Executive Guide Measuring Performance And Demonstrating Results Of Information Technology Investments

To assist agencies in understanding and devising effective IT measurement implementation approaches, public and private org. well-known for their IT performance, leadership and mgmt. expertise were examined. Chapters: the demand for performance mgmt.; fundamental practices: the foundation of IT performance mgmt.; follow an IT "results chain"; follow a "balanced scorecard" approach; target measures, results, and accountability at decision-making tiers; build a comprehensive measurement, data collection, and analysis capability; strengthen IT processes to improve mission performance; key lessons learned for effective implementation.

To help federal agencies devise effective approaches to measuring information technology implementation, GAO reviewed public and private organizations well-known for their performance leadership and management expertise in information technology. GAO took the lessons learned from these groups and developed a framework for agencies to consider when designing and implementing their information technology performance management approaches. GAO's hope is that this will lead to more informed decision-making about information technology investments at a time when resources are limited and public expectations for government services are high. The key practices and steps outlined in this guide can help agencies achieve success.

Virtually all of the executive agencies have appointed Chief Information Officers (CIO), & many have taken positive steps toward the implementation of information management (IM) processes specified by law. To reap the full benefits of IM reform, Federal agencies must utilize the full potential of CIOs as IM leaders & participants in the development of agency strategic plans & policies. The CIOs must meet the challenge of building credible IM organizations, & developing & organizing IM capabilities to meet agency mission needs. This guide will assist Fed. agencies in maximizing the success of CIOs. Offers concrete suggestions on what agency executives can do to ensure the effectiveness of their CIO organizations.

If managed wisely, investments in information technology (IT) can enrich people's lives and improve organizational performance. For example, during the last decade the Internet has matured from being a technical novelty to a national resource where citizens can visit the Library of Congress or file their tax returns. Some organizations have realized substantial improvements in processing data and information by switching from centralized mainframe computing to decentralized personal computers linked by local area networks. The ability of software applications to locate and correlate relevant data in a data warehouse permits organizations to discover unknown fiscal or physical resource relationships and thus provide appropriate assistance where there had been none. The Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996' was enacted to address many of the problems related to federal IT management.