Stories about: Open Market

Running IT in a businesslike way has its benefits, but it can also lead you into a trap. An IT strategy expert considers how to go from managing IT efficiently to exploiting it strategically

When Darius Jackson became ING's head of IT infrastructure support and service delivery in January 2005, his job was to clean up a mess. two years earlier, the financial services company had outsourced its IT infrastructure (hardware, software, help desk and so on) to a major service provider in a seven-year, $US600 million deal. But now the business leaders of the company are worried that they aren't getting the value they want out of the relationship.

Suppliers will have a tough time meeting the federal government's ICT needs in the 2006-07 financial year, because not all agencies are forthcoming with procurement plans, according to market researcher Intermedium.

Open Source and Open Standards: Do we really need both in Australian government?

There's more than one way to skin the IT-budget cat

IT costs are now highly visible and containing them is high on executive agendas

Last year, David Saul, executive vice president and CIO of commercial insurer Zurich North America, pulled a dozen IT staffers away from their daily tasks to combat a virus that was attacking the company's firewalls. They did a good job limiting the damage, but it took two days - two days in which other work did not get done. Next time, Saul hopes to be ready to respond before a threat surfaces. "We want to be in a safety zone that doesn't require that kind of immediate mobilisation," he says.

Web services are a new way to think about acquiring and offering business services. To enthusiasts, they open the door to a host of benefits, including lower costs, speedier systems installation, and most importantly, greater business agility. Business services that you can connect and disconnect as needed, and pay for on a per-usage basis, are being touted as"the next big thing".

Five new technologies clamour for your attention. Some aren't soup yet, but we think you should investigate them anyway.

Software development at ANZ's International Systems is win-win-win for everyone: higher productivity, better morale and more pride in the product.

Everyone has ideas about how survive in the new economy. Some of those ideas are better than others