If you are a technology manager, congratulations, you've landed one of the most difficult and demanding jobs in modern history. The challenges in sustaining critical business infrastructure while helping business leaders realize their strategic visions are often difficult to overcome. Consider these examples of obstacles IT managers must contend with: • Consumerization of technology drives unrealistic expectations on the part of the customer that technology is easy • Security concerns and breaches requiring new layers of technology introduced into the architecture that then introduces new variables into the maintenance equation • Relatively uneducated managers put into roles around technology that then drive technical decisions (this happens more often than governments and corporations want to admit) And there are countless more examples. Yes, it's a tough job, one of the toughest in the marketplace. But if it were easy, everyone would do it. You are in your position because you are expected to have the technical skills to navigate the complex landscape of technical interdependencies and the management skills to govern your team and the teams around your department. The strategic importance of Information Technology to businesses is driving CIO's to develop their managers to become the next generation of strategic thinkers. However, history has proven that many IT managers are simply ill-equipped to handle the demands of aligning their functions to the business. The middle IT manager is the linchpin that ties the strategic vision set by the "C-Level" and the delivery of those services. Hence, the dawn of The New IT Leader, focused on maximizing uptime while aligning to business strategy. The New IT Leader: • Creates closer ties with the business • Baselines and measures their performance • Generates value by way of improved project outcomes • Improves systems reliability • Doesn't get caught up in the industry hype • Instills a culture of quality • Encourages employee ownership.
