5 proven strategies IT leaders use to drive business value amid complexity

With the rapid growth of data, sprawling hybrid cloud environments, and ongoing business demands, today’s IT landscape demands more than troubleshooting. Successful IT leaders are proactive, aligning technology with business objectives to transform their IT departments into growth engines.

At our recent LogicMonitor Analyst Council in Austin, TX, Chief Customer Officer Julie Solliday led a fireside chat with IT leaders across healthcare, finance, and entertainment. Their insights highlight strategies any organization can adopt to turn IT complexity into business value. Here are five key takeaways:

1. Business value first: Align IT with core organizational goals

Rafik Hanna, SVP at Topgolf, emphasizes, “The number one thing is business value.” For Hanna, every tool, and every process, must directly enhance the player experience. As an entertainment destination, Topgolf’s success depends on delivering superior experiences that differentiate them from competitors and drive continued business growth. This focus on outcomes serves as a reminder for IT leaders to ask:

• How does this initiative impact our core business objectives? Every IT action should enhance the end-user experience, whether it’s for customers, clients, or internal users. At Topgolf, Hanna translates IT decisions directly to their “player experience,” ensuring every technology choice meets customer satisfaction and engagement goals.
• Are we measuring what matters? Key performance indicators (KPIs) should reflect business value, not just technical outputs. Hanna’s team, for instance, closely monitors engagement metrics to directly connect IT performance to customer satisfaction.
• Is the ROI on IT investments clear? Clear metrics and ROI assessments make the case for IT spending. For Hanna, measurable gains in customer satisfaction justify the IT budget, shifting it from a cost center to a driver of business value.

2. Streamline your toolset: Consolidate for clarity and efficiency

Andrea Curry, a former Marine and Director of Observability at McKesson, inherited a landscape of 22 monitoring and management tools—each with overlapping functions and costs. Her CTO asked, “Why do we have so many tools?” she recalls. This sparked a consolidation effort from 22 to 5 essential solutions. Curry’s team reduced both complexity and redundancy, ultimately enhancing visibility and response time.   Key lessons include:

• Inventory first: Conduct a comprehensive assessment of all current solutions and their roles. Curry’s team mapped out each tool’s purpose and cost, laying the groundwork for informed decisions.
• Eliminate redundancies: Challenge the necessity of every tool. Can one solution handle multiple functions? Curry found that eliminating overlapping tools streamlined support needs and freed resources for higher-value projects.
• Prioritize high-impact solutions: Retain tools that directly contribute to organizational goals. With fewer, more powerful tools, her team reduced noise and gained clearer insights into their environments.

3. Embrace predictive power: Harness AI for enhanced observability

With 13,000 daily alerts, Shawn Landreth, VP of Networking and NetDevOps at Capital Group, faced an overwhelming workload for this team. Implementing AI-powered monitoring leveraging LogicMonitor Edwin AI, Capital Group’s IT team cut alerts by 89% and saved $1 million annually. Landreth’s experience underscores:

• AI is a necessity: Advanced AI tools are no longer a luxury but a necessity for managing complex IT environments. For Landreth, Edwin AI is transforming monitoring from reactive to proactive by detecting potential issues early.
• Proactive monitoring matters: AI-driven insights allow teams to maintain uptime and reduce costly incidents by identifying and addressing potential failures before they escalate. This predictive capability saves time and empowers the team to focus on innovation.
• Reduce alert fatigue: AI filters out low-priority alerts, ensuring the team focuses on the critical few. In Capital Group’s case, reducing daily alerts freed up resources for high-value projects, enabling the team to be more strategic.

4. Stay ahead: Adopt new technology proactively 

When Curry took on her role at McKesson, she transitioned from traditional monitoring to a comprehensive observability model. This strategic shift from a reactive approach to proactive observability reflects the adaptive mindset required for modern IT leadership. Leaders aiming to stay competitive should consider:

• Continuously upskill: Keep pace with evolving technologies to ensure the team’s relevance and competitiveness. Curry regularly brings in training on emerging trends to ensure her team stays at the leading edge of technology.
• Experiment strategically: Curry pilots promising new technologies to assess their value before large-scale deployment. This experimental approach enables a data-backed strategy for technology adoption.
• Cultivate a culture of innovation: Foster an environment where team members feel encouraged to explore and embrace new ideas. Curry’s team has adopted a mindset of continual improvement, prioritizing innovation in their daily workflows.

5. Strategic partnerships: Choose vendors invested in your success

Across the board, our panelists emphasized the importance of strong relationships. Landreth puts it simply, “Who’s going to roll their sleeves up with us? Who’s going to jump in for us?” The right partnerships can transform IT operations by aligning vendors with organizational success. When evaluating partners, consider:

• Shared goals: A successful vendor relationship aligns with your organizational vision, whether for scalability, cost-efficiency, or innovation. Landreth’s team prioritizes vendors that actively support Capital Group’s long-term objectives.
• Proactive support: A valuable partner offers prompt, ongoing support, not just periodic check-ins. For example, Curry’s vendors provide tailored, in-depth support that addresses her team’s specific needs.
• Ongoing collaboration: Partnerships that prioritize long-term success over quick wins foster collaborative innovation. Vendors who integrate their solutions with internal processes build stronger, more effective alliances.

Wrapping up

Our panelists’ strategies—from tool consolidation to AI-powered monitoring and strategic partnerships—all enable IT teams to move beyond reactive firefighting into a proactive, value-driven approach.

By implementing these approaches, you can transform your IT organization from a cost center into a true driver of business value, turning the complexity of modern IT into an opportunity for growth and innovation.