Criteria for information technology investment

The Chairman of Diebold Group Inc., USA, describes the results of research into the investment criteria for information technology (IT) and asks: Are strategic decisions based on inappropriate accounting conventions? Often investment in IT involves intuitive judgement or a "leap of faith", but is it possible to reduce the level of uncertainty involved? The issues are considered by reference to case studies, and also by reference to examples in the public sector, such as investments in large infrastructure programmes.