Observably, a few parallels may exist between these accounts, which encompass the widely held view that the corporate IT department operates at an insufficient pace, and the belief that IT should be dissolved and spread across different business units. These suggestions might stimulate your thoughts, however, they present a broad fix-all strategy that might not be feasible for your organisation.
Overcoming the Obstacles
When restructuring your IT division, bear in mind that IT is not a uniform body that demands a universal solution. Establishing a structured framework for specific IT functions can prove useful. Empowering various departments to design customer-oriented apps leveraging standardized technologies could generate more fruitful results compared to assigning networking or security duties to those departments.
Once described as an umbrella term for all tech-related problems, this labelling has become obsolete and fails to serve any practical or significant purpose. Imagine for a moment that companies had a “Mathematics” wing accountable for functions like sales forecasting, credit management, executive financial reporting and inventory control, merely because these responsibilities require some degree of proficiencies in mathematics.
It may appear unconventional, but many companies have adopted this approach, combining IT with other divisions. Overseeing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system differs from constructing a mainframe codebase for hosting an existing app, just as maintaining a global switching network varies from constructing a new mobile app for clients.
It is crucial to contemplate how different management and organisational principles could be customised to each aspect of the IT division, instead of opting for a uniform approach. Centralised management and cost-cutting measures may prove advantageous for some sectors of the enterprise, while incorporating technology with substantial autonomy could be beneficial for specific line-of-business applications, but harmful to networking operations.
Stretching the IT Scope Beyond Computing Devices
After disintegrating your IT division’s responsibilities into more manageable modules, it is crucial to mull over their ultimate objective. Service-oriented IT has been a prevalent objective for numerous enterprises for a while, hence it could be the end-goal for some. Centralised management, expense minimisation and harmonisation are beneficial for primary IT structures such as networks, user workstations and even essential services like cybersecurity.
At the enterprise level, building enterprise-wide toolkits could be advantageous. This could boost the efficacy of individual technology teams, since the corporation could converge the procurement, training and on-demand information on a specific set of tools. This is especially crucial in domains like analytics, where the technology is intricate, and information can be pricey to obtain. Therefore, consolidating resources could be beneficial.
In conclusion, several IT organisations have divisions that function as their individual product development teams. These teams are accountable for creating anything from an in-house tool to an external customer-oriented app or technology-oriented commodity. It is vital for these groups to prioritise customer satisfaction and internal enterprise requirements over cost-cutting and standardisation measures. This decreases the likelihood of them being subjected to centralisation or cost-management initiatives.
Arranging for Triumph by Establishing Objectives While Ignoring Trends
Rather than striving to integrate the current IT management craze across your entire, diverse IT division, it would be preferable to concentrate on the objectives for each module while evaluating the differences between each aspect of your IT enterprise. An innovation team would require a different assortment of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), financial metrics and reporting links as opposed to Cyber, which could benefit from robust leadership, proactive investments and centralised control.
This approach of goal-setting could also be helpful in pinpointing plausible organisational configurations. It could prove useful to evaluate whether the enterprise’s strategy department and tech pioneers could work together effectively. Depending on the company’s intended goals, it could be judicious to contemplate relocating data analytics in a decentralised division or incorporating it into the current financial reporting framework.
Revamping the IT division based on definite goals can offer a more compelling rationale for allotting funds to various sectors of the division. Employing this technique could present a convincing argument to reduce the budget for some areas, whereas for others, it might be essential to dedicate more resources, establish a periodic funding plan, or reserve a budget for experimentation and innovation.
Separating IT from the rest of the company’s fixed expenditures will facilitate more efficient negotiations for funding with different sectors of the organisation. This approach will diminish the impression of IT costs as a liability, and there is no longer an obligation to allocate strategic investment to such expenses, since the centralised infrastructure is working to fulfil definite goals.
Last but not the least, these objective-driven discussions could assist in shaping your vendor and partnership determinations. Despite the fact that everyone might claim to be a strategic collaborator, there might be particular IT sectors where an acceptable resolution is satisfactory.
At Works, our IT division has established an objective to provide an economical service. To guarantee the success of a pivotal product that is integral to our market strategy, we must contemplate a varied array of vendors for the technical components.
It is crucial to consider the objectives of the IT division while interacting with suppliers. Hence, it is imperative to set unambiguous guidelines before collaborating with suppliers.
A Fresh IT Division
It is apparent that different components in the intricate field of Information Technology should not be viewed as a single uniform entity. Unfortunately, many professionals in the tech industry find it challenging to relinquish the long-established perception of treating all IT elements as a solitary entity with preconceived goals.
Commence by dissecting the IT division into its distinct components and specifying the objectives for each one. This practice will ease the process for everyone concerned, from deciding who should spearhead each department to expediting budgetary discussions.
