8 free IT strategic planning templates and examples for CIOs
An effective IT strategy system obviously defines an IT organization’s mission and needs, and it interprets that mission into lengthy- and limited-variety actionable targets. An efficient IT strategic program also displays and drives the enterprise’s business strategy and objectives. Appears easy ample, ideal? But as technology has turn into a organization differentiator, IT strategic arranging is equally additional essential and extra hard than at any time ahead of. The IT function no extended exists to simply just assist enterprise goals IT will have to assist generate the enterprise.
These no cost IT strategic arranging templates and illustrations of IT strategic ideas will support CIOs acquire approaches that develop into potent instruments for the business.
What goes into IT strategic arranging: Absolutely free templates and in-depth guides
Supply #1: Gartner Inc.
Giving: Make an IT Strategic System That You Will Actually Use
Gartner is of the thoughts that IT strategic strategies are WORN, i.e., composed once, browse never. To deal with the sit-on-the-shelf destiny of these files, Gartner analyst Heather Colella provides “Your 1-webpage IT approach template and information.” A central tenet of this strategy — other than staying on one web site — is that CIOs will aid their companies carry out superior by employing storytelling to clearly show how IT methods push business enterprise achievement. “Storytelling assists CIOs and IT leaders to have interaction company leaders in a method business enterprise discussion by visualizing the business enterprise design in a way that can be quickly shared for collaboration across the company,” Colella stated.
Gartner endorses pursuing 4 steps in preparation for your 1-website page program:
- Phase 1. Know how you realize success.
- Step 2. Have an understanding of your differentiators.
- Action 3. Build a abundant tale from a particular viewpoint.
- Move 4. Draw a picture to commit your technique to paper.
The information on translating your method story into a strategic approach are spelled out in this downloadable PDF. The one-web page doc features the 3 foundational features of any strategic system: company aims, enterprise capabilities and crucial efficiency indicators.
Source #2: Facts-Tech Research Group
Providing: SME IT Strategic Strategy Template
This no cost IT strategic plan template spells out straightforward however powerful strategies for aligning IT technique with your firm’s strategic targets and initiatives. It is intended for little and midsized enterprises. (Registration is required and can choose a handful of minutes to attain entry.)
The template features the adhering to sections:
- goal of prepare
- company method
- company initiatives to assist corporate approach
- IT system
- IT strategic plan to assistance company initiatives and
- IT strategic system — Gantt Chart.
Source #3: CIO Index
Giving: IT Approach Template
This IT strategic preparing template lists 21 questions aimed at encouraging IT executives produce a program that demonstrates business enterprise soreness points and objectives. (Registration demanded for the downloadable template.)
The 21 inquiries are grouped in five classes.
- Baseline. This segment is developed to build a baseline for IT and the business enterprise leaders by inquiring concerns this sort of as: “What are your best 5 business discomfort details?” “What are your top 5 enterprise goals?” “How do you program to attain these aims?” “What will we acquire by leveraging IT capacity throughout the company?” Charts and tables help build an accurate photograph of the present-day condition of IT and the business.
- Business Analysis. This classification bargains with your company’s consumers, products and opposition. Concerns include: “Who is your client?” “What is [your] present-day business product?” “What is each products’ profitability, market and channel?” This portion consists of a SWOT chart to review the firm’s strengths, weaknesses, chances and threats.
- IT Tactic Investigation. This part of the IT approach template digs into things that thwart company success. Queries contain: “What is in the way of obtaining organization imperatives?” (The template features examples of many feasible problems that hinder results.) “Can IT support accomplish your organization imperatives?” “What will we achieve by leveraging IT ability (marketing, production, obtaining or servicing) throughout the enterprise?”
- Ecosystem Trend Evaluation. The two concerns in this category request you to think about the 5 major small business trends and the 5 major technological innovation tendencies, then assess which of the five in each spot will influence your enterprise and how.
- Present-day IT Capability Investigation. This area asks you to assess how a great deal you invest on IT, where by you shell out it and why. Inquiries include: “What is your technologies ROI?” “Does your enterprise prepare consist of a engineering strategy?”
Supply #4: Enterprise 2 Local community
Providing: Strategic Prepare Template
Clive Keyte, managing director of technique at mapping consultancy Intrafocus, shared his skills on creating strategic plans. “The oversight that is typically built in strategic organizing is to bounce straight to initiatives or assignments with no looking at organization effects very carefully,” Keyte mentioned. He features the adhering to 5 issues to do to embed system into your society:
- Include issue issue gurus in tactic formulation.
- Solicit technique concepts from staff members via social media.
- Converse your strategy through a very simple diagram.
- Involve your strategic steps in every month experiences.
- Publish your strategic wins routinely.
His editable strategic prepare template, replete with preparing charts and examples, features sections for vision, mission, core values, strategic themes, a system map, enterprise targets, strategic initiatives and a fiscal summary.
Resource #5: Apptio
Featuring: 10 Critical KPIs for the IT Strategic Planning Method
Apptio’s guidebook to creating an successful IT strategic prepare lays out the 10 important general performance indicators (KPIs) deemed important for offering business price. “IT strategic programs will need KPIs that present fiscal fundamentals, shipping and delivery, innovation, and agility to assist the small business method. These aren’t operational actions of “feeds and speeds” — they are proof details that IT is delivering business enterprise value.” (Registration demanded to accessibility the full guide.)
Apptio’s checklist of “10 critical KPIs for the IT strategic system”
- IT commit vs. approach (Opex and Capex variance)
- Application and assistance complete charge
- Per cent of IT invest on cloud
- Product lead time
- Small business worth shipped by portfolio for each quarter
- Percent of IT financial investment on operate, grow and transform-the-company
- Percent of undertaking shell out on purchaser-centric initiatives
- IT expend by small business unit
- Buyer fulfillment scores for enterprise-going through services
- P.c of IT investment decision by enterprise initiative
A few IT strategic prepare illustrations
IT strategic ideas for increased schooling establishments and govt businesses are commonly identified on the website. Right here are three illustrations.
Resource #6: Harvard College
Case in point: IT strategic strategy
This IT strategic organizing doc normally takes pains to align IT initiatives with the broader enterprise and tutorial priorities of the establishment.
Harvard University’s IT strategic prepare updates the university’s previous strategy and sets forth 8 new initiatives proven by Harvard’s CIO Council. To make sure that the IT initiatives reflected university-vast priorities, the report states that a functioning team interviewed sources across Harvard, like deans and vice provosts. “The collective input grew to become the foundation on which we built the prepare,” the report asserts.
The present plan also involves an IT mission statement and lists the IT organization’s ongoing priorities: information and facts security business architecture shared services design investigate computing and study facts compliance IT workforce development IT procurement and vendor management improve administration and sustainability and environmentally friendly IT. The new IT strategic approach doc also contains an IT vision statement. (It is downloadable as a PDF.)
Resource #7: College of South Florida System
Case in point: Facts Technology Strategic System 2019 – 2023
The College of South Florida (USF) Information Know-how Approach features an executive summary, mission assertion, eyesight assertion, listing of present products and services, guiding principles and strategic plans. The executive summary notes that the Workplace of Campus Computing typically has a significantly quicker preparing cycle than other disciplines thanks to rapid technological variations. It also states that the system’s facts engineering requests “proceed to mature at unprecedented costs, and position significant strain on existing Campus Computing infrastructure.” The plan lays out estimated costs for each year to meet up with Campus Computing’s strategic ambitions. (It is downloadable as a PDF.)
Resource #8: Section of Homeland Security
Illustration: DHS Data Technology Strategic Approach 2019-2023
As the introduction notes, the IT office of the Office of Homeland Security performs a impressive part in supporting the agency’s mission to hold the country safe and sound and secure. The eight-webpage prepare involves a mission assertion, eyesight assertion and seven guiding concepts. The system is designed about four targets: lifestyle, connectivity, cybersecurity and shoppers. Just about every target is broken down into a record of objectives and their target parts.