An IT finance team once completed a prioritization exercise during the kickoff of an ITFM implementation. They identified 60 key capabilities they wanted the system to deliver.
Meanwhile, the CIO who funded the initiative had laid out just three high-level strategic outcomes he expected in return for the investment.
When the IT finance team was asked to categorize their 60 priorities under the CIO’s three outcomes, fewer than 20 matched. The rest reflected tactical preferences that, while valid, were disconnected from the CIO’s strategic goals.
This kind of misalignment is not uncommon. In fact, it’s one of the leading reasons ITFM programs fail. Below, we explore the most common—and fatal—failure points in ITFM initiatives, and practical strategies to avoid them.
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1. Strategic vs. Tactical Misalignment
The example above highlights the large-scale misalignment between the outcomes leadership wants versus what IT finance teams execute in a given ITFM implementation project. What often happens is that 18 months later, when the program isn’t yielding the results the CIO expected, they pull funding or start over entirely.
This disconnect is a chronic issue in ITFM, and one of the most fatal. The most effective way to prevent this is to align the implementation roadmap to the executive sponsor’s strategic priorities from day one—and revisit them frequently throughout the program’s lifecycle.
2. Lack of Executive Sponsorship
Executive sponsorship is a non-negotiable requirement for ITFM success. It doesn’t matter how well you execute your ITFM program, without active support from the CIO or CFO, it’s only a matter of time before you lose momentum and fail.
Gaining executive buy-in starts with a clearly defined value proposition in terms of what the solution will deliver, which is something that needs to be communicated across leadership.
3. Data Quality Issues
ITFM projects can stall out when faced with poor data quality, but it doesn’t have to be a dealbreaker. That is, if you have a methodology in place to compensate for these issues.
When systems don’t track which applications certain infrastructure supports, for example, one proven approach is to use proximity-based estimates. A simple survey can capture how time or capacity is distributed across services, using quarterly estimates as a temporary bridge until the organization has a better way to track the information.
The key is working with a partner who not only understands how to navigate these data gaps, but also uses them as opportunities to help the organization mature its ITFM program over time.
4. Cost Model Challenges
Cost models are the engine of any ITFM platform. But they fail in two predictable ways: being either too complex or too simplistic. In either case, decisions don’t drive the intended results, eroding trust and buy-in.
A proven ITFM partner with expertise in managing enterprise-scale IT budgets can help avoid this problem by giving you a strategic roadmap for building a cost model that is:
- Accurate
- Defensible
- Responsive
If you’re doing it yourself, don’t boil the ocean. Start small and build iteratively, focusing first on the points that will give you the most traction sooner.
5. Weak Stakeholder Education
Even if your cost model is accurate to the penny, it’s useless if nobody knows how to use it or leverage results from it. One of the most overlooked failure points in ITFM programs is the lack of stakeholder education, including at the executive level.
While most people understand traditional FP&A, that’s not the case with ITFM, which is often brand new for many. Unless you drive that education across your team on a regular basis, you won’t be able to leverage the full potential of your ITFM program.
Training should start with executives, who need to understand what the system enables and how they can leverage reporting outputs. Any implementation should necessarily include a robust onboarding program that includes training for:
- Solution administrators
- External stakeholders and leadership
- ITFM team members
6. Talent Gaps and Turnover
Because ITFM expertise is rare, it’s not uncommon to see ITFM programs led by a single experienced consultant or internal champion. The problem is that ITFM only runs well as long as that person stays with the company.
Software implementations that rely on “stand-up and leave” engagements are also vulnerable, given that few consultants stick around long enough to find out how their guesses played out. Look instead for a proven implementer like Nicus with a full suite of services and industry experts who can definitively tell you the implications of decisions throughout the process.
While we have focused in this article on ITFM, it’s important to note that ITFM is a critical component of any Technology Business Management (TBM) project too. That means these exact same points of failure for ITFM projects also plague TBM projects.
Effectively implementing an ITFM solution demands strategic alignment, robust stakeholder education, and technology that’s built to manage the complexity of today’s IT landscape. When those elements are in place, ITFM becomes a lever for visibility and control, and drives better decisions across the business, leading to significant organizational value.
Blog: Learn more about the importance of IT cost models in Why ITFM Projects Fail, Part II: An IT Cost Modeling Deep Dive
