If you work in an Information Technology department, there will inevitably come a day that you have to "sell" some sort of technology to your business.  Whether it's a new product or system, a major upgrade to an existing system, or a replacement for something that exists, you and your team will at some point feel it is important to make an investment in something that hasn't specifically been asked for by your business users.

A great example is virtualization technology.  Rarely is this asked for or demanded by "business" departments - it is almost always introduced and/or recommended by the IT staff.  Another example might be an upgrade to Active Directory or a system management tool, or replacement of some core networking equipment.

The challenge is convincing the people who approve the budgets and sign the checks that your investment idea is worthwhile - they may not understand the technology or the benefits it brings.

Technical Reasoning Rarely Works

When IT staff begin to lobby for resources to implement some change, they often reason from a purely technical standpoint.  Here are some examples of the reasoning used, and why it is ineffective:

• "It is the latest and greatest." Very few business leaders care about being on the bleeding edge.  In fact, many fear it - they prefer to let other companies "work out the bugs" in a new technology, and only adopt it when it is considered very stable.
   
• "It is a best practice." Conforming to what other companies are doing doesn't necessarily hold any value to a business leader, especially if they do not understand the reasons for the "practice".  They may view this reason as the adult version of "all the other kids are doing it".
   
• "Look at all the features / benefits." IT staff often sell a new technology on certain features, which, in actuality, are not very important to the business.  They emphasize a "coolness factor", without demonstrating real business benefits.
   
• "It makes my job easier." The CEO or CFO of a company does not care much about making an IT staffer's job "easier", and certainly doesn't see any benefit in spending thousands (or hundreds of thousands) of dollars to do so.   They are already paying what they probably feel is too much for their IT staff to begin with.
   

Speak in Business Terms

In order to "sell" technology changes to your business, you have to remove yourself from the technology, and learn how to talk in business terms.  Business leaders want to see a tangible return on the money they are spending for your technology upgrade, and that typically manifests itself in one of three ways:

• Revenue Generation
• Expense Reduction
• Risk Mitigation

If you can demonstrate one of these three benefits, you have a much greater chance of getting your project / expenditure approved.  The core objective should be to solve some business problem, not a technology problem.  That requires you to think differently and to present your case differently.

Make the Case

Aside from using the wrong reasoning to justify a project or expense, the most likely reason for being denied is the presentation.  Here are three ways you can polish the "sales pitch" to your business leaders:

• Formalize your request. Choose carefully the time and place to make your request.  Avoid doing it over the phone or by e-mail, and don't make your request in a hallway conversation or by hijacking another meeting.  Never make the request without some supporting documentation.
   
• Present more than the vendor's proposal. If your are an IT person, and the vendor sold the idea to you, then the same proposal that sold to you is not likely to sell to your business leader.  You need to translate the technical benefits presented by the vendor into one of the business benefits listed above.
   
• Package the product with a plan. Show that you not only have a plan to spend the money, but to implement and properly support the technology you are requesting to purchase.  Include with your request a high-level project plan which includes implementation costs, process changes, and other impacts to the business or related projects.  This will demonstrate that you have thought through the purchase you are requesting, and that it's not a "tip-of-the-iceberg" expense.
   

Convincing the check-writers that a technology expense is worthwhile can be challenging for many IT folks who see things in bits and bytes.  You have to change your thinking and put yourself in their shoes before you present your case.  Make sure you are presenting the information in a way that they can understand and appreciate it, and your chances of success will be much greater.