Technology & Innovation

Taking control of technology

April 10, 2014

Global

April 10, 2014

Global

A series of reports, sponsored by Oracle, examining how and why business units outside the IT department are taking greater control over technology

Every department of every business relies on technology to do its job. Until recently, though, business units were almost entirely dependent on the IT department to meet their technology needs.

That is changing, as a new programme of research by the Economist Intelligence Unit has discovered. 

Based on a survey of 271 senior managers and executives, as well as in-depth interviews, the programme examined how departmental attitudes towards technology are changing; the expected impact of their growing technological autonomy of business units; and the effect on the IT department. 

The results of the research programme are explored in detail in four research reports, sponsored by Oracle, each examining different sections of the business. Use the tabs above for more information, or click on the titles below to download the reports

The key findings are as follows:

  • Mobile technology and cloud computing are changing the way we work. Mobile is allowing organisations to collaborate and interact with customers at all hours of the day, while cloud is removing the barriers to technology adoption. 
     
  • Employees in all departments are becoming increasingly tech-savvy. This, and the growing sophistication of consumer technology, mean more workers consider technology to the be something they can control. 
     
  • Most business leaders expect to have more control over technology in future. This means that the technology they use is more likely to meet their needs and deliver a return on investment, they believe, although it will also mean more work. 
     
  • Those leaders are confident in their ability to manage technology - up to an extent. There are some jobs, like data integration and technology strategy, that should be left up to the IT department. 
     
  • Collaborating with the IT department is the most popular technique for improving technology management. And most respondents believe that collaboration is getting better. 

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