Bridging the gap between Information Technology and Business

It is always a challenge for highly technical people to productivly communicate with innovative business people. The approach and language at times seems like opposite ends of the same coin. I ran across a good article that expresses some nice ideas for bridging perceived gaps. Isn't it funny how two people can be talking about exactly the same things and to them it appears that they have different opinions based on word choices, mindsets, or preconcieved perceptions :-)

Here is the top six list from the article:

1. IT is a cost center
2. The cheapest way is the best way
3. IT is a back office function
4. We speak different languages
5. Technology is its own island
6. Business and IT have different goals

I have seen many presentations lately .. some with quotes from Gartner reports .. that show that the industry is fast moving to bridge the past perceptions of a great divide between Business and IT and to merge the goals of both practices. It just makes more sense to both entities to integrate thier visions and communication into a more strategic vision to drive the success of the company.

Also, if you have enjoyed being in the IT bubble and have been able to build a career in that comfort zone those days are coming to an end. With offshoring and other avenues for cheaper commodity based development, an IT person in the United States will need to be able to demonstrate business value and innovation ... not just IT skills to hold their value with the company. Excellence in technological concepts and practices will only get you part of the way there ... business savvy and great interpersonal skills are going to carry as much value as deep experience in technology.

Here is a link to a very good article on the topic:

http://www.dorseyplus.com/Img/pdf/1943.pdf