Presentation

Introduction

Information technology management can be defined as the process through which all the resources that are associated with information technology are maintained in accordance with the needs and priorities of a given organization. For example, some of the tangible resources which are related to the information technology include computers and networking hardware while the intangible resources associated with information technology include data and software. The major purpose of IT management in any organization is to generate great value through the effective utilization of the technology. However, in order to generate value through technology utilization, the business strategies of an organization should be aligned with technological advancements. Organizations are working towards keeping pace with the changes taking place in the technology world with the aim of ensuring that they remain relevant in the market[footnoteRef:1]. The technology keeps changing forcing the organizations to adopt the changes in their production mechanisms and operations. Technology information management is expected a change in the future as more advancements in technology are being experienced in different industries. Many organizations are working towards looking for technology-based solutions for the increased competition in the market. For example, information technology in organizations is being utilized with the aim of achieving efficiency in operations in order to reduce costs of production. This paper will be exploring the future of information technology management in operations of organizations. [1: Conklin, James, and George F. Hayhoe. "The Future of Technical Communication: How Innovation, Technology, Information Management, and Other Forces are Shaping the Future of the Profession Barbara A. Giammona." In Qualitative research in technical communication, pp. 63-96. Routledge, 2010.]

IT management in organizational operations

Information technology management plays a crucial role in managing operations of organizations in different sectors. For example, some of the basic roles that are played by information technology management include controlling, budgeting, organizing, and staffing. There are some unique functions of IT management such as technical support, network planning, change management, and software development[footnoteRef:2]. Organizations are working towards making sure that their technical support, software development, change management, and network planning are embracing the most recent technologies with the aim of attaining efficiency in operations. As a result, considering the fact that technology has been in a constant change, the future of information management seem to be advanced full of new innovations. In the future, information management technology is likely to be very sophisticated with many organizations making use of technology in a manner that is very innovative and creative[footnoteRef:3]. This is because business organizations rely on information technology to complement and support their operations. Therefore, in the future, the majority of the organizations will find it advantageous to have an IT department because of entirely depending on Information Technology when conducting business operations. [2: Sørensen, C. G., S. Fountas, E. Nash, Liisa Pesonen, Dionysis Bochtis, Søren Marcus Pedersen, B. Basso, and S. B. Blackmore. "Conceptual model of a future farm management information system." Computers and electronics in agriculture 72, no. 1 (2010): 37-47.] [3: Gonçalves, Joel Mana, and Rejane Pereira da Silva Gonçalves. "Overcoming resistance to changes in information technology organizations." Procedia Technology 5 (2012): 293-301.]

The majority of companies find it challenging to manage the information technology infrastructure because of the rapid changes in technology. The infrastructure managers are usually much concerned with the current trends of the information technology as they are expected to embrace the most recent technologies. For the past few years, the global business space has been characterized by information technology. IT is viewed to be the supporting system in a business organization thus the information technology infrastructure helps companies to be successful and remain competitive in the market. Currently, information is usually portrayed to be the main assets for the firms of both large scale and small scale. As a result, in future information technology management is likely to form an important and integral part of any organization that is competitive in any industry[footnoteRef:4]. This is because as a result of the technological invention and innovation, there has been a great improvement in the cost-effectiveness as well as the productivity of the information technology infrastructure. Besides, in the past, the management of information in the large companies has been tedious and a lot of resources were required. Companies are looking for ways of making it easy to manage information where technology has been embraced. As a result, information technology management is likely to keep changing as more and more companies are embracing technology in managing their information. [4: Eason, Kenneth D. Information technology and organisational change. CRC Press, 2014.]

Future changes in IT management of organizational operations

Currently, the invention of technologies such as cloud computing has enabled the effective management of data in various firms. For instance, cloud technology provides a company with a scalable and reliable solution to the firm`s needs and still minimizes the cost of running business operations. Some of the business models which include Platform as a Service, Software as a Service and Infrastructure as a service have been introduced through the cloud technology. The service providers of these business models always rely on the principle of the cloud when establishing virtual resources which are essential for companies[footnoteRef:5]. Even though the development of cloud technology makes the management of data to be effective, it still results in serious challenges which tend to be much expensive for the companies. The main concern in the management of the information technology infrastructure is the issue of information security because of the rapid advancement in the technological landscape due to the wireless devices being introduced[footnoteRef:6]. Nowadays, there are several devices which can be used in accessing business information via the internet. Thus, the internet network, as well as devices which can be used to access data from the internet, poses a threat to the business organizations. The information technology professionals are required to establish business models which ensure that business information of an organization is completely safe. As a result, information management is likely to be characterized by increased use of cloud computing in the future as many organizations seek ways of reducing costs associated with managing information. [5: Yang, Li-Ren, Jieh-Haur Chen, and Hsiao-Wen Wang. "Assessing impacts of information technology on project success through knowledge management practice." Automation in construction 22 (2012): 182-191.] [6: Buhalis, Dimitrios, and Rob Law. "Progress in information technology and tourism management: 20 years on and 10 years after the Internet—The state of eTourism research." Tourism management 29, no. 4 (2008): 609-623.]

The information technology management is taken to be a field in which the IT resources of a given company are managed based on the priorities and needs of the firm. Some of the information technology resources include; the information center facilities, networks, data, computer software, and hardware[footnoteRef:7]. The management of these IT resources in a given organization involves basic management functions such as controlling, organizing, change management, staffing and budgeting. Other unique aspects of technology which are essential in managing the information technology resources are technological support, network planning, and software design. Besides, the introduction of the business models such as the predictive systems, Platform as a Service, Infrastructure as a Service and the Software as a Service provides the steps which are required to be taken in the management of the IT infrastructure. The models minimize the downtimes associated with the IT infrastructure thus improving its productivity. The system of cloud technology has the ability to analyze information and provides business organizations with valuable data which is obtained through research findings. The smart machines function similarly like the cloud technology although they are programmed in a manner which enables them to make decisions without even human intervention. In the future time, the cloud infrastructure is expected to be able to assess the space which is needed and automatically make decisions by itself. Thus, the automation of the IT management systems will enable the business enterprises to become successful by improving their productivity[footnoteRef:8]. [7: Schwalbe, Kathy. Information technology project management. Cengage Learning, 2015.] [8: Gonçalves, Joel Mana, and Rejane Pereira da Silva Gonçalves. "Overcoming resistance to changes in information technology organizations." Procedia Technology 5 (2012): 293-301.]

IT management is an area which is growing at a very high rate. Many firms employ IT managers in order to assist business organizations in the process of upgrading technology. Changes are taking place in the technology world as many scholars are coming up with inventions aimed at enhancing efficiency in organizations. Information technology management and management information systems are gaining popularity in organizations due to the increase in technology use[footnoteRef:9]. However, there is a need to understand the difference between management information systems and information technology management. For example, the IT management is viewed to be the information technology which is associated with the management activities of an organization while the management information system focuses on the aspect of business where a strong technology input is incorporated into a business organization. The information technology management mainly focuses on the creation of value through the use of technology. In the future, many organizations are likely to take information technology management as a strategy of increasing their abilities in value creation[footnoteRef:10]. Technology adoption is also likely to increase among organizations in different sectors because business strategies are required to be aligned with the technological advancements in IT management. In an organization, the creation of value involves a network of associations between the external and internal environments and the aspect of technology enhances the general value chain of the organization. Therefore, in future technology management and business will be required to work together as a collaborative, synergistic and creative team. [9: Holtshouse, Dan K. Information technology for knowledge management. Springer Science & Business Media, 2013.] [10: Holtshouse, Dan K. Information technology for knowledge management. Springer Science & Business Media, 2013.]

The information technology resources were subjected to a single specified line of business, business application or computing technology. The IT resources provided support to a single set of the processes and requirements hence they could not be configured easily to support the real demand. As a result, the providers of the information technology are forced to establish product-centric management and infrastructure to complement them with a converged infrastructure in order to converge facilities, management, security, networking, storage, and servers[footnoteRef:11]. The presence of the automated and integrated management environment creates a room for the IT enterprises to adjust its resources which include networking, storage, and servers to meet the business demand which tends to be unpredictable. Every year, information technology seems to grow exponentially. As a result of having multiple formats of information, the management of data tends to become challenging for the companies. Consequently, the influx of information has made several firms to become victims of security breaches, data loss, and compliance violations because of their negligence to establish appropriate information governance. The information governance refers to a set of policies and processes which are implemented in an organization so as to manage data and meet the legal and regulatory requirements[footnoteRef:12]. Due to the changes and evolution which takes place in an organization, the management of information is quite challenging. The future of information technology is likely to be characterized by an increase in cyber-attacks due to increased use of social networks. The attackers accessing private and confidential data are likely to increase in the future as many organizations are embracing information technology in their communication systems. [11: Yang, Li-Ren, Jieh-Haur Chen, and Hsiao-Wen Wang. "Assessing impacts of information technology on project success through knowledge management practice." Automation in construction 22 (2012): 182-191.] [12: Laudon, Kenneth C., and Jane Price Laudon. Management information systems. Vol. 8. Prentice Hall, 2015.]

In the year 2015, the information technology management was portrayed to be a double-edged sword due to the invention of the cloud-based technology which was associated with both advantages and risks. For instance, the cloud-based technology assisted business users to access information easily and at the same time created risk for the organizations to become victims of the information breach. The main purpose of putting into place information governance in an organization is to assist in the mitigation of risks. Information breaches are likely to continue increasing in the future due to the fact that many organizations are embracing information technology management in their operations. This is because advancements in information technology management are accompanied by some security issues that are likely to increase risks associated with access to confidential data. For example, in the 21st century, more advancements and applications of the information technology are being witnessed especially in sharing of information[footnoteRef:13]. In a daily basis, information technology is being viewed as an integral part of the people`s life. The Information Technology Association of the United States of America defines information technology as the management, support, implementation, application, development, design or study of the information systems which are based on computer. In various aspects of society and business, information technology acts as an agent of change. For instance, information technology has facilitated a great change in resolving social and economic issues. Therefore, in future information technology management will be embraced as a strategy for resolving social and economic issues. [13: Marchewka, Jack T. Information technology project management. John Wiley & Sons, 2014.]

There are many changes that are being experienced in the application and advancement of information technology. For example, cloud computing is among the changes that are being experienced in information technology management with many future advancements being expected to take place. Cloud computing is one of the common concepts of information technology. It refers to the usage of the computing services such as the hardware and software through the internet. The cloud computing provides three major types of services which are the Software as a Service, Platform as a Service and Infrastructure as a Service. There are numerous benefits that are making many organizations embrace cloud computing in their operations. First, cloud computing helps in minimizing the cost of IT infrastructure of an organization hence reducing operational expenses. Second, cloud computing promotes the aspect of virtualization that enables storage device and server to be used in an organization[footnoteRef:14]. Third, cloud computing assists in making the maintenance of the hardware and software easy. However, there are some issues which are associated with cloud computing that can include IT governance, abuse, legal, security, compliance, and privacy. Management of organizations needs to consider IT governance, abuse, legal, security, compliance, and privacy when managing information technology. As a result, in the future, organizations are likely to increase restriction in the use of technology when managing IT in their operations. [14: Conklin, James, and George F. Hayhoe. "The Future of Technical Communication: How Innovation, Technology, Information Management, and Other Forces are Shaping the Future of the Profession Barbara A. Giammona." In Qualitative research in technical communication, pp. 63-96. Routledge, 2010.]

The increased use of mobile applications is among the future changes that are expected to take place in information technology management. The mobile applications are primarily aimed at enhancing information sharing with the support of the internet. Many people and organizations are now embracing increased mobile applications that can be associated with technological advancements. The mobile applications which are the software applications installed on tablets and Smartphones are another trend which has emerged within the field of information technology. Since its inception, the mobile application has been successful and they have been made available in the mobile operating systems such as Nokia, Blackberry and Apple. The mobile applications are usually designed so as to run on mobile devices like tablets and smartphones. Both the app developer and the app distributor share the revenue which is generated by the application. More sophisticated and innovative mobile applications are expected to be developed in the future with the aim of enhancing information sharing[footnoteRef:15]. In the future, information technology management is also likely to experience advancements in user interfaces. Since the inception of the touch screen, the user interface has greatly revolved[footnoteRef:16]. There are revolutionized ways of the touch screen which are used by the end users when interacting with the application. The capability of the touch screen is mostly used in information appliances, information kiosks, tablet, and smartphones. Therefore, in the future, the use of advanced touch screen will increase as the technology in communication provides new information solutions that are innovative. [15: Goo, Jahyun, Rajiv Kishore, H. Raghav Rao, and Kichan Nam. "The role of service level agreements in relational management of information technology outsourcing: an empirical study." MIS quarterly (2009): 119-145.] [16: Lucas Jr, Henry C., Ritu Agarwal, Eric K. Clemons, Omar A. El Sawy, and Bruce Weber. "Impactful Research on Transformational Information Technology: An Opportunity to Inform New Audiences." Mis Quarterly 37, no. 2 (2013).]

The use of social analytics is likely to increase in the future as organizations will increase the need to forecast future changes based on historical data. In the current years, there are several folds which have grown in the area of analytics. The term analytics refers to the process through which informational patterns of data can be discovered. The analytics field is made up of operations research, computer programming, and statistics. The tools which are used in analytics are social analytics, predictive analysis, and data analytics. The function of the data analytics tool is to support the process of making decisions by converting the raw data into information which is meaningful. The role of the predictive analytics tool is to forecast future events basing on the historical and current information[footnoteRef:17]. The social analytics tool is utilized by firms to accommodate and understand the needs of customers. For example, in the past 10 years, great changes, as well as advancement, have been experienced in the area of information technology. As a result of these emerging trends, the influence of the information technology on the business enterprises continues to increase thus assisting firms to serve their customers better. The increased competition among firms is increasing the need to forecast the future market changes with the aim of aligning the business strategies with future changes. As a result, in the future, the use of social analytical tools will increase as organizations will be working towards meeting the needs of the consumers in the market better than the rivals. [17: Majchrzak, Ann, and M. Lynne Markus. "Technology affordances and constraints in management information systems (MIS)." (2012).]

In addition, the ways of conducting business operations are still changing hence the information technology management is expected to continue experiencing changes. In the process of trying to adapt to the drastic evolving technology, some of the organizational departments tend to become agile. For instance, the information technology departments encounter tremendous changes because of the expansion of their roles thus affect the business strategies, sales and customer service[footnoteRef:18]. Therefore, the majority of the organizations view information technology as the driving force in every business aspect. For the case of the large companies, the IT department is viewed to be the key driver of invention and innovation because of the IT employees are always technological innovators who bring about changes in the entire organization by introducing new technologies. Apart from facilitating the goals of a business, IT workers act as the driving forces behind changes in an organization with the aim of realizing improvements in performance. Besides, there is a great need for the Information Technology World to impart its workers with updated technological skills because of the evolvement of IT as an interdisciplinary field[footnoteRef:19]. Since the technological machines are rapidly becoming intelligent, employees are required to be trained on how they should handle them. The IT departments should establish a workforce and create a culture which facilitates innovation and growth of a business. Importantly, an organization should look for a team of workers who are capable of handling various challenges which are encountered in business. As a result, a business organization should consider reskilling the existing employees so as to sustain the agility. The new workers being employed in an organization are supposed to be able to cope up with the rapid changes in technology. As a result of the rapid evolvement of technology, organizational operations are currently being driven by information technology. Therefore, in future information technology management will experience sophisticated changes in the way operations are done as organizations will continue automating their systems. [18: Nambisan, Satish. "Information technology and product/service innovation: A brief assessment and some suggestions for future research." Journal of the Association for Information Systems 14, no. 4 (2013): 215.] [19: Levina, Natalia, and Emmanuelle Vaast. "Turning a community into a market: A practice perspective on information technology use in boundary spanning." Journal of Management Information Systems 22, no. 4 (2006): 13-37.]

Conclusion

Innovations and advancements in technology will be the driving forces in the future of information technology management. This is because organizations are investing a lot in technology as they struggle to retain their market share in the competitive markets. As a result, organizations are likely to continue utilizing technology in the process of achieving efficiency in production. The management practices are likely to be enhanced as technology-based solutions will replace labor-intensive mechanisms hence increasing the quality of services and products offered in the market. However, information technology management will be faced by security-related challenges due to the possibility of increased cyber-crime attacks that can be associated with interconnections with public networks. The security of sensitive information in organizations will be compromised because of the high dependence on technology in operations. However, information sharing is likely to be improved in the future due to the fact that the fact people are now embracing technology in communications. Therefore, considering the high changes in technology, the future of information technology management will be full of challenges and advancements. This is because organizations will be forced to incur high costs in order to maintain their market share by keeping pace with technological change. As a result, there is a need for organizations to come up with strategies geared towards mitigating the risks associated with increased use of information technology.

Bibliography

Buhalis, Dimitrios, and Rob Law. "Progress in information technology and tourism management: 20 years on and 10 years after the Internet—The state of eTourism research." Tourism management 29, no. 4 (2008): 609-623.

Conklin, James, and George F. Hayhoe. "The Future of Technical Communication: How Innovation, Technology, Information Management, and Other Forces are Shaping the Future of the Profession Barbara A. Giammona." In Qualitative research in technical communication, pp. 63-96. Routledge, 2010.

Eason, Kenneth D. Information technology and organisational change. CRC Press, 2014.

Gonçalves, Joel Mana, and Rejane Pereira da Silva Gonçalves. "Overcoming resistance to changes in information technology organizations." Procedia Technology 5 (2012): 293-301.

Goo, Jahyun, Rajiv Kishore, H. Raghav Rao, and Kichan Nam. "The role of service level agreements in relational management of information technology outsourcing: an empirical study." MIS quarterly (2009): 119-145.

Holtshouse, Dan K. Information technology for knowledge management. Springer Science & Business Media, 2013.

Laudon, Kenneth C., and Jane Price Laudon. Management information systems. Vol. 8. Prentice Hall, 2015.

Levina, Natalia, and Emmanuelle Vaast. "Turning a community into a market: A practice perspective on information technology use in boundary spanning." Journal of Management Information Systems 22, no. 4 (2006): 13-37.

Lucas Jr, Henry C., Ritu Agarwal, Eric K. Clemons, Omar A. El Sawy, and Bruce Weber. "Impactful Research on Transformational Information Technology: An Opportunity to Inform New Audiences." Mis Quarterly 37, no. 2 (2013).

Majchrzak, Ann, and M. Lynne Markus. "Technology affordances and constraints in management information systems (MIS)." (2012).

Marchewka, Jack T. Information technology project management. John Wiley & Sons, 2014.

Nambisan, Satish. "Information technology and product/service innovation: A brief assessment and some suggestions for future research." Journal of the Association for Information Systems 14, no. 4 (2013): 215.

Schwalbe, Kathy. Information technology project management. Cengage Learning, 2015.

Sørensen, C. G., S. Fountas, E. Nash, Liisa Pesonen, Dionysis Bochtis, Søren Marcus Pedersen, B. Basso, and S. B. Blackmore. "Conceptual model of a future farm management information system." Computers and electronics in agriculture 72, no. 1 (2010): 37-47.

Yang, Li-Ren, Jieh-Haur Chen, and Hsiao-Wen Wang. "Assessing impacts of information technology on project success through knowledge management practice." Automation in construction 22 (2012): 182-191.

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