In addition to discussing forthcoming needs, Nesbitt helps the attorneys use the firm's existing technologies more productively. "The stronger message you send that technology is of value," she says, "the better things will be in your organization."
?? Demonstrate cost savings. Non-IT executives tend to regard IT departments as cost centers. If you can launch projects that simplify business processes or offer demonstrable cost savings, other executives will take notice.
Michael Golden, IT manager at Unique Fabricating, an automotive supply manufacturer, launched a project that converts reports from the company's manufacturing system into plain text that can be entered into preprinted forms and PDFs. Now the reports--which were previously printed on high-volume dot-matrix printers--can be printed on less expensive laser printers or stored electronically. This cuts the company's paper use by 80 percent, Golden says, and saves on ink and printer maintenance.
?? Demonstrate competitive advantage. Keeping the network alive and the servers humming are key IT tasks, but they won't grow the business. There's no better way to score an invitation to the executive table than to show how IT can help the business get the jump on competitors.
Chuck Hudson, director of IT at Smith Drug, a billion dollar pharmaceuticals distributor, is rolling out a Web-based ordering system for ease of use and security. Customers can order over the Internet using an encrypted authentication system to protect the transaction. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency requires these orders to be tracked and stored, a process that's simplified by the electronic system. Hudson says these new technologies give Smith Drug a competitive advantage.
?? Anticipate needs. Your IT perspective may let you spot a problem brewing, or recognize an opportunity that business managers might not anticipate. By acting on it and meeting a business need, you raise IT's profile in the organization.
Insomniac Games' Kirk foresaw the need to build a server render farm to free up workstations, so Insomniac designers could devote more time to creating game environments. The previous rendering method--in which each artist drew one scene at a time on an individual workstation--was cumbersome, yet workable for the PlayStation 2 platform. But with Sony moving to PlayStation 3, which allows for richer graphics that would demand greater computational power, productivity would have ground to a halt.
"We started it a year and a half ago, as we saw what the group would need," says Kirk, who notes the project was driven by the IT department. Thanks to the render farm, he says, the design team's productivity has increased eightfold.
--Andrew Conry-Murray
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