Symptoms: Poor or low morale is probably one of the most common IT difficulties. Its sources are many – overwork, conflicting and shifting priorities, lack of challenging work, poor oversight and direction, personality conflicts, and others. “IT people” are often seen as “different” – out of touch with the business – too technical, and sometimes, too odd. No wonder they often view their jobs as thankless, or their contributions as undervalued. 

Fixes: Morale problems are usually underlain by other issues, as discussed above. Addressing root causes assists in curing morale problems, but it is not the whole story. The complete cure lies in taking a view of the whole person – personality, skills, interests, intelligence, learning, and motivation and assessing those characteristics and the fit with the fabric of the technology architecture, the team, and the organization. Management must then: provide clear direction, hire good people, remediate non- or poor performance, promote a team dynamic, project and hire to a clear profile of technology needs, and communicate the needs of the organization and IT’s contribution to meeting those needs.

Most Commonly Experienced by: All Executive Staff, Boards, and External Advisers

Relevant Services: IT Strategy, Process, Management: Interim CIO / vCIO