Cost Control Metrics in the IT Industry

Every business manager knows that the ultimate project is controlling cost while increasing productivity without compromising efficiency and quality. However, this seems to be a very taxing challenge when it comes to Information Technology. There is a big gap to close in terms of cost effectiveness in developing software. It is therefore important to apply cost control metrics in this type of industry so there is validated data in measuring whether plans and management systems are really working or not. At least, measuring this metric means that the decisions are based on data or numbers and not on whims or assumptions.When one person develops a software program, he has to sift through thousands and thousands of data and see the source of the error. This requires a lot of time and any manager will think that the person who is supposed to troubleshoot the software is not working hard. So, just imagine if there are several projects going on, this means there are a lot of manpower and time needed to get the jobs done. It is now the challenge of the manager to find out ways how to make sure that the projects are finished on time.One metric that can be used in the IT industry is the Service Request Policy or Help Desk Policy. This has something to do with addressing concerns of other departments that have something to do with their computers. There has to be a standard turnaround time for this and there has to be a minimum resolution rate. If the IT department cannot fix certain bugs, other personnel will not be able to complete their tasks.As a general metric for the IT Industry, though, managers can use an Application Version Control Standard. This is a means of being on top of things as far as innovations and developments are concerned. So many people develop problems in their own software programs because they keep on changing them. One of the best ways to combat this is to have a standard procedure in controlling upgrades.In most cases, not one can really know the value of a certain piece of software unless it can be quantified. The problem here is that no one will know for sure how much to spend unless one knows how much the project is really worth. In reality, less than 10% is actually spent on Information Technology initiatives. This is precisely because once a company is done with the placement of the basic technology; they do not invest more as long as the business is up and running.What a lot of managers fear is the cost of these initiatives. As a solution to this fear and problem, managers should apply certain metrics that will help establish a standardized way of knowing if action plans are backed-up by data. As a general rule, cost control metrics do not only have to do with direct cost cutting methodology. There certainly are processes in there that one needs to look into to save on costs, not only in manpower, but also in the actual process in completing the tasks.