From Bangalore to London to Boston, Smart Enterprise Exchange members are discussing the need for leaner business practices.

When I first learned that IT departments were following in the footsteps of their manufacturing peers, the idea made sense: Streamlining operations, focusing on customer value and eliminating waste will help save time and money while improving the customer experience It seemed straightforward.

What I didn’t consider — but our global members seem to know — is that the concept of Lean IT varies widely by industry and geography. And while guidelines such as ITIL® and Six Sigma may be used, Lean practices can be broadly applied to business and management with strategic implications.

So, when Orange Business Services’ CIO Vincent Kelly told attendees at our London event in June that Lean IT practices served as a foundation upon which the telecommunications company was revamped three years ago, I was intrigued. He described ways to incorporate Lean thinking to improve customer relations, make better offshoring decisions, demonstrate better TCO, and even get buy-in for green IT efforts.

As our reports from the event indicate, British CIOs “seem to hold some very diverse views of what constitutes the role of the CIO in the application of Lean thinking, and how to achieve a Lean organization.” You can catch up on other global Live Exchanges that you may have missed and read our reports from Rome and Canada.

Even while internal business processes are being optimized, CIOs must turn their attention to one of the most difficult challenges their organizations face: innovation. Smart Enterprise Exchange is hosting Live Exchanges in the U.S. on the topic of Practical Innovation, and we will be examining the theme in depth beginning in October. For some background and thought leadership on the subject, you may want to pick up a copy of Scott Anthony’s recent book, The Silver Lining (Harvard Business Press, 2009). As described in our new Smart Books feature in this month’s Business Technology Strategy track, Anthony challenges CIOs to think beyond spending cuts to view innovation as the way to “stop ineffective initiatives, change key business processes, and start more productive behaviors.” And that sounds quite a lot like the goals of Lean IT.

Finally, I invite you to join the conversation and post your own comments here on the Smart Enterprise Exchange. Do you find our new video on the Collaborative CIO valuable? If you attended one of our Live Events, share your experiences in your own blog. If you weren’t able to attend in person, begin a virtual discussion with your peers who were there. Ask a question of our experts or offer advice. Participation allows you to optimize the value of this community, so please connect with us.

Paula Klein
Editor and Community Manager
Smart Enterprise Exchange
editor@smartenterpriseexchange.com

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