Fixing IT
Ed Sperling, 12.29.08, 12:01 AM ESTWhat should be on the ''to do'' list of CIOs in the new year.
| Ed Sperling |
 |
Crystal-ball forecasts for the coming year ignore one of
the most fundamental truths about people deeply engaged in information
technology: Real IT folks don't just dream about IT, they fix things.
In keeping with that spirit, I'd like to offer up a "to do" list for
CIOs and other technology-driven workers, based on some ideas of what
technologists want from technology--and what it will take to get there.
Better Connectivity
It's relatively easy to look at Japan or even Europe and say connectivity is better because, well, it simply is better.
Sure, those geographies are smaller, which helps the infrastructure more economically serve a great number of people. But connectivity in China is typically better than what we get in the U.S. (The New York Times' Thomas Friedman makes this point painfully well here.)
Connectivity needs to be radically improved everywhere in the U.S., including in densely populated centers where calls are still dropped or filled with static. The fact that we even know how to read bar charts for reception is a stark sign of the problems. The solution will involve a much bigger investment in infrastructure, which means a collaboration between private enterprise and government--something that has been lost since the breakup of AT&T.
More Bandwidth
Much of the fiber backbone laid during the dot-com bubble is still dark, because the "last mile" connections to businesses and homes never happened. These digital dirt roads are slowing down the adoption of all sorts of services that demand high bandwidth, as well as new ones, such as Internet TV and streaming high-definition movies.
More Research
Innovations don't happen overnight. (Longtime entrepreneur Judy Estrin has written vividly about this problem.
Research groups such as Xerox's
Dugg on Forbes.com
Venture Capital's Coming Collapse
Biggest Tech Stories Of The Year - Forbes.com
What should be on the ''to do'' list of CIOs in the new year
Such programs, however, are increasingly scarce. IBM
New Compensation Schemes
The trouble with pure research is it doesn’t mesh well with corporate mandates to meet quarterly numbers and squeeze every last penny of profitability from a company. That may suit current shareholders, but it doesn't build much for the future. We've heard calls for research tax breaks and incentives for years--and those are useful measures, but corporate management needs to revamp its perspective, too. C-level executives should be compensated for superb management as well as visionary planning that will last well beyond their corporate tenures. Executives who get that mix right should be handsomely rewarded--that takes a lot more thought and talent than just cutting costs and shifting jobs to lower-cost areas.
More Openness
CIOs have love-hate relationships with open communication schemes. On one hand, they allow ideas to be freely exchanged on a global basis, which always produces better results. On the other, they create security problems that must be fixed swiftly, disrupting or competing with dozens of other pressing mandates put on CIOs.
The smartest CIOs I speak with live with the problems; they quickly fix any issues that arise so their companies can benefit from a free exchange of ideas. And guess what tools help fix those kinds of problems most efficiently? More data connectivity, better bandwidth, more agile researchers who can see and solve problems well, and executives motivated to find innovative answers with positive repercussions, quarter after quarter.
What's on your to-do list for 2009?'Business' 카테고리의 다른 글
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