TOOL 2 – INFORMATION MANAGEMENT CONTROL RANGE
Determining the reach and range of IS-planning process, by Henk van den Hazel.
When an IS-planning process is started, management must know what reach and range of their systems is required. Adopted from the model reach and range by Peter G. W. Keen in his book ‘Shaping the Future: Business Design through Information Technology’.
Management can review what investments have been made in the past, and determine the directions of future projects by referring at these data. Management also decide which services must be shared and to whom must the organization be able to connect.
What | The reach and range criteria are represented in a matrix, where most organizations prefer moving to open system with wider space of both reach and range. What an organization does with the outcomes of this tool depends on strategy they are following. |
Why | According to Broadbent, Weill, and Neo in their paper ‘Strategic context and patterns of IT infrastructure capability’, it is important to use this tool because research points out that organization who are using an integrated approach are more efficient and have more opportunities to cooperate with other organization. |
When | Determining the information management control range is part of the evaluation of previous planning results and should therefore be used in the same phase as the information year report and the list of current and planned projects. Because the output of this tool is an important input for the next cycle it is important that this tool is used when the IS planning process just has started |
How | 1.Management score their organization on reach and range 2.Informal meeting and brainstorming between relevant stakeholders 3.Determine how to reach desired position |
Where | Best carried out in an informal environment, so that thinking will be more creative and not bounded to borders that exist. This tool impacts the strategy of organizations. |
Who | IS-Manager of the company |