The McKinsey Quarterly

2007

• July 2007 

  Using IT to speed up clinical trials

  The first wave of IT improvements solved some problems, but opportunities remain. Now it’s time for a more comprehensive approach.

• June 2007 

  Focusing on the customer: An interview with the head of Merrill Lynch’s operations and IT

  Merrill Lynch has combined operations with IT in a single unit. Diane Schueneman, the head of the company’s Global Infrastructure Solutions, explains how she is changing both to focus on the customer.

• May 2007 

  Improving operations and IT in Latin America's banks

  To go on growing, these institutions must raise their productivity by streamlining the back office.

2006

• December 2006 

  Merging bank operations across borders

  Cross-border mergers and acquisitions are more likely to succeed at banks that have a robust and flexible operating model.

• September 2006 

  How IT can drive business process reorganization: An interview with the CIO of Volkswagen

  Volkswagen chief information officer, Klaus Hardy Mühleck, has championed the CIO's role as the arbiter of business process and enablement.

• May 2006 

  Building a global IT organization: An interview with DPWN's managing director for IT

  Stephen McGuckin explains how the company consolidated its IT operations and developed a unique model for outsourcing and offshoring.

• March 2006 

  Getting better software into manufactured products

  The problems of embedded software are rooted in the legacies of hardware development.

• March 2006 

  Recapturing your supply chain data

  Outsourcing parts of the supply chain has disrupted the flow of critical data. Targeted IT investments can restore what's missing.

• March 2006 

  Using IT to boost call-center performance

  Call centers, making targeted improvements involving more cost-effective technologies, are finally saving money and improving revenues with IT.

• January 2006 

  Rethinking wholesale-banking operations

  By restructuring operations and aligning front and back offices, wholesale banks can cut costs dramatically and find new sources of revenue.

2005

• February 2005 

  Automated self-service comes to telcos

  Telecom companies play a key role in automating the sales and service processes of other sectors. Now they must automate their own.

2003

• November 2003 

  Smart tags for your supply chain

  A new tracking technology is being touted by retailing and consumer product companies as the next big thing, but it isn’t ready for prime time.

• February 2003 

  Getting supply chain software right

  A study of early adopters of supply-chain-management software shows that it works best where it is needed most—but is no use as a bandage over flawed processes.

2002

• June 2002 

  Loosening up: How process networks unlock the power of specialization

  Cutting-edge companies are swapping their tightly coupled processes for loosely coupled ones—making themselves not only more flexible but also more profitable.

1998

• February 1998 

  Manufacturing’s use and abuse of IT

  Research indicates the greatest potential for IT lies in product development and sales. Moving from laggard to star will take two to three years. Seven highly effective habits.

1997

• November 1997 

  Time to get rid of legacy systems?

  The real issue is people, not systems. Here’s how one utility addressed it.

1996

• February 1996 

  Sticking together: How best to connect IT systems

  The IT community is slowly coming to terms with the fact that no company, big or small, will ever be able to build a fully homogeneous and coherent IT infrastructure.

1994

• November 1994 

  Accelerating IT innovation

  A case study of how Mervyn’s built a new store inventory system in record time.

• November 1994 

  The business promise of ’hub-and-spoke’ systems

  The approach used by airlines to manage complex route networks is now helping other companies manage their software networks.