Business Relationship Management (BRM) Training: Aligning IT & the Business

In this Business Relationship Management (BRM) training course, you take on the role of a business relationship manager, learn to overcome communication barriers between IT and the business, leverage innovative best practices, and solve business problems in an IT environment. You learn to take on the role of the trusted IT adviser who can align the needs of the business with IT services. Business Relationship Management (BRM) Training: Aligning IT & the Business Benefits In this course, you will learn how to: Build a strong alignment between IT and the business. Plan a strategy that positions you as a trusted IT advisor to key stakeholders. Choose IT projects that build trust and alignment. Articulate IT solutions that meet business needs. Differentiate your internal IT services for competitive solutions. Prerequisites Two years of work experience in IT or business Business Relationship Management (BRM) Course Outline Module 1: Overview of Relationship Management Why organizations need successful relationships between IT and the business Balancing the needs of IT and the business Effectively aligning IT investments and business goals Module 2: Principles for Aligning IT and the Business The trusted IT advisor Recognizing how trust feels Defining trust in an IT organization Building a trusted relationship Business Relationship Management (BRM) roles IT relationship management vs. IT project management Discovering your strengths and weaknesses Required technical and social competencies Module 3: Determining the Current State of IT Defining a catalog of services Identifying IT products and services The components of an ideal catalog Creating an initial catalog from scratch Ranking services with metrics Developing awareness of the organizational culture The IntCRM Model Overcoming common IT relationship barriers Exploring how things get done in the organization Applying tools for culture analysis Module 4: Building the Trusted Relationship Knowing your stakeholders The stakeholder relationship life cycle Classifying the roles stakeholders play The importance of stakeholder power and influence Optimizing the first meeting Planning the meeting Models for understanding people Explaining the role of the BRM Confirming relationships and roles Leaving with actions Planning the relationship strategy Analyzing the relationship Recruiting trusted teams Forming the plan Executing the strategy Module 5: Facilitating Actionable IT Solutions Performing competitive analysis Evaluating IT outsourcing and consulting solutions Establishing your competitive advantage Identifying opportunities for improvement Capturing, prioritizing and documenting business needs Applying a framework for prioritizing and selecting projects Picking quick-win projects Designing a strategy to meet customer needs Conducting a modified SWOT analysis Questions you should ask Making a go or no-go decision Module 6: Winning Competitive IT Projects Responding to requests Differentiating your services from your competitors' Communicating your internal IT capabilities to the business Validating business needs in business terms Selling your solutions to the business Translating IT speak to business speak Linking IT solutions to pains Articulating IT solutions in terms of business value Writing clear, tailored Service Level Agreements (SLAs) Managing project handoffs Ensuring a seamless transition Creating and maintaining communication channels Building the relationship The IT relationship scorecard Establishing performance metrics Assessing BRM success Analyzing results