The case for this module involves Hydro-Quebec and its efforts to reorganize and restructure its IT support and management functions in line with new demands and new business models. It effectively captures the complexity of the interactions required when IT management is required to adapt creatively to changing business demands, and the enormous number of factors that need to be taken into consideration in this adaptation. It will certainly challenge your abilities to think about how new systems have to integrate with legacy systems, about the personnel and human resources issues involved, and about the changing nature of the information base in IT, from one based primarily on hardware and technical expertise to one based on software, business knowledge, and customer relationships. As we will see in future modules, technology does not go away; it just plays a different role than it did in the early days of IT management. This case is a good exposure to the new realities of IT management and the breadth of understanding of the business and its environment required of managers in this rapidly evolving world.
Please read the Hydro Quebec case:
Dube, L., Bernier, C. and Roy, V. (2007) Information Resource Management at Hydro-Québec. International Journal of Case Studies in Management. 5(2):September. HEC023.
Use information from the course background readings as well as any good quality resource you can find. Please cite all sources and provide a reference list (use APA format) at the end of your paper.
Your answer to the following will be assessed:
Describe the external factors and internal factors affecting change in IT management at Hydro-Quebec.
What changes would you suggest for Hydro-Quebec and why?