IT-Savvy Firms Lead the Way

Source: Accounting Today

Would you like your firm to have 20 percent more margin than the average CPA firm? Peter Weill, senior research scientist and chairman at MIT's Sloan Center for Information Systems Research, reports that IT-savvy firms have a 20 percent advantage in margin over their non-IT-savvy peers. Here are the five areas your firm should assess to determine its level of IT-savvy:

• Commitment: Do your leaders demonstrate their commitment to the strategic use of IT?
• Integration: Does your firm have a strategic plan and budget for IT? Is your chief information officer viewed as a leader within your firm?
• Politics: Is there any resistance toward IT within your firm? Do clients perceive your firm as united in its commitment to IT?
• Empowerment: Are your employees empowered to utilize your firm's IT in their jobs? Are you requesting input from your employees through a technology steering committee or surveys to ensure that your IT is a benefit to your users?
• Learning: Does your firm's IT platform enable employees to easily share information so they can learn from one another's mistakes? Is your firm using the knowledge you gain from IT mistakes to make better decisions in the future?

For the complete article, “Boomer's Blueprint: How IT-savvy is your firm?” and a quiz to determine how IT-savvy your firm is, click here.

From Accounting Today, June 7, 2010, SourceMedia Inc., One State Street Plaza, 27th Floor, New York, NY 10004, 800-221-1809.