The Art of IT Investing

While Rubin's research provides a way for CIOs to calibrate their spending to optimize the chances for business success, it doesn't guarantee that success. That's because, Rubin notes, the wise selection of technology initiatives (in other words, IT strategy) and good execution are always critical to gaining positive results. And that's where the art comes in. CIOs who can do the maths but flunk the art will not be able to use any extra money they pry out of their CEOs to improve business performance or create new value.

Even effective, artful CIOs will get different results from similar spending. "Companies will drive to different results based on how they answer the questions the data poses," says Grande Bucca, managing director for investment banking, research, legal and compliance technology at Merrill Lynch. "We look at our investments against our business goals, and we can change the order of them or their emphasis based on that assessment." That metrics-driven approach is key, says Accenture CIO Frank Modruson. "The top-performing companies manage by metrics," he notes, giving them both detailed data to validate their IT decisions and early warning signals when those judgements are off.

At Verizon "we now have a more in-depth viewpoint about our spend that lets us lower the cost of maintenance and infrastructure while at the same time improving the quality of services", says Comisky. "This lets you spend your dollars on the efforts you think are better for productivity."