IT Leaders Must Shift to a Collaborative Approach in 2022, New Applications Priorities Report by Info-Tech Research Group Explains

TORONTO, May 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Info-Tech Research Group has published its annual report on the critical priorities applications leaders must consider moving forward. The Applications Priorities 2022 report combines insights from Info-Tech's proprietary data and other related industry diagnostics that the research firm conducts with its members throughout the year. This new report explores how by increasing maturity and efficiency, IT staff can spend more time on value-adding activities.

IT departments regularly have a larger workload than their capacity allows in the limited hours of a working day, leading IT teams to feel understaffed and uncertain of how to best balance their many projects. Trying to satisfy all the incoming requests results in users and stakeholders getting a small piece of the pie and adds to dissatisfaction with IT. Prioritization is a complicated process, and by IT saying "yes" to one request, they may also be saying "no" to a multitude of others.

"We are seeing an interesting trend in the questions our members are asking," says Research Lead Robert Fayle. "Organizations are shifting from 'how do I do this?' to 'why should I do this?' This is a great change as organizations mature and move away from 'firefighting' and focus on building strategic value. The Applications Priorities 2022 report investigates important IT trends and the priorities that stem from them so that applications leaders can focus on more strategic activities."

Info-Tech's annual applications priorities are based on primary data gained from the firm's 2022 case data, N=3293, and data insights from its CEO-CIO Alignment Diagnostic Program. This program helps IT leaders gain a comprehensive look into the business from the CEO's perspective and determine how IT can best support the business's top priorities. This allows IT to stay on track with the CEO's vision for the future of the business and invest in technologies that best suit business needs.

The following top five priorities outlined in Info-Tech's research should be top of mind for applications and IT leaders:

1. Integrated Product, Agile, and DevOps Delivery Practices  – The Digital Delivery Umbrella. Product organizations are expected to continually deliver evolving value to the overall organization. Applications leaders should clearly convey the direction and strategy of a broad product portfolio to gain alignment, support, and funding from their organizations.
   
   
2. Application Portfolio Management – Application Rationalization and Modernization. Effective application portfolio management doesn't happen on its own. It requires assistance with supporting pieces such as application maintenance, application management, business architecture, optimized intake, value measurement, and end-user feedback. This will help applications leaders ensure their applications portfolio delivers the best possible return on investment.
   
   
3. Enterprise Application Optimization – Maximizing on Investment. In today's connected world, the continuous optimization of enterprise applications to realize a digital strategy is key. IT leaders need to take a proactive approach to continually monitor and optimize their enterprise applications.
   
   
4. Business Process Automation – Automated Processes. As industries evolve and adopt more tools and technology, their IT operating models become more complex. Process optimization and automation are needed to simplify complex operations and align processes with organizational goals. IT leaders working on digital transformation should understand that automation is the key to success.
   
   
5. Enterprise Application Replacement – Business-Driven Strategy. Accountability for enterprise application success is shared between IT and the business. Missteps due to a lack of strategy can cost time as well as financial resources. A business-led, top-management-supported initiative partnered with IT has the greatest chance of success.

The report provides recommended actions and templates for each of the priorities that IT and applications leaders can use to explain what they require their stakeholders to learn and understand.

To learn more about Info-Tech Research Group and to download all the latest research, visit www.infotech.com and connect via LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook. 

Media professionals are encouraged to register for Info-Tech's Media Insiders program for more research and insights. This program provides unrestricted, on-demand access to IT, HR, and software industry content and subject matter experts from a group of more than 200 research analysts. To apply for access, contact [email protected]. 

About Info-Tech Research Group
Info-Tech Research Group is one of the world's leading information technology research and advisory firms, proudly serving over 30,000 IT professionals. The company produces unbiased and highly relevant research to help CIOs and IT leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. For 25 years, Info-Tech has partnered closely with IT teams to provide them with everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations.  

SOURCE Info-Tech Research Group