No other target of investment is likely to generate higher returns than innovation.1 While this isn't news for many companies, the fact that a growing number use performance measures to manage innovation should be of interest to those who don't.

For Cutter Benchmark Review (CBR), Cutter Consortium has conducted three annual worldwide surveys about IT budget practices, and, in 2008, conducted a worldwide survey about dynamic IT and the impact of IT governance on the ability of companies to be dynamic.1 The participants were global in scope (about half from North America with the remaining from other parts of the world).

Concerns over a recession are affecting business and IT organizations globally -- private and public sectors alike. A number of economists and industry analysts submit that most companies need to realign their business and IT strategies to maintain a balanced state of operations for the next couple of years.

Despite the promises of service-oriented architecture (SOA), many organizations are increasingly encountering difficult governance issues as they start to ramp up their early SOA efforts.

Like the stock market, IT projects can be volatile: requirements can change; scope can creep; unknown dependencies can appear; teams can get mired down in myriad ways; technology can fail; executive sponsorship can evaporate; schedules can jitter; and dates can slip.

Organizations today are in the throes of profound change fostered by technical evolution and economic crisis. One of the most significant is the continued growth in collaboration within the company and with the supply chain -- and even with customers. The importance of collaboration has grown steadily since the 1970s, with significant additional impetus applied by digitization.

Organizations today are in the throes of profound change fostered by technical evolution and economic crisis. One of the most significant is the continued growth in collaboration within the company and with the supply chain -- and even with customers. The importance of collaboration has grown steadily since the 1970s, with significant additional impetus applied by digitization.

Organizations today are in the throes of profound change fostered by technical evolution and economic crisis. One of the most significant is the continued growth in collaboration within the company and with the supply chain -- and even with customers. The importance of collaboration has grown steadily since the 1970s, with significant additional impetus applied by digitization.

Back in early January, I said that the most important BI-related initiative for organizations in 2009 would be business performance management (see "Business Performance Management Tops '09 Strategy List," 6 January 2009). In fact, I recommended that you consider business performance management a strategic application.

Back in early January, I said that the most important BI-related initiative for organizations in 2009 would be business performance management (see "Business Performance Management Tops '09 Strategy List," 6 January 2009). In fact, I recommended that you consider business performance management a strategic application.

As it was two millennia ago, today a decimation of sorts remains a distressing part of our cultural experience.

I recently had an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) procedure performed on my knee. The report was full of such words as joint effusion, medial patellar plica, acute medullary bone contusions, and medial femoral condyle. While my doctor could easily read and interpret the report for me, my attempts to understand the report were doomed.

I am sitting here, sipping my free cup of coffee at McDonald's, looking across the parking lot at the huge going-out-of-business banners strung across the entrance to my local Circuit City store.

"I wonder," I joked with the McDonald's manager, who I know pretty well, "if they had to pay for those banners up front and in cash?"

I am sitting here, sipping my free cup of coffee at McDonald's, looking across the parking lot at the huge going-out-of-business banners strung across the entrance to my local Circuit City store.

"I wonder," I joked with the McDonald's manager, who I know pretty well, "if they had to pay for those banners up front and in cash?"

I am sitting here, sipping my free cup of coffee at McDonald's, looking across the parking lot at the huge going-out-of-business banners strung across the entrance to my local Circuit City store.

"I wonder," I joked with the McDonald's manager, who I know pretty well, "if they had to pay for those banners up front and in cash?"

There's an embedded hierarchy in the deployment of Web 2.0 technology. Our interview, observation, and survey data all suggest that the lowest-hanging fruit -- surprise -- gets picked first.1 Wikis, blogs, and social networks -- perhaps because of their C2C origins -- have been deployed more than the other technologies.

There's an embedded hierarchy in the deployment of Web 2.0 technology. Our interview, observation, and survey data all suggest that the lowest-hanging fruit -- surprise -- gets picked first.1 Wikis, blogs, and social networks -- perhaps because of their C2C origins -- have been deployed more than the other technologies.

I am sitting here, sipping my free cup of coffee at McDonald's, looking across the parking lot at the huge going-out-of-business banners strung across the entrance to my local Circuit City store.

"I wonder," I joked with the McDonald's manager, who I know pretty well, "if they had to pay for those banners up front and in cash?"

I am sitting here, sipping my free cup of coffee at McDonald's, looking across the parking lot at the huge going-out-of-business banners strung across the entrance to my local Circuit City store.

"I wonder," I joked with the McDonald's manager, who I know pretty well, "if they had to pay for those banners up front and in cash?"

I am sitting here, sipping my free cup of coffee at McDonald's, looking across the parking lot at the huge going-out-of-business banners strung across the entrance to my local Circuit City store.

"I wonder," I joked with the McDonald's manager, who I know pretty well, "if they had to pay for those banners up front and in cash?"

Before I start to lay out an appropriate outsourcing strategy for agile projects, here is one major piece of advice: If you have the choice, don't do it!

Before I start to lay out an appropriate outsourcing strategy for agile projects, here is one major piece of advice: If you have the choice, don't do it!

Here is a question: "What will the computing environment of a midsize enterprise be in 2020?" That is, it seems to me, a fair question. The year 2020 is just about 11 years away (10 years if you're in government), and a decade is just a blink of the eye. What programming language will you be developing systems in: Java, .NET, Python, Ruby -- something else? What database management system will you be using? What computing platform will your organization be using: centralized, decentralized, on the cloud?

Gaining momentum for any type of IT architectural effort partly depends on the organization's level of architecture adoption maturity. Push too soon, and the necessary infrastructure won't have had time to mature, and your solutions won't scale.

Here is a question: "What will the computing environment of a midsize enterprise be in 2020?" That is, it seems to me, a fair question. The year 2020 is just about 11 years away (10 years if you're in government), and a decade is just a blink of the eye. What programming language will you be developing systems in: Java, .NET, Python, Ruby -- something else?