Maintenance is "a huge black hole," says Robert Rosen, CIO at the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases in Bethesda, Md., and president of Share, an IBM user group. "I have not seen anyone taking a step back and saying, 'OK, we have all these systems; what does it really cost to keep these things running?'"

If you're used to sweeping wish-list items under the maintenance rug, experts say you're probably spending more than you should on initiatives that aren't aligned with corporate priorities or return-on-investment expectations. Moreover, without a clear view into what's being spent and why, you lose the ability to assess risks and assign responsibility.

Some CFOs and CEOs, driven by tightening budgets and governance standards, are demanding more details from their CIOs about the costs that fall under the maintenance header. The result is more transparency, which brings better accountability, smarter decisions on spending and, ultimately, more credibility for IT.

"More and more business leaders are demanding that accountability on the IT budget," says John Stevenson, vice president and CIO at Sharp Electronics Corp. in Mahwah, N.J. "IT leadership has to have a handle on costs, because the details of the IT expenditure are now being put on the table and they can't say, 'This is a black box.' "

Long Time Coming