Information technology management

IT management is the discipline whereby all of the technology resources of a firm are managed in accordance with its needs and priorities. These resources may include tangible investments like computer hardware, software, data, networks and data centre facilities, as well as the staffs who are hired to maintain them. Managing this responsibility within a company entails many of the basic management functions, like budgeting, staffing, and organizing and controlling, along with other aspects that are unique to technology, like change management, software design, network planning, tech support etc.^[1]

IT Management is a different subject from management information systems. Management information systems refer to information management methods tied to the automation or support of human decision making.^[2] IT Management, as stated in the above definition, refers to the IT related management activities in organizations. MIS as it is referred to is focused mainly on the business aspect with a strong input into the technology phase of the business/organization.

A primary focus of IT management is the value creation made possible by technology. This requires the alignment of technology and business strategies. While the value creation for an organization involves a network of relationships between internal and external environments, technology plays an important role in improving the overall value chain of an organization. However, this increase requires business and technology management to work as a creative, synergistic, and collaborative team instead of a purely mechanistic span of control according to Bird.^[3]

Historically, one set of resources was dedicated to one particular computing technology, business application or line of business, and managed in this silo-like fashion.^[4] These resources supported a single set of requirements and processes, and can’t easily be optimized or reconfigured to support actual demand.^[5] This has led the leading technology providers to build out and complement their product-centric infrastructure and management offerings with Converged Infrastructure environments that converge servers, storage, networking, security, management and facilities.^{[6] [7]} The efficiencies of having this type of integrated and automated management environment allows enterprises to get their applications up and running faster, with easier manageability and less maintenance, and enables IT to more rapidly adjust IT resources (such as servers, storage and networking) to meet fluctuating and unpredictable business demand.^{[8] [9]}

A definition is a passage that explains the meaning of a term (a word, phrase or other set of symbols), or a type of thing. The term to be defined is the definiendum. A term may have many different senses or meanings. For each such specific sense, a definiens is a cluster of words that defines that term. A chief difficulty in managing definition is the need to use other terms that are already understood or whose definitions are easily obtainable. The use of the term in a simple example may suffice. By contrast, a dictionary definition has additional details, typically including an etymology showing snapshots of the earlier meanings and the parent language.

SARA

Contents 1 IT infrastructure 2 List of IT management disciplines 3 IT managers 4 References

IT infrastructure

The term IT infrastructure is defined in ITIL v3 as a combined set of hardware, software, networks, facilities, etc. (including all of the information technology), in order to develop, test, deliver, monitor, control or support IT services. Associated people, processes and documentation are not part of IT Infrastructure.^[10]

List of IT management disciplines

The below concepts are commonly listed or investigated under the broad term IT Management:^{[11] [12] [13] [14]}

• Business/IT alignment
• IT governance
• IT financial management
• IT service management
• Sourcing
• IT configuration management

IT managers

IT managers have a lot in common with project managers but their main difference is one of focus: an IT manager is responsible and accountable for an ongoing program of IT services while the project manager's responsibility and accountability are both limited to a project with a clear start and end date.^[15]

Most IT management programs are designed to educate and develop managers who can effectively manage the planning, design, selection, implementation, use, and administration of emerging and converging information and communications technologies. The program curriculum provides students with the technical knowledge and management knowledge and skills needed to effectively integrate people, information and communication technologies, and business processes in support of organizational strategic goals.

Graduates should be able

1. to explain the important terminology, facts, concepts, principles, analytic techniques, and theories used in IT management.
2. to apply important terminology, facts, concepts, principles, analytic techniques, and theories in IT management when analyzing complex factual situations.
3. to integrate (or synthesize) important facts, concepts, principles, and theories in IT management when developing solutions to IT management multifaceted problems in complex situations.

References