12/09-05   -   Pressmeddelande

The European IT Forum 2005: Competitive Advantage Through Effective Corporate and IT Governance

The IT environment needs to be managed at the highest levels in order to optimize enterprise processes and ensure that business objectives are fulfilled effectively and coherently — this is the key issue for debate at the major annual European IT conference organized by IDC, The European IT Forum (http://www.idc.com/emea/itforum05). The event, which will take place in Paris on September 26 and 27, 2005, at Le Meridien Montparnasse, aims to offer senior managers, IDC analysts, economists, and IT opinion leaders a unique opportunity to meet and discuss the needs and future directions of the IT environment in Italy and Europe.

While the debate will still consider the importance of using innovative technology in order to change and improve business — IDC´s main objective — this year the forum will also focus on the latest business strategies within the IT environment, highlighting the most innovative and significant aspects. Particular attention will be paid during the event to IT governance as a strategic leverage for real competitive advantage. A study undertaken by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) incorporating 256 enterprises in 23 countries confirmed the valuable connection between the IT management capability and business revenues, and the findings of this study will be presented and analyzed by one of the leading experts on the role of IT governance in enterprises, Peter Weill, Director of the Center for Information Systems Research, Sloan School of Management, MIT.

IT governance is concerned with the delivery of value to the business and the mitigation of risk by the responsible and effective use of IT resources, aligning them to business activities and optimizing results. In reality, there are two perspectives of IT governance — the internally focused view and the externally focused view. The internal perspective addresses the issues associated with managing IT plans and resources for the best return and lowest risk; the external perspective addresses the issues associated with providing IT support for corporate governance.

In addition to Peter Weill, among the keynote speakers at the forum are: François Loos, Minister of Industry, France; Nicholas Negroponte, founder and director of the Media Laboratory, MIT; Jeremy Rifkin, president of the Foundation on Economic Trends; Luc Soete, director of the United Nations University Institute for New Technologies (UNU-INTECH) and the Maastricht Economic Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT); Lester Thurow, professor of management and economics, Sloan School of Management, MIT; John Gantz, chief research officer and IDC senior vice president; and Frank Gens, senior vice president — research, IDC.

Top management from the following sponsor companies will also attend the European IT Forum 2005: HP, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, SAP, Sun Microsystems, Cognos, Ericsson, Exact Software, Lucent Technologies, MCI, Symantec, Foundry Networks, FreeMove, Novell, Secuware, InvestInItaly, and Xerox.

For more information:
Roberta Lo Leggio
+39 (0)2 721431
roberta_loleggio@it.bm.com

About IDC
IDC is the premier global market intelligence and advisory firm in the information technology and telecommunications industries. We analyze and predict technology trends so that our clients can make strategic, fact-based decisions on IT purchases and business strategy. Over 700 IDC analysts in 50 countries provide local expertise and insights on technology markets. Business executives and IT managers have relied for 40 years on our advice to make decisions that contribute to the success of their organizations.

IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world´s leading technology media, research, and events company. Additional information can be found at www.idc.com

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