Dear Mr. Lundquist,

I like your articles. It looks like you have a habit of thinking. So, I'd like to ask you: do you think that Computer Science should have some relation to IT and vice-versa? And, if yes, does it?

Why do your 10 top priorities for CIO differ in content, number, terms, and concepts from any other analyst's list on this matter? Why do the very top CIOs from CIO Magazine's top 100, when telling breathtaking stories about their success mention different objectives and means and use different terms and concepts when describing them?

They look like some psychics born with supernatural abilities to see mystical IT problems and mystically resolve them no matter what semi-meaningless trivialities they say. They look like members of some secret order, not like scientific practitioners. They seem to be managers able to do only one thing: cut IT costs no matter what.

So, what about my own list for CIOs (and CEOs etc.), one that is, for a change, Computer Science based:
1. Presumptions:
1a. Your (IT) problems are common for all enterprises and related to a dramatically increased level of complexity.
1b.Computer Science (CS) is IT's methodological base and therefore the source of the solution to these problems;
1c. Like any science, CS faces increased complexity with an increased level of abstraction. The previous, Design phase has exhausted its capabilities; it is the Enterprise Architecture phase now.
2. Priorities:
2a. Choose an Enterprise Architecture Transformation Framework. Choose wisely, do not go for bureaucratic 'maturity', go for a real stage-by-stage transformation roadmap identifying Who is doing What, When, Where, How, and Why in your company?
2b. Implement this roadmap, prioritizing by business needs, ROI, and the ability to swallow what has been bitten.

That's IT. Happy hunting!

Wolf Rivkin
Chief Architect
B-Wave Software LLC
www.b-wavesoft.com