(2004.11.10) from: Computer World "CIO" magazine
In 2001, a senior management of Harley Davison, US Motorcycle Manufacturer, was invited to talk about the role of the company's leadership on the IT department at an IT symposium. At that time, he described the IT department as a big "black box" - "a lot of funds, and then hope
The good thing will become magic. "For the Leaders of Harley's IT departments, Laurel Tschurwald and REILD F.EnGstrom, the metaphor for" black box "is undoubted to ring the alarm." Waiting for everyone, we always feel that everyone knows our work. Understand our value. "Tschurwald said.
In order to take off the mysterious coat of IT departments, they prepare a activity - requiring senior people to review all project requirements, obtain internal service agreements, initiate IT financial audits and improve service quality. In order to ensure that everyone in the company understands the value created by IT departments, they publish their work in the "Enterprise Status Report" in the quarter. In the report, they outline the first case, strategy alliance and related criteria for IT departments, and summarize the progress of the projects of more than $ 100,000. Engstrom said: "This is a set of IT internal sales mechanisms."
The idea of selling IT within the company is a lot of CIOs, although they have almost all the concept of internal users, they will not be guilty for these "customers", but if they let them like small business harsh, in order to In advancing IT value and selling overhead along the street, in order to improve product and service quality, most people in them are still unacceptable, not to mention they do not have excess money to sell.
But internal marketing can be said to promote secret weapons for commercial operations for IT. This is based on a survey against CIO - "How to Commercial Operation IT" draws. This survey shows that less than half of the CIO admits that it can make it commercialized to the IT department. Among them, respondents who have benefited from internal marketing more attention to sales than other respondents. This part of CIO is more than 25% of the sales of departmental sales than general respondents. These CIOs organize the goals of marketing activities very clear - to stimulate initiatives, play brands for projects to expand their reputation, find motivation and customer trust. They use a series of exchange methods to make internal people aware of the IT department in conducting commercial operation, and IT is clear and concrete.
Merrill's Coo Stephen Norman said: "Our 'customer' doesn't understand what we do, this is the fact. Therefore, we need to sell within the enterprise, establish a cooperative relationship." Steve Sheinheit Metlife CIO is also very agreed, He said: "Exchange and sales are imperative, if you want to get resources and support, you must 'sell' information, sales and exchanges are of course components of commercial IT departments."
Today, outsourcing services are increasingly attractive, and outsourcing service providers use big publicity and gorgeous advertising to make themselves appeal. In fact, internal IT organizations can provide more, more valuable services, but CIOs have not yet defined their services in the same temptation, and pricing these services.
But CIOs who have begun to focus on IT must pay attention to it. If CIO does not build institutions that can constantly provide products, improper sales may destroy the reputation of IT departments. Effective contribution to the IT department is two different concepts.
Assistant professionals
Sales tycoon Scott Bedbury once made Nike's "Just Do IT" deep people, and he also made my words for Starbucks. He frankly, the best salesmen not only use the truth, but also touch people's emotions. "The biggest advantage of a product or service is not only tangible, but it is invisible." Bedbury believes that "IT staff often ignore certain spiritual satisfaction of the technology, such as controlling power, avoiding risks, harvesting a sense of accomplishment or The first step in establishing an internal sales IT program is to find an experienced marketing expert, and he should understand people's spiritual needs and know how to use spiritual needs to sell IT. "The largest beef and industrial and commercial Tyson in the United States Foods' CIO Jeri Dunn specially hired a Organization adjustment consultant (Organizational Change Consultant) responsible for selling IT, and she also plans to hire a deputy manager responsible for information communication. She frank: "I am not good at communicating, so I need help."
Passive, defensive information communication is quite common on IT staff, so the experience-rich employee is responsible for (at least also management) departmental sales and information communication can prompt the IT team to take the initiative. If a company cannot organize professionals responsible for the sales of IT departments, CIOs should also use the enthusiasm of the elite of the enterprise marketing department, let them look at IT sales from the perspective of internal customers.
Delivered to the correct information
In general, CIOs have 6 audiences: employees in the department, end users, leadership, directors, boards and collaborators in the department. Effective IT sales activities should vary from person to person, and choose the audience's most concerned information. Once the CIOs determine the audience goals of their sales, I should consider what information. Patricia Jaramillo is a CEO named Magnolia Communications IT sales consulting company. He suggested that CIO communicates with numbers when facing CFO. "Don't tell CFO storage and transportation loss, but tell him how much money will lose."
In general, the higher the hierarchy of the audience, the more simple information to the information they passed. The CIO Steven Agnilla of the Law Firm Kirkpatrick & Lockhart is always consciously short and sophisticated when writing a monthly report for the Manager's supervisor. "I don't want to involve the trivial details of technology. It is important to let them understand that we have a lot of work. Our job is the source of their funds." When writing reports, Agnoli tries to use commercial words to avoid using obscure technology. term. To this end, he adheres to the principle of no zone in all information exchanges in this department. "In IT industry, abbreviations are more than ordinary words."
In Harley Motorcycle, CIO has eaten a closed door to the company's manager layer. "In the early days, the manager of many business departments said: 'I don't want to know the IT department, you are you, I will do it."' Company CIO ENGSTROM said: "After a summary, I found this because we didn't Pass the information in the way they are interested. "Later, he changed the contents of the IT work quarter report, which will focus on how IT is targeted and targets for business. As a result, ENGSTROM, which is always raised IT funds, recently, when selling a $ 2.1 million project, only for less than 1 minute, has been recognized by business managers.
In addition, the core information of CIO's delivery should be that the decision-making layer can control the IT department overhead.
Brand strategy
For IT industry, technology is complex, let the enlarge and even boring. Therefore, giving the IT project crown with a meaningful loud name to help CIOs present the project value in a simple, easy to accept and well-known way. Related CIO surveys show that the introduction of brand strategies in an independent IT project or service is the most effective, most popular sales method.
E-commerce Outlook Company GS business CIOJOE SEIBERT plans to reform the company's project management procedures to improve efficiency in line with market needs. He named the reform "The speed of the project" and hangs a large billboard above the project office, and has also organized 100 different pizza lunch, with the start of reform. A series of sales initiatives made him successfully mobilize employee interest and reduced panic psychology caused by changes in changes. If the IT department encounters a credit crisis, you can also take "brand chess" to help reverse negative impression. The IT departments of DCMA (Defense Contract Management Agen have encountered a reputation crisis. In 1999, when Mike Williams served as a DCMA CIO, "I met a lot of unexpected problems." Today, although the problem is resolved, there is still a negative impact residue. Thus, Williams rename the IT office as an IT customer service. "The change name symbolizes that we are changing."
Michael Geitard, Vice President of Gartner and IT Management, believes that CIOs are in introducing brand strategies, naming methods and corporate culture is not big. If you have an exaggerated brand propaganda, you will be difficult to succeed in a company that is unanimously conceived. "If you choose an inappropriate brand strategy, you will only get a negative brand effect."
If you look IT as a brand, CIO is its spokesperson. Therefore, CIOs must stand in front of the internal user and standardize the brand.
Contents for service
At present, in many institutions, the IT service directory is not popular, but in MetAgroup's Rubin, it is the best means for the IT service to transparently transparent. "Directory can become an important business universal language." As part of the event called "cost transparency", Merlin created an IT directory online, introducing IT products and services in this department to internal users, and determine services. Agreement and indicate the price of all services. Preparation of such a directory is the prelude of Merrill to implement an IT service internal deduction. As of September this year, Most internal consumers in Merrill have been simple, indicating the bills of each IT consumption. "After seeing the bill, they will start managing IT overhead, not waiting for me to manage." Coo Norman said. Norman plans to introduce external IT service cost data from an IT service catalog later in this year. In this way, it is worthwhile to see the IT consumption they get it; on the other hand, in order to continuously remind IT managers, they are facing the competitive pressure of external IT service providers.
Garmer's Geitard reminds the CIO, the key to the IT catalog is to determine the type of service according to customer demand, and the cataloging work is by no means a list of IT work.
Publishing IT report
Professional salesmen generally rely very dependence on product prints. Similarly, during IT sales process, the print can be the main role. However, experts suggest that CIOs must be read carefully from the audience from the perspective of the audience. "I think that there is no excessive communication." The world's largest industrial paper and packaging producer Smurfitstone's CIO Jim Burdiss said: "But there is excessive marketing. Excessive sales will be considered to be a private and profitable behavior, not only can not Explain the value of IT, but it will be used as nonsense and is counterproductive. "
The CIOs surveyed believed that IT annual report was one of the most effective publications. Smurfitstone's IT annual report records the value of IT project creation by reference. This report is very humanized, and also the introduction of IT department employees and the contacts that should be found in specific IT issues. In addition, there is also a common term of technology. "This is not only a tool for IT annual report, but also a tool for service internal customers." Burdiss said "If we only report financial data, everyone will think we are self-blowing."
