1. Develop skills to lead IT more effectively within the context of a larger organisation

2. Provide a strategic understanding of the role of IT within the organisation

3. Explore and debate critical isses related to managing and administering IT within the organisational context

4. Investigate the various functions that an IT organisation must perform, and the best ways to make decisions about how to perform these functions, particularly within the context of the organisational need

Assess the value of IT to an organisation

Analyse key issues in IT budgeting

Differentiate options in sourcing resources for an organisation with advantages and disadvantages

Develop effective risk management approaches

Explain why planning is important to IT organisations

Assess the level of maturity of an IT organisation, and explain the factors that contribute to maturity

Identify the key operational issues and capabilities required to deliver IT services and the role of standards

Week 1:  Introduction and Value of IT 

Topics: Critically discuss the evolution of Information Technology and its role in the organisation over the past forty years; Recognise and assess the dynamic nature of IT and the management challenges related to this high rate of change;  Analyse the dynamic interrelationship between business and IT strategy.

Week 2:  IT Strategy Implementation: The Technology Roadmap and Tactical Planning

Topics: Assess the challenges involved in implementing managing IT infrastructure and standards; Evaluate strategies used to deliver IT functionality to the organisation and be able to decide where and when to use these strategies.

Week 3:  IT Governance:  Budgets, Stages of IT Maturity, IT Portfolio Management 

Topics: Analyse the value of managing IT projects from a portfolio perspective; Determine key issues in IT budgeting; Assess IT maturity and understand the factors that contribute to a more mature IT organisation.

Week 4:  Acquiring Software:  Outsourcing, Vendor and Contract Management

Analyse the challenges in working with vendors and negotiating contracts; Evaluate the different options in sourcing and what the advantages/disadvantages and potential concerns with each are;  Explore alternative methods for acquiring software (buy vs build options).

Week 5:  Standards and Best Practice (ITIL, CoBIT, CMM etc)

Topics: Comparte frameworks for identifying, improving, managing a nd maturing core IT capabilities 

Week 6:  IT Role in Compliance, Privacy and Legal Considerations 

Topics: Assess some of the major regulations and their significance; Analyse the impact of government regulation on IT; Evaluate ways that IT can support an effective policy and regulatory compliance programme.

Week 7:  Managing and Developing IT Capabilities:  Managing Risk and Change 

Summarise the challenges IT faces in managing change from an organisational perspective; Analyse frameworks for identifying, improving, managing and maturing core IT capabilities; Evaluate IT-based risk management practices in the organisation.

Week 8: IT Innovation and Emerging Technologies 

Determine key issues related to IT use and management within the organisation as information technology continues to evolve; Explore the processes and practices organisations are using to investigate new ways of using IT; Assess how organisations are conceptualising and managing the new technologies such a social computing, web/cloud services.

Virtual classroom hours (for online modules) -

Number of hours per week, per student expected in the virtual classroom in discussion, dedicated to group work and individual assessment is 8.75.

Non-classroom hours (for online modules) -

Number of hours per week, per student expected for reading, research and other individual work to support engagement in the classroom is 10.