Unleashing the power of IT : bringing people, business, and technology together

 Content: FOREWORD ix  PREFACE xiii  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xvii  ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS xix   CHAPTER 1 Creating Your Twenty-First-Century Workforce and Culture 1   Core Skills for Success 2  Assess Your Core Competencies 3  Who Will Benefit Most? 4  Getting the Most out of This Book 5   CHAPTER 2 Transforming Your IT Team 7   How to Make This Transition: Learn to Think Differently 10  Five Critical Success Factors That Enable IT Organizational Excellence 14  Conclusion 21   CHAPTER 3 Driving Change with Intent 23   Defining Terms 24  The Components of Change 25  Achieving Commitment Is Essential for Sustaining Change 25  Change Takes a Community 28  Clarity Precedes Activity 31  Messaging the Change 34  Conclusion 36   CHAPTER 4 Building a Client-Focused IT Culture 39   What Good Service Looks Like 41  Service Skills for a New Mind-Set 43  Strategies for Developing a Service Mentality 50  Conclusion 53   CHAPTER 5 Evolving into the Role of Consultant 55   What Is the Consultant's Role? 57  Why Do I Need to Become More Consultative? 59  Learning to Change Hats: The Four Roles of IT 60  How Do I Become a Consultant? 61  How Difficult Can This Be? 67  Conclusion 68   CHAPTER 6 Negotiating: Getting What You Want without Damaging the Relationship 71   Position versus Interest Negotiations 72  Three Steps and Three Key Factors 74  Applying the Key Factors to the Second Step: Information Exchange 80  The Final Step: Now Comes the Bargaining 81  Conclusion 82   CHAPTER 7 Sharpening Your Political Savvy 85   Picturing Yourself as a Political Player 86  IT and Politics: Historically Strange Bedfellows 87  A Five-Step Process for Developing Political Awareness 89  Developing Political Skills 92  Conclusion 96   CHAPTER 8 Managing Projects: The Science and the Art 99   The Building Blocks of Project Management 101  Structuring Projects for Success 104  Developing Plans That Work 105  Managing to Successful Completion 107  The Four Tenets of the Project Manager's Mind-Set 110  Conclusion 114   CHAPTER 9 Changing Your Requirements-Gathering Mind-Set 117   The What, Not the How 119  The Importance of the Interview 121  Communicating through Pictures 124  Writing a Solid Requirements Document 126  Conclusion 127   CHAPTER 10 Managing the Vendor Relationship 129   Both Sides of the Coin 130  Preparing for a New Role 131  Getting a Fresh Start 133  The Seven Phases of Managing Vendor Partnerships 135  Conclusion 145   CHAPTER 11 Marketing IT's Value 147   Market to the IT Department 149  Build Partnerships 151  Differentiate Yourself 152  Establish Credibility 153  Create Product and Service Awareness 154  Develop a Formal Plan 155  Determine Your Success 156  Conclusion 157   CHAPTER 12 Creating the Social Organization 159   The Social Business Framework 161  Conclusion 170   CHAPTER 13 O&A Clients in Action: Stories from the Trenches 173   St. Luke's Health System: Transformation through a Newly Consultative IT Function 174  Marriott: Success Enhanced through a Transformed IT-Business Relationship 178  Bowdoin College: Trust in IT Creates a Culture of Change 182  Conclusion 186   CHAPTER 14 Moving IT up the Maturity Curve: IT Talent Management 187   Gaining a Core Competency Mind-Set 188  Moving up the IT Maturity Curve 189  Talent Management 2.0 191  A Look at the Best of the Best 193  Conclusion 195  ACCESS YOUR FREE TRIAL OF IT SKILL BUILDER 197  BIBLIOGRAPHY 199  INDEX 203
 Abstract:             
              Go from the "IT guy" to trusted business partner  If you're in IT, quite a lot is expected of you and your team: be technologically advanced, business-minded, customer-focused, and financially astute, all at once.                 Read more...