Attack of the killer Bs

Business process management could be your saviour, writes Simon Sharwood - if anyone could agree on what it is.

Radio signals shake-up

Managing a supply chain efficiently can make or break a company, but Australian firms seem reluctant to take up a key technology - radio tagging. Michael Crawford and Ben Woodhead report.

Is the grass really greener?

A move to a supplier organisation may be sneered at by some but a senior role at a vendor firm can bolster a CIO's chances of getting the top job, Paul Smith writes.

Surviving merger mayhem

It can make or break a deal, and a smooth integration is crucial for success. For CIOs, grasping the prize at the end means starting early, Chris Jenkins writes.

Master strokes

They're cashed-up and spending big-time, but will recent acquisitions by IBM, SAP and Oracle mean a change to your BI strategy? David Braue investigates.

Excavating IT

An overhaul of the IT network of Australian mining and civil construction group Macmahon Holdings integrated access and operations. Jack Loo reports on how this transformation has made life easier for employees.

Worth their weight in gold

It is folly to ignore and risk losing the knowhow and experience of older employees, especially during times of skills shortages, Cynthia Morrison Phoel writes.

When IT gets personal

Wi-Fi, smartphones and now Facebook are swamping the office environment. Michael Crawford asks IT chiefs how they deal with the rising tide of consumer gadgets.

When foes join forces

We often harp on at MIS about the crucial role technology plays in business, and we hope the articles have, on occasion, been useful tools for chief information officers to highlight their areas of achievement to unappreciative colleagues.

Spinning wheels

The honeymoon is over, and the Rudd government needs to drop its grandiose symbolism, sharpen its fiscal razor and rein in IT trough feeding, Julian Bajkowski writes.

Chart a new course

It's time we stopped thinking of hierarchy and started stressing purpose, governance and corporate culture to attain superior performance, Mary Ann Maxwell writes.

Five easy pieces

The federal government's ICT review has agency CIOs and vendors alike pondering the best way to respond. Steve Hodgkinson has some suggestions to offer.

Selling the sizzle

In the face of tightening economic conditions and fiercer competition, vendors are trumpeting their communications efforts loudly, Chris Morris writes.

Private domain

Online spying has become easier, so just how far can you pry? Damian Ward explores some modern dilemmas surrounding privacy, exiting a contract and copyright.

Wonks in solidarity

In the eyes of your colleagues, the CIO and the company's contact centre manager may have more in common than either party realises, Simon Sharwood writes.

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Off the shelf

Books of the Month

BHP finalises global IT strategy

BHP Billiton has finalised a new global information technology strategy that opens the door for the resources giant to determine the fate of a $700 million computer outsourcing contract that has been in limbo since late last year.

Myer goes it alone with leaner systems

Department store operator Myer has launched an information technology cost-cutting drive as it works to refine computer systems following the severing of its final links to former parent Coles Group in April.

Spending sign of ICT gloom

Australia's ICT industry is showing signs of a slowdown, with KPMG reporting that capital investment in information systems would dip over the next 12 months.

Net closes on agents as travellers get away

Travel agents are under pressure to come up with more sophisticated holiday packaging as a surge in the number of people booking air fares and accommodation online shakes up the country's $2.7 billion travel services industry.

Lines kept open to AAPT

AAPT's chief operating officer Bob Hennessy has left the embattled Australian arm of Telecom NZ to become managing director of BearingPoint's financial services business in Australia.

NZ Steel IT spend jumps

Metals manufacturer BlueScope Steel has revealed it pumped more than $20 million into information systems upgrades in its New Zealand and Pacific operations over the past four years.

National health records edges forward slowly

Plans to give every Australian a portable electronic medical record have been delayed by at least three years, despite state and federal authorities investing more than $150 million in e-health programs since 2000.

Northern Territory rebrands ICT deputy as CIO

The Northern Territory has created a new government-wide CIO position following the resignation of one of its most senior technology leaders.

People First running a distant second

Questions are mounting over the NSW government's $565 million People First information technology consolidation project, amid concerns that it lacks transparency and is yet to deliver on key targets.

Suncorp cherry-picks the best pieces of Promina

Rapid improvements in technology efficiency have driven faster-than-expected savings at Suncorp-Metway, following the purchase of Promina last year, Suncorp chief information officer Jeff Smith says.