To print: Click here or Select File and then Print from your browser's menu

This story was printed from silicon.com, located at http://www.silicon.com/

Story URL: http://management.silicon.com/careers/0,39024671,39299695,00.htm

Are you heading for an IT train wreck?
How to spot the warning signs

By Tim Ferguson

Published: Wednesday 08 October 2008

Businesses are heading for a technology "train wreck" if they focus too much attention on short term issues.

That's according to analyst house Gartner, which says organisations are looking at the next project rather than how to modernise their IT in the long term.

Tech Hotspots: The list

1. Silicon Valley
2. Bangalore
3. London
4. Tokyo
5. Boston
6. Cambridge
7. Shanghai
8. Tel Aviv
9. Seoul
10.Beijing
11.Chennai
12.Pune
13.Singapore
14.Helsinki
15.Moscow
16.Hong Kong
17.Hyderabad
18.New York
19.Sydney
20.Shenzhen

Companies are spending too much time on these short term fixes and not looking at the broader strategy, it claims, and Gartner analyst, Scott Nelson said the potential for an IT train wreck is "significant if the warning signs are not heeded".

Gartner said companies should focus on developing an application strategy that involves retiring older systems.

It claims one warning sign for organisations is they are spending big on hiring programmers to keep an old system running, when what they need is a strategy for squeezing the investment in the old system - and putting a replacement system strategy in place.

Applications no longer supported by vendors are singled out as they could lead to increased maintenance costs and more work for IT departments as they work harder to maintain these outdated but mission-critical applications - another warning sign for CIOs.

As tech ages, its ability to support business changes lessens as new applications are less likely to be compatible with old ones. Another feature of aging tech is that it becomes further removed from the IT team's future vision - making that harder to achieve. This also means information becomes harder to access and analyse as the tech gets older - a particular problem for businesses heavily dependent on data.

With more technology being added into an organisation, more money, people and time are needed to support it, meaning new projects have fewer resources. And one danger that CIOs need to spot is businesses buying more IT-related services direct, which then pushes up central IT costs, limiting the ability of the organisation to react to change, Gartner warns.