Written for financial services industry readers, this comprehensive study on the current state of IT finance should be read by any CIO or any IT finance professional wanting to understand the current landscape, opportunities and challenges with the new world of “agileIT,” what the editor calls financial agility and IT operating leverage.

From the journal’s Letter from the Editor,

“To improve IT operating leverage, IT executives need to address the
following requirements:

• Managing change – People and process changes are often the most difficult to implement; new behaviors must be promoted/enforced to support new measures to improve operating leverage.
• Implementing new metrics – New ways of tracking will be required with the adoption of any new standards and their positive effects on: operating leverage, skillfully dealing with vendors and agilely handling growth
• Providing transparency – IT must deliver transparency in its services and cost and price structures; when making investments in new products and services, IT should provide the needed insight on how that improves operating leverage over time.
• Preparation is the best defense – Professional IT managers know that controlling costs and aligning expenditures with overall business goals and spending are critical to organizational health. But it’s a classic case of “easier said than done.” When dealing with long-term amortization costs and new technology uses—where return on investment can be difficult to calculate—there’s a need for information that takes effective IT cost management leadership to a new level.

…Financial Services Technology Journal… issue to offer effective, up-to-date thought leadership on IT cost planning. From the critical right-now technologies (e.g., service-oriented architecture, cloud computing) to practices that involve outsourcing and out-tasking (i.e., outsourcing simple tasks) to new paradigms in service models… an invaluable resource in your efforts to improve your organizational operating leverage.

…leadership determines the opportunity for and success of IT operating leverage…strategic and operational insights …acquired while tackling some of the most complex problems facing IT organizations.”

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