Isn’t IT just another cost center in my business?

Not necessarily.

I’m frequently asked this by business owners because it’s all too common a misconception. When one thinks about information technology, it’s easy to just see IT as an organizational black box where money goes in and problems seem to emerge. The unfortunate reality is that this is, in many cases, an accurate description of IT as it related to budgets. The fortunate truth is that with careful planning, your IT department can ultimately prove to be less of a cost center and more of an investment center.

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One of the things that I get asked frequently is how all of this stuff about Virtual CIOs, IT governance, and technology adds any kind of meaningful value to a company. This questions crops up more and more when I am consulting with start-up companies and almost always when with growth companies. These two types of companies have management and founders who, as any good entrepreneur would, are constantly thinking about “what’s next” for their business. Wryly, this is referred to as an “exit”, or “exit strategy.”

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