IT leaders can become obsessively focused on convincing their business partners (and themselves!) that their organizations are generating true business value. This obsession is fueled by the recommendations of consultants and research analysts who encourage IT leaders to develop operational dashboards, balanced scorecards, quarterly service reviews, business cases and project post mortems to quantify the business impact of their teams.
All too often, after a considerable investment of time and energy in documenting outcomes, fundamental business perceptions regarding IT value remain unchanged. Why is this? Why are perfectly rational and dedicated IT execs reduced to “puppy dogs” who keep bringing their business “masters” proof of their value without ever receiving a pat on the head in return?
