When speed is the goal, you have to ensure you're measuring the right things to get you there. Many IT leaders focus on development timelines and delivery metrics, while business people tend to measure time to launch. But when or whether a project meets its delivery timeline really isn't relevant in the end. The purpose of IT is to create new value streams for the enterprise, so the question you must ask and answer is whether a given project achieved the benefits promised.

That's why it's not enough for today's CIO to understand the role of technology in business - he or she must understand and enable the business itself. Technology and the business are the same thing. Saving money is too expensive; the agility tax is too high. Delaying it will only raise it, probably at a moment when your company can least afford the bill.

in CIO's IT Organization Drilldown.