- 21 November, 2008 03:37 PM EST
- We Need to Increase Productivity. IT Can Do It. EA Can Make that Happen.
Most of the globe is probably in a recession, which is generally defined as two quarters (or more) of negative growth, or contraction. This translates into organizations producing less, consumers purchasing less, and unemployment levels increasing. A cycle often ensues as the reduced consumption and reduced production leads to even more unemployment. Something must happen to break the cycle. Most attribute the end of the Great Depression in the United States to the United States' increased production, supplying supplies and munitions for our allies. One could argue an increase in productivity is needed now, more than ever, to break the current cycle of economic contraction. Where might this productivity come from? IT is a very plausible source of increased productivity. The great "Productivity Paradox" has been debunked. Information technology, intelligently applied, increases productivity. Information technology poorly applied decreases productivity. Thus, we now have two arguments: one for investing in IT to increase productivity and the other for ensuring that IT investments are intelligent to obtain productivity gains - not losses.
We are currently looking at a challenging situation. Simply stated, we are going to have to do more with less. IT can make this happen. In a recent study by Sinan Aral, Eric Brynjolfsson, and Marshall Van Alstyne [1], the authors demonstrated that IT enhances productivity, especially regarding the abilities to collaborate and multitask. Sounds like what we need right now.
Take a proactive position. Consider a technology productivity task force. While seemingly self serving, such a task force coming from enterprise architecture is quite reasonable. Where else are there people in an organization who are tech-savvy and tasked with enterprise optimization.
Shortly, I'll be publishing a research paper providing more explicit guidance for EA teams given the economy; however, consider this for now. We need to increase productivity. IT can do it. EA can make that happen. Enough said?
Reference
1. "Information, Technology and Information Worker Productivity," Aral, Sinan, Eric Brynjolfsson, and Marshall Van Alstyne. Social Science Research Network working paper, November 5, 2006.
