Page 27 - DCAP307_PLANNING_AND_MANAGING_IT_INFRASTRUCTURE

Unit 2: Strategic Planning

A ‘tough call’, that is, according to Tata Steel’s Managing Director B. Muthuraman, who Notes
has penned the foreword to Dinkar’s Strategic Planning in Information Technology, from Viva
Books P Ltd (viva@vivagroupindia.net). Changes brought in by IT need not be ‘sudden
and spectacular’ always, Muthuraman adds, for they can be at a ‘basic level’ too.
An IT strategic planner should continually do strategic analysis, advises Dinkar. Only
then will he be able to point out to senior management, substantial changes in
environment. This analysis has to also comprehend the ‘resource limitations’ of the
company, expectations of the various interacting groups, and the effect that the new
technology would have.

The author devotes a chapter to ‘the value chain in IT’ where he highlights a ‘different’
alignment. “IT strategic planners put in place their own strategic plans which are different
from, but in alignment, with the corporate strategic plans.” Instead, the corporate plan
should include the IT dimension too, “leaving the details” to be worked out by the IT
planners.
Watch for ‘danger signals’, both internal and external, that indicate the existing IT plan as
being “out of tune with the environment”. Employee discontent, customer complaints
and so on, may not be due to IT failure. “Nevertheless, these signs should be treated as
signals that call for an analysis of the IT strategic plan.” Keep your ears open, therefore.

IT rests on two pillars – not hardware and software, but technology and human resources.
With a ‘not unusual’ attrition rate of 40 per cent, it is necessary to manage the HR carefully.
“The success of any organisation whose core activity is IT-related can be judged from its
manpower attrition rate.”
The most effective methods of retaining people, according to Dinkar are: “Concentrate
heavily on training; load them with an adequate amount of quality assignments; and
make sure that they are insulated from small hassles.”

Source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.in/ew/2004/12/06/stories/2004120600100200.htm

Self Assessment

Fill in the blanks:
1. ...................................... is a tool for organising the present on the basis of the projections of
the desired future.
2. The focus of a ...................................... plan is usually on a particular product, service or
program.
3. ...................................... strategic planning often starts by examining issues facing the
organisation, strategies to address those issues and action plans.
4. ...................................... planning starts with focus on the organisation’s mission.
5. IT strategic planning is important to ensure the ...................................... infrastructure and
services support the mission of the business unit or organisation.
2.2 Strategic Planning Process

The strategic planning process is one that has been used in some form for as long as companies
have been in business. A formal top-down model became a popular methodology in the 1970s
because it made the process more deliberate. With this model, an organisation’s leadership
periodically defines an overall strategy which is then communicated throughout the organisation
to be implemented.

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