Tuesday, September 12, 2006 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
News
Execs starting to see IT as asset in growing business, according to IBM global survey
Top executives of global firms worldwide are now starting to view information technology (IT) as an asset in growing their businesses, according to a recent study from IBM Corp.
This is a departure on the perception the huge investment needed for IT doesn’t justify returns in terms of growing the business.
IBM’s Global CEO Study 2006 was conducted to understand how business leaders view innovation -- defined as the intersection between innovation and insight -- including insight on new innovation coming onstream and key business areas where innovation are applied.
For this study, Big Blue pooled the views of 765 ranking officials coming from a wide array of industries, five of whom came from the Philippines.
Results of the survey showed that top executives now feel that innovation should be applied to the company’s business model itself or its way of doing business.
The increasing interest in innovation is the next phase after years of focus on cost-cutting and improving efficiency.
Aileen Judan-Jiao, country sales executive of IBM Global Technology Services, said in a recent interview that one way of pushing innovation is knowing the value of IT in the company.
"To truly capitalize on technology’s potential and unleash an organization’s creative energy, technology know-how must be combined with its business and marketing insights," the study read.
Ms. Jiao said companies, particularly domestic players, should stop viewing IT as a liability.
To minimize capital shell out for IT, an increasing number of companies are now outsourcing back-end operation to third-party providers so that they can focus on their core businesses.
LIMIT
Likewise, for any company, tapping a third-party provider only means that it has already reached the limit in expanding either its IT infrastructure or personnel support.
"In the last four to five years, there were practically no domestic market to speak of. But in the past 12 to 18 months the acceptance [for outsourcing] is increasing," she said.
Further, to push more growth and expand one’s market reach, the study said firms should now develop a "deep business model innovation."
Ms. Jiao said business leaders are advised to consider immediately a new strategy once its present strategy loses ground.
"Companies that can substantially change how they add value to their own or other industries differentiate themselves and gain a competitive edge," according to the results of the survey.
For instance, she said IBM’s local subsidiary has begun offering flexible payment terms, just to accommodate the growing number of small and mid-sized firms.
It also stressed the growing importance of external collaboration for companies.
"Collaborative innovation should not be just internally across traditional silos but also externally beyond company walls. Business partners and customers are top external sources for innovative ideas," the study said.
No comments:
Post a Comment