Dear Bob ... I'm wondering who the client was for the dashboard in your article. It sounds like an operational dashboard used by the CIO to make decisions or engage his direct reports to make decisions as a group. I'm working on several dashboard projects one of which is operational for the CIO and his exec team and the other of which is aimed at the organizations senior executives. The IT management group under Dear Bob …I’m wondering who the client was for the dashboard in your article. It sounds like an operational dashboard used by the CIO to make decisions or engage his direct reports to make decisions as a group. I’m working on several dashboard projects one of which is operational for the CIO and his exec team and the other of which is aimed at the organizations senior executives.The IT management group understands what operational metrics they want of the operational dashboard because it consists of the data they look for when they make day to day operational decisions. But when it comes to determining the metrics and presentation for the senior management dashboard we struggle to put together metrics that have meaning to non IT senior managers. I’m wondering if you have any advice for us on best case IT metrics that these managers can use to make decisions concerning IT spending, priorities, etc. I’m focusing on financial, customer care, and user satisfaction type metrics. Essentially “Are the users happy with what we’re giving them, does it enhance the customer care quotient and are we doing it cost effectively?” – Aaron LanceDear Aaron … The way I look at it, a CIO has to look at a network of 138 separate variables that affect IT effectiveness. At the top level they are business alignment, process maturity, technical architecture, and human performance.The CEO has a different perspective: All he or she usually cares about is cost, value, project success, and system uptime (and maybe performance).Cost is easy. The project success rate is easy. System uptime and performance are semi-easy. Value is the kicker, since IT is an enabler of value rather than a driver (see The value of an enabler for some guidance on the subject). One approach: Make sure all projects define their expected business value – the business sponsor’s responsibility, not IT’s responsibility. If the only accepted value measure is money, insist that Finance and Accounting provide an accepted means for translating various forms of intangible business benefits into financial measures. If your company makes use of a Balanced Scorecard, the impact of each project on the Balanced Scorecard measures should do.Really, whatever value criteria used in the IT governance process to determine which projects IT works on are the right ones to use.That’s the new value. For the value provided by non-discretionary IT spending, you either use the approach described in the KRJ link above, or you make the case that this value was delivered by past projects – non-discretionary IT spending is what lets you deliver that value again this year. This is the short version. The long one is way too long and complex for an e-mail exchange, I’m afraid.– BobPS: There is one other approach, but it isn’t very rigorous. Ask the CEO what he or she cares about, in English. Build your metrics around whatever the answer is, and call it a day. Technology Industry