--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In the long run, though, the greatest IT…" description: "\"In the long run, though, the greatest IT risk facing most companies is more prosaic than a catastrophe. It is, simply, overspending. IT may be a commod..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5b/nicholas-g-carr-18458_capability_in-the-long-run-though-the-greatest-it-r_2429788.jpg" --- # In the long run, though, the greatest IT risk facing most… ![“In the long run, though, the greatest IT risk facing most companies is more prosaic than a catastrophe. It is, simply, overspending. IT may be a commodity, and its costs may fall rapidly enough to ensure that any new capabilities are quickly shared, but the very fact that it is entwined with so…” quote by Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5b/nicholas-g-carr-18458_capability_in-the-long-run-though-the-greatest-it-r_2429788.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5b/nicholas-g-carr-18458_capability_in-the-long-run-though-the-greatest-it-r_2429788.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5b/nicholas-g-carr-18458_capability_in-the-long-run-though-the-greatest-it-r_2429788.jpg) > “In the long run, though, the greatest IT risk facing most companies is more prosaic than a catastrophe. It is, simply, overspending. IT may be a commodity, and its costs may fall rapidly enough to ensure that any new capabilities are quickly shared, but the very fact that it is entwined with so many business functions means that it will continue to consume a large portion of corporate spending.” [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Overspending on IT is the biggest risk; costs can balloon despite commoditization, draining corporate budgets. **In simple terms:** IT overspending threatens business health. Key Takeaway Control IT budgets tightly. Themes business risk IT spending cost management Mood analytical pragmatic Type advisory strategic When to use this quote - project proposals - technology upgrades - vendor negotiations - annual budgeting Key Concepts financial planning strategic budgeting Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance spending and innovation? - What metrics reveal hidden IT waste? A Different Perspective Cost cuts may hinder innovation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Capability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capability/) [Catastrophe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catastrophe/) [Commodity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commodity/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Corporate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporate/) [Corporate Spending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporate-spending-266708/) [Cost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cost/) [Enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enough/) [Entwined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entwined/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Fall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall/) [Function](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/function/) [Greatest Risk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greatest-risk-266709/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long run](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-run/) [Long runs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-runs/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Overspending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overspending/) [Overspending Commodity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overspending-commodity-266706/) [Portions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/portions/) [Risk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/risk/) [Risk Facing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/risk-facing-266707/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Spending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spending/) ## Related quotes > [The greatest IT risk facing most companies is more prosaic than a catastrophe. It is, simply, overspending.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-greatest-it-risk-facing-most-companies-is-more-prosaic-than-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My illness is one often characterized by dramatic overspending - in my case through frenzied shopping sprees, credit card abuse, excessive hoarding of unnecessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-behrman/my-illness-is-one-often-characterized-by-dramatic-overspending-in-my/) [Andy Behrman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-behrman/) > [Be careful not to overspend anything in life :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/be-careful-not-to-overspend-anything-in-life/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The harsh reality is that we simply cannot tax our way out of our overspending and debt problem. We need a balanced approach that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-brady/the-harsh-reality-is-that-we-simply-cannot-tax-our-way-out-of-our/) [Kevin Brady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-brady/) > [Consider our difficulties avoiding junk food and overspending. Such addictions were carefully planned-for by professional marketing teams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-j-shiller/consider-our-difficulties-avoiding-junk-food-and-overspending-such/) [Robert J. Shiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-j-shiller/) > [The post-Reagan era has been defined by overspending as the result of ideological overpromises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-scaramucci/the-post-reagan-era-has-been-defined-by-overspending-as-the-result-of/) [Anthony Scaramucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-scaramucci/) > [Now all of us deplore this vast military spending. Yet, in the face of the Soviet attitude, we realize its necessity. Whatever the cost,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/now-all-of-us-deplore-this-vast-military-spending-yet-in-the-face-of/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [The U.S. should take notes: Government overspending and a campaign of alienating investors and small business isn't really the best way to boost the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-demille/the-u-s-should-take-notes-government-overspending-and-a-campaign-of/) [Oliver DeMille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-demille/) > [“Kids having access to your credit cards is a dangerous thing!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/kids-having-access-to-your-credit-cards-is-a-dangerous-thing/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [The American people care about the fact that we have $17 trillion in debt and 10 percent of every tax dollar that's coming in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-roth/the-american-people-care-about-the-fact-that-we-have-17-trillion-in/) [Carol Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-roth/) > [I don't think of myself as just a rapper. But overspending on sneakers? That's a real rapper thing to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-jhn/i-don-t-think-of-myself-as-just-a-rapper-but-overspending-on-sneakers/) [Saint Jhn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-jhn/) > [There is more money wasted in advertising by underspending than by overspending. Years ago someone said that underspending in advertising is like buying a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-hite/there-is-more-money-wasted-in-advertising-by-underspending-than-by/) [Morris Hite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-hite/) > [I do not want to look back in the future and bear the burden of stiffing the American people with a government drunk on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santos/i-do-not-want-to-look-back-in-the-future-and-bear-the-burden-of/) [George Santos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santos/) > [Overspending is as certain a part of the holiday season as overeating. But pushing away from both the table and the cash register at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-kluger/overspending-is-as-certain-a-part-of-the-holiday-season-as-overeating/) [Jeffrey Kluger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-kluger/) > [Look at the big-ticket items, in your budget. Your home or apartment. Your car. Your insurance. If you are overspending on these big monthly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/look-at-the-big-ticket-items-in-your-budget-your-home-or-apartment/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) ## More by Nicholas G. Carr > [A lot of your mental energy goes to figuring out where does one word end and the next begin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/a-lot-of-your-mental-energy-goes-to-figuring-out-where-does-one-word/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [There are a whole lot of reasons to be very happy that our brains are able to adapt and adapt so readily because we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/there-are-a-whole-lot-of-reasons-to-be-very-happy-that-our-brains-are/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [By putting the means of production into the hands of the masses but withholding from those same masses any ownership over the product of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/by-putting-the-means-of-production-into-the-hands-of-the-masses-but/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [We become, after the arrival of the printing press in general, more attentive more attuned to contemplative ways of thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/we-become-after-the-arrival-of-the-printing-press-in-general-more/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [It's interesting to think about how the book changed us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/it-s-interesting-to-think-about-how-the-book-changed-us/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [I think if you look back through the intellectual history of human beings you can trace the way that intellectual technologies influence the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/i-think-if-you-look-back-through-the-intellectual-history-of-human/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [One of the fascinating things about early writing on slates, on papyrus, even on early handwritten books, is for instance, there were no space…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/one-of-the-fascinating-things-about-early-writing-on-slates-on/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [Culture is sustained in our synapses...It's more than what can be reduced to binary code and uploaded onto the Net. To remain vital, culture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/culture-is-sustained-in-our-synapses-it-s-more-than-what-can-be/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [What the book does as a technology is shield us from distraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/what-the-book-does-as-a-technology-is-shield-us-from-distraction/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [In popular books and articles, information technology writer Carr has worried over the ways that algorithms like those employed by Google are reshaping the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/in-popular-books-and-articles-information-technology-writer-carr-has/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [The brain likes to be efficient and so even as its strengthening the pathways you're exercising, it's pulling - it's weakening the connections in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/the-brain-likes-to-be-efficient-and-so-even-as-its-strengthening-the/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [I think we begin to lose the ability to read in the deepest, most interpretive ways because were not kind of calming our mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/i-think-we-begin-to-lose-the-ability-to-read-in-the-deepest-most/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [You can take a book to the beach without worrying about sand getting in its works. You can take it to bed without being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/you-can-take-a-book-to-the-beach-without-worrying-about-sand-getting/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [The practicality of technology may distinguish it from art, but both spring from a similar, distinctly human yearning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/the-practicality-of-technology-may-distinguish-it-from-art-but-both/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [I think what the book did in addition to its practical uses, is it gave us a more attentive way of thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/i-think-what-the-book-did-in-addition-to-its-practical-uses-is-it/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) [Explore all 34 Nicholas G. Carr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) ## More Capability quotes > [Capability is just a concept of what is it we're looking at. Now how far we can go along that and what new capabilities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/capability-is-just-a-concept-of-what-is-it-we-re-looking-at-now-how/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [We artists give daily thanks for the miracle of our planet and for the inclination and the capability to honour it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-genn/we-artists-give-daily-thanks-for-the-miracle-of-our-planet-and-for/) [Robert Genn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-genn/) > [Few men realize that their life, the very essence of their character, their capabilities and their audacities, are only the expression of their belief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/few-men-realize-that-their-life-the-very-essence-of-their-character/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [One of the capabilities, which seems to be the most difficult for aspiring leaders to maste is realistic optimism. It requires one to recognize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-menkes/one-of-the-capabilities-which-seems-to-be-the-most-difficult-for/) [Justin Menkes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-menkes/) > [You have the capability to change your life all with a simple shift in perspective](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demi-lovato/you-have-the-capability-to-change-your-life-all-with-a-simple-shift/) [Demi Lovato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demi-lovato/) > [If you are facing a new challenge or being asked to do something that you have never done before don’t be afraid to step…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/if-you-are-facing-a-new-challenge-or-being-asked-to-do-something-that/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [Clearly, if wed had the kind of computer graphics capability then that we have now, the Star Gate sequence would be much more complex…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-trumbull/clearly-if-wed-had-the-kind-of-computer-graphics-capability-then-that/) [Douglas Trumbull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-trumbull/) > [We've learned that we've allowed technological capabilities to dictate policies and practices, rather than ensuring that our laws and values guide our technological capabilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/we-ve-learned-that-we-ve-allowed-technological-capabilities-to/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [I'm just confident in myself and my capability to be able to play this position.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-bridgewater/i-m-just-confident-in-myself-and-my-capability-to-be-able-to-play/) [Teddy Bridgewater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-bridgewater/) > [Primarily affecting low-information voters and members of the mainstream media, Obama Worship Syndrome attributes impossible capabilities to Obama's political opponents, finds excuses for every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/primarily-affecting-low-information-voters-and-members-of-the/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [The Iranians know that if they develop nuclear weapons, they will be in tremendous jeopardy from military capabilities of their neighbors and of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-nunn/the-iranians-know-that-if-they-develop-nuclear-weapons-they-will-be/) [Sam Nunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-nunn/) > [I have proved my capability to everyone - my fans and critics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arshad-warsi/i-have-proved-my-capability-to-everyone-my-fans-and-critics/) [Arshad Warsi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arshad-warsi/) > [I will then ask for a plan to immediately protect those vulnerabilities and then fix them.At the same time, we will invest heavily in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-will-then-ask-for-a-plan-to-immediately-protect-those/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [I've seen people recover physical abilities, yet never get over emotional trauma after a serious accident. I've seen other people overcome the psychological and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-stovall/i-ve-seen-people-recover-physical-abilities-yet-never-get-over/) [Jim Stovall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-stovall/) [Browse all 801 Capability quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capability/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In the long run, though, the greatest IT risk facing most companies is more prosaic than a catastrophe. It is, simply, overspending. IT may be a commodity, and its costs may fall rapidly enough to ensure that any new capabilities are quickly shared, but the very fact that it is entwined with so many business functions means that it will continue to consume a large portion of corporate spending.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nicholas G. 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