Achieving Business Value Through ITFM: It’s Easier Than You Think

One of Aesop’s fables tells the story of a fox who spies a cluster of grapes just out of reach. The fox repeatedly tries grabbing the grapes, but its attempts end in failure. Eventually the fox quits, deciding the grapes are sour and not worth its attention.

Many IT leaders are in a similar quandary with IT financial management (ITFM). Repeated attempts to rein in IT spend have fallen short of your goals. And yet another quarter has gone by in which the opportunity for new investment slips through your fingers due to out-of-control spending.

Controlling costs and reinvesting the savings are still top priorities, but you’re at a loss for how to make headway toward reaching your goals and eliminating variances. If it’s any comfort, you’re not alone.

A recent survey by Forrester found that most organizations are falling short of their ITFM goals. Why? Because spreadsheets remain the tool of choice at 70 percent of the organizations surveyed. And 15 percent of IT budgets are stuck in contingency funding, limiting the available budget to fund digital transformation.[i]

ITFM’s impact and growing importance

Taken seriously, ITFM is a discipline that can reap huge dividends, which is why it’s gained so much attention in the public and private sectors. CIOs, IT leaders, and business executives have started adopting ITFM to improve the accounting, management, and analysis of their IT costs. And in the U.S., the federal government, and some state governments, have mandated the use of TBM (Technology Business Management), a variant of ITFM pioneered by the TBM Council.

ITFM is difficult but not impossible

ITFM should not be approached haphazardly. It’s based on specific tools and processes that many companies are still learning to use. Apptio is the leader in ITFM a.k.a. TBM and we can give you the actionable steps to adopt the ITFM discipline and start driving greater business value.

Download Forrester’s report: “ITFM — AKA TBM — Will Drive IT To Focus On Business Outcomes” to learn how to apply ITFM in your organization:

• Adopt ITFM to increase transparency and communicate business value – ITFM is a discipline that, once adopted, must mature over time.

• Establish the three pillars of ITFM success – Using ITFM effectively requires the ability to collect, store, and manage a database; to clearly communicate the meaning of that data to partners, and to use that data in driving conversations with key stakeholders.

• Select ITFM solutions with these key abilities – Though some level of ITFM can be performed with spreadsheets, a purpose-built ITFM solution is the best choice to sustain your efforts, protect your data and maximize your impact. For example, Apptio’s Insights & Action Plans automatically notifies you about opportunities to optimize costs, areas of hidden spend, variances from forecast and other places where you can take action.

Download: ITFM — AKA TBM — Will Drive IT To Focus On Business Outcomes

Watch our on-demand webinar with special guest, Bill Martorelli from Forrester for a deep dive into his report, “IT Financial Management – AKA TBM – Will Drive IT to Focus on Business Outcomes” to learn:

• Why IT leaders struggle with spending transparency
• How adopting an ITFM, a.k.a. TBM discipline, will drive business value
• Key best practices to consider when adopting ITFM aka TBM
• A breakdown of the 6 pillars of TBM and how to get started

[i] Forrester, “ITFM — AKA TBM — Will Drive IT To Focus On Business Outcomes,” October 15, 2019