With Halloween a week away, time to share insights into one of the cost areas that in many entities has turned out to be a horror story.
Shadow IT - information #technology projects that are managed outside of, and without the knowledge of, the #IT department.
Historically limited to unapproved Excel macros or software installed by employees. It has grown exponentially in recent years, advisory firms estimating that 40% of all IT spending occurs outside the IT department.
This rapid growth is partly driven by the quality of consumer applications in the #cloud. #Applications at face value help increase #productivity but the risks that they open a business up to if not managed can be significant. Scary #statistic, when IT examines the use of cloud services, generally Shadow IT is 10X more prevalent than they initially assumed.
Not all shadow IT is bad for a business, flying blind is. It is important for businesses to conduct detailed assessments into their IT budgets, departments & the entire application landscape. Done correctly this will identify #risks, IT overlap & cost #saving opportunities.
If not conducted correctly, well…consider what the impact of 40% extra costs to your current IT budget would have on strategic decisions.
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