per•cep•tion

-Cambridge Dictionary of American English

Oscar Wilde wrote, "The cynic knows the price of everything and the value of nothing," and today, within far too many businesses, his aphorism aptly describes the problem with the perception of IT. Those who doubt IT’s value (and rail against its cost) are everywhere—in the boardroom, among the CXO ranks, heading up business units and among the end users.

True, CIOs are making tremendous strides toward boosting IT’s credibility. Many are overseeing a balanced portfolio of IT work and practicing good project management. Some have figured out how to run their IT shops like disciplined businesses. And plenty of IT chiefs have a seat at the executive table.

But data from our new survey, "Turning IT Doubters into True Believers," indicates that the business side’s take on IT is still less than stellar. Even among companies with a solid reputation in the IT community, the average business perception of IT’s value is an unimpressive 6.05 on a scale of one to 10 (with one being extremely negative and 10 being extremely positive).

The biggest complaints? IT costs too much. It takes too long to deliver benefits or doesn’t deliver them at all. IT is a commodity that fails to deliver differentiation. It doesn’t line up with business strategy.

In many cases, these perceptions of IT are misperceptions, based on a lack of understanding or awareness. Not that that matters. "When you get to a certain level in an organization, perception is reality," says George Tillmann, vice president and CIO of Booz Allen Hamilton, a $3.1 billion management and IT consultancy. "You can argue [that it’s unfair] til you’re blue in the face, but it really won’t get you anywhere."

Because people act on their perceptions, whether valid or not, a negative view of IT can have real consequences for the organization. Most notably, according to survey participants, companies that value IT less miss out on opportunities for innovation and growth and, ironically, spend IT dollars inefficiently. "If a business doesn’t believe in IT and doesn’t believe that investing in IT is a choice that will produce results, they can put themselves at a competitive disadvantage" to companies that believe in IT and do invest, says Michael Gerrard, vice president at Gartner.

The good news is that CIOs can change how the business perceives IT and its value. Using a combination of measurement and communication practices, along with alignment-enhancing moves, CIOs can turn adversaries into allies and doubters into true believers—that is, businesspeople who regard IT as a strategic partner capable of delivering high value to the enterprise. The CIO’s success depends on it. "You absolutely have to have people that believe in you," says Dave Holland, CIO of Genesys Health System.