It was a long time ago, but I remember it well: the unexpected phone call. The caller was my bosses’ boss.

The phrases ‘new IT project’ and ‘great opportunity’ stick in my memory. Perhaps you have had a similar experience, or perhaps you were the one saying ‘great opportunity’? But is getting involved with an IT project really an exciting prospect? And is it a good career move?

Given that 80 per cent of IT projects fail to deliver value, according to research reports during the past 30 years, being responsible for a major new IT project may not seem like the best career move.

You certainly need to like taking a risk. And once you get involved in a project, it can seem as if you have moved into a strange new world.

An acquaintance of mine is responsible for customer acquisition in a business unit where relationships and interaction with the customer are crucial. Top management decreed they were going to move online and use the internet in a more substantial way. My acquaintance was concerned by the decision, but she had no choice – and she worked hard with IT to try to establish the requirements for a new system. After about four months’ work, she received a 74-page document from IT.

The document contained a great deal of technical jargon and there were no diagrams or example screens for the proposed system. She was asked to review the plan and sign it off by the end of the week.

There was no time to check the document in detail and, in any case, it was not clear what the resulting system was going to look like. So she enquired if her team would be allowed to become involved in testing – and if it would be possible to involve existing customers.

‘Yes, you can do whatever testing you like,’ said the IT team. ‘But, we will only be able to make very minor changes or it might impact on the budget and the live date.’ Such responses will not inspire my acquaintance to become involved in the organisation’s next IT project.

The marketing director at another organisation, meanwhile, had a clear vision to improve dealings with customers and boost long-term business performance. The IT project team went to talk to the staff in the sales and marketing department about the requirements for a new customer relationship management (CRM) system.

Some interviewees did not really understand, or buy into, the new customer-focused vision. Others simply wanted improvements to current working methods. Unfortunately, no one could envisage the possibilities the new technology could provide. But after many user-focused design sessions, the IT team finally produced a list of systems requirements and started work on the CRM package.

Such lengthy decision-making processes are not rare. For many reasons, there is still a fear of IT: the perception in business suggests it can be risky to get involved in technology projects.

When you do become involved, it can be hard to apply your business expertise as you seem to be working in a new world, with a different language and different rules. The focus is all too often on technology delivery and not the benefits to be realised through business transformation.

Business transformation capability

The situation of my acquaintance is not rare: busy managers are regularly given long technical documents that are supposed to describe new systems – and are then asked to sign them off within days.

Managers are often asked to define requirements at the start of a project; requirements that are supposed to deliver a shift to a radically new way of working that they have not experienced and cannot envisage. We accept such nonsense as the accepted way of doing things.

But what, then, is IT really about? It is about changing and improving the organisation. The benefits actually come from enabling people to do things differently and from delivering value to customers and other stakeholders. Realising value from IT is fundamentally a challenge of business innovation and transformation.

Making the shift from IT programme delivery to business transformation is itself a major organisational change. And action is required at many levels – see box.

The resulting challenges present a major opportunity for the chief information officer (CIO) to provide leadership within the business, and to develop a more valuable role as a manager for the IT function.

To build on IT programme management and to establish a business transformation capability, a number of important shifts in focus and mindset are required:

1 From technology delivery to benefits realisation

It is vital to recognise the business opportunities provided by new technology. It is also vital to focus on the potential benefits for customers and other stakeholders, rather than delivery of a technology system.

2 From project delivery to business transformation

Most project frameworks are too limited in scope. If we focus on business change – rather than project delivery – there is an opportunity to focus on crucial areas, such as innovation, communication and education. We can also start to address wider issues, including attitudes, performance measures and the role of management.

3 From requirements definition to business innovation

In many situations, there is a need for creativity and innovation as we explore how to deliver value to customers and understand the opportunities for new ways of working. Such methods require a very different approach to projects. There must be an emphasis on learning and exploration, often through pilots, rather than defining requirements in detail up-front.

4 From IT methodology to business transformation toolkit

We must not try to make business managers learn the IT jargon and technology-driven methods. Organisations need to develop a flexible toolkit for business transformation that is well matched to the way the business teams work and enables them to get involved and lead the transformation projects effective ly.

The implications of transformation for the role of the CIO and the IT function are significant. Strong IT programme management skills are one foundation to build on – but a lot more is required. Transformation implies a greater focus on innovation, on engagement with people. Business transformation is also an organisation-wide capability and the lead role becomes one of championing, facilitating and educating.

Colin Ashurst, senior teaching fellow, programme director of the executive masters in business transformation and chief information officer at Durham Business School.