Italian IT : history of a chronic patient

In this post I want analyze or try to analyze, actual state of IT in Italy.
This theme is recurrent in my posts, simply because I am living a very difficult period in IT work area in my Company and in general in my country.

I know that possible cause is the global crisis, I know that Greece is at border of default, I know that Italy is better positioning than other European countries (ndr: Is it true this ?), but I am very worried about future. Why we are arrived at this point?

I worked from 1993 in IT and in these years in this sector many events have happened year after year and IT lost his importance and role.

I know it’s a global trend, as I wrote in a previous post.

But why IT is always seen as a cost to cut? First cost to cut.
I think simply because Italian management doesn’t know IT importance.
This is due essentially at three factors:

- Italy really is an old country with an average age very high then with an ancient Management.
- In Italy don’t exists a correct Technical Carrier in IT, generally a new employees graduate enter as a system analyst without having developed a single line of code, therefore haven’t knowledge of the entire IT production cycle.
- Companies not invest in training courses, fundamental in a continually evolving sector.

Another important factor to consider is the application of organizational methodologies predominantly Anglo-Saxon (Most IT companies are from USA) without changes or adjustments at reality very different both culturally and historical.
So a methodology that is successful in USA many times is a disaster in Italy or don’t reach expected results.

Current Trend of Italian Technological Company is to outsource IT Area ( I am witness of this in Telecom Italia S.p.A.) to few big IT consulting player (Accenture, Engeener, …) managing entire IT production Cycle.

This choice for a telecommunications company where IT systems strongly support core business meaning be easily blackmailed by these companies and I doubt that there are budget savings in long term (real reason of this outsourcing operation).
Moreover many times these consulting companies to economize use graduates without experience with obvious problems in implementation and service quality.

In conclusion, the situation is serious and I don’t see a short-term solution for IT in Italy, I hope that necessary measures are taken before this chronic patient dies.

To the next post.