the fact that practice groups at the firm meet regularly but don't always invite an IT person to their meetings. "They don't realize it would be of value to them because we could offer them a technology solution to the issues they face."
The lack of communication is mutually detrimental, and IT shares the blame when promising projects fall flat. "We used to roll out an application without considering the impact on the user, and it was disastrous," Nesbitt admits. "There's marketing a product, training [for] a product, setting an environment for success. We can't just put technology out there, because it won't get used."
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IT leaders should heed the guidance of cybersecurity insurance providers who think businesses should prioritize security education, incident preparedness, regular internal audits, and ongoing vulnerability scanning and patching.
