Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
more difficult or expensive than in a command structure. Because a
contractual structure replaces a command structure, is the reason that an
outsourcing model may not be suitable for many kinds of projects and
companies.
Architectures and Technologies
In software, technology choices can lock one in. Both vendors and
customers recognize this lock-in. It makes one's choices strategic, perhaps
unnecessarily, because to back out of it is difficult. For most of us, the
choice of a particular make of car may be an expensive choice but it is
hardly strategic. In software, selecting routine components such as data-
base management systems, reporting solutions, operating systems, or
hardware may end up having strategic implications. We discuss more on
this in Chapter 5, Architecture and Design.
Build versus Buy
To build or buy is a strategic choice. Both can be expensive in different
ways and lead to different outcomes or levels of satisfaction. Some
organizations prefer one to the other. We look at this issue in detail in
Chapter 9, Off-the-Shelf Software.
Using Strategies
For most IT personnel, the work they are doing seems far removed from
the external strategies of the company. The internal strategy may not be
easily appreciated by many in the IT department itself. As for external
strategies, even the managers may have little idea of how their work
contributes to larger business strategies. This situation may be the result
of a lack of flow of information within the company, or it may be due
to a technical-business split in the minds of IT personnel, akin to the
mind-body split in philosophy. Technical folks are not too interested in
the business aspects, and vice versa.
Many developers often feel that they do not need the big picture to
do their work, this based on the assumption that the “business” aspects,
including strategy, are reflected in the business requirements (Figure 3.3).
This assumption is not valid. Further, there are business managers who
do not share their business strategies with project managers or analysts,
preferring to provide them only “requirements” without any further expla-
nation. Good consultants and analysts try to up-level the discussion to
