5 Things IT Departments Must do to Survive

The world around us is changing at a state so rapid that is very difficult to keep up. For IT departments to remain relevant to their business they will have to learn to do thing differently.

This article provides insights to key things IT departments must do to remain relevant to their business.

Your sole purpose as an IT solutions provider is, to make your business more efficient and give them the edge they need to compete in their market place.

IT is not uncommon for IT leaders to get disillusioned by regular budget cuts and business always asking them to do more with less. This can put even the most seasoned IT leaders on the defensive and resistant to innovating change. It is imperative that you find a way to fall in love with your business all over again.

IT leaders must "profile" their business. You must have a clear definition of your business who they are, what they do, who their customers are and ultimately what is their "Big Why". Why they are in business? A hint it has to be more than just money.

Spend some time with your Chief Marketing Manager. This is what their team does.

What does your business sell? To be a great IT provider to your business you need to know what it is they sell, how they sell it and their business to customer engagement model. This is key to understanding all of the issues that your business might face in the supply chain of getting their products or services from Ideation through delivery to their customers.

Do you really know why your business exist? If you want to be relevant to your business, you ultimately must know why they are in business in the first place. There has to be more in it than just Money involved so find out what is the big driver for your business. Why do they exist? What is in it for their customers? This will help you understand the real passion behind the stated Mission and Vision.

Who are your businesses customers? Demographics, what is their world like why do they buy and more importantly why do they buy from your business.

Of course this will be some of the actual information that your business is looking to manage and make decisions from the IT Solutions that you provide.

Who is the business competition? Ensure you have a comprehensive list so you can understand what technologies they are investing in to give their business an edge. How could you beat them to the punch by taking your business there faster and better?

It is Critical that you aren't waiting for your business to come to you with what their new information or technology needs are you need to know where your business is going and make sure you are there with the innovative options for them to take on as soon as they are ready for them. .

Innovation in technology is incredible these days. I assume in some way that is why we are involved in this industry. Right now there is a significant move to artificial intelligence technologies than ever before. The trend is short clear and succinct processes. Such as meeting booking management from a personal assistant. Right up to the fact that machines can do a much more accurate job of monitoring vital indicator and dosing a patient with anesthesia that an anesthesiologist can. A bit freaky to think that a highly qualified job such as an anesthesiologist may be fully redundant in just a few short years. Recently the biggest quantum leaps we have seen is the changes in the way people and business using the technology that is available. As an IT leaders you will need to not only keep your finger on the pulse of what is happening in technology but your will have be on top of how that technology is being used to transform the world we live in and the market place that your business operates in.

Demographics and customer buying patterns use to be enough but not anymore. Businesses now need to know what their customers, are listening to, watching, and reading online of course they want this information live as it is trending. This way they can interact directly with their customers not just at a product or service level but at a personal and much more emotional level than ever before. No matter how you look at it Emotion plays a big part in peoples purchasing decisions both at a personal level and at a corporate level. As an IT leader in the future there will be as much or even more emphasis on the data and information you provide to your business than the technology they use to access that information.

Notepads and pen are rapidly being replaced with digital writing devices that can also capture the actual meeting discussions as they take place. Users are becoming much more mobile and are also using many ore purpose built devices like wearable tech. I even know a group that are looking at wearable electronic fund transfer devices that can work just like "Paypass". Of course we all know that this technology is pervading the general public. Just like mobile devices were first personal consumable device but now how much demand is there on IT departments have BYOD solutions in place to accommodate the way people are changing the way they work with technology today. Mark my words there will be a need to integrate wearable tech into corporate lifestyles before you know it.

With a rapidly changing world of technology and options for using that technology there is a whole generation of C-Suite Executive and Business Directors who cannot even keep up with the language that surrounds technology today. Therefore making decisions that and critical to their business can be a much more difficult task.

As an IT leader you will need to provide your business with the necessary education and awareness of this digital literate age we are moving into. Ensure at a minimum you have an online digital literacy glossary for your executives. Much more beneficial would be a well-planned digital literacy strategy for your business.

As an IT leader it is important for you to really understand the problems that are impeding your business. What is it that is really getting in the way of them getting stuff done? Take it the next level work with them to identify the mistakes they are making that cause these problem and pain. Ultimately this will identify the most valuable IT solutions that you could offer to the business.

It delivery methods must change. Long drawn out projects just don't cut it anymore. You need to find more efficient ways to deliver change to your business. Bearing in mind the biggest drive of cost in an IT department is the cost of change. So you need to get smarter and more efficient at managing change. Choose an appropriate Agile or Scrum type delivery methodology to work alongside your program of work and embed it in your IT culture. Train your people and make sure it sticks.

Revisit your processes on an annual basis I know you have all heard this but it is critical to your success that you review and improve the processes that you use to deliver operate and maintain IT solution for your business. Embed a culture of continual improvement that inspires your staff to find new and innovative ways to improve.

As I mentioned earlier, the cost of change is one of the biggest cost in running an IT department. It is important that you eliminate legacy systems that are costing you and your business too much.

To be relevant you need to be more business aware understanding the problems they have. Then you need find broker or develop Information and technology solutions that will solve those problems. Business is facing ever changing market places. They have problems in R&D production, supply chain delivery and competition.

To remain relevant and valuable to your business you must focus on solving these problems and make your business more efficient.

We at GR8 Service Management are here to help you with these challenging times.

Connect with us and let us help you become the one and only IT provider of choice for your business.

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