Stéphane Gagnon, (2022), “Rebranding IS/IT Management Programs: The Case of Business Technology Management (BTM) in Canada”, EDSIG Conference on Computing Education (EDSIGCON), Clearwater Beach, Florida, Nov. 2-5, 2022; Proceedings published by ISCAP-EDSIG.
Abstract: In the past decade, a joint industry-academia initiative was launched in Canada to: revitalize interest in the IS/IT profession, ensure relevance to practice, and overcome the talent gap in management ranks. This led to a set of Learning Outcomes and Accreditation Criteria to help schools align programs with industry requirements. Consequently, several undergraduate IS/IT management programs in Canada have been rebranded to Business Technology Management (BTM). This literature review presents the premises behind this initiative and the merits of a rebranding strategy to grow the profession. Three facets are discussed. First, as the IS/IT profession is increasingly diverse, the rebranding strategy is presented as a valid option to help attract the most talented individuals toward management ranks. Second, since most professional specializations developed a formal Body of Knowledge (BOK), their diversity and lack of integration is analyzed from the viewpoint of Talent Management (TM) processes. Third, given the benefits of unifying all IS/IT roles within a single Digital Leadership profession, some solutions are proposed to develop a new common language to help integrate reference standards and guide professionals in their career progression.