IT – Organisational Blocker or Enabler?

For many decades business IT operations have focused on supporting data processing systems like accounting and ERP and enabling knowledge workers to be productive on PCs and mobile devices. What’s always been a challenge is keeping up with changing business demands, including BIG growth plans, and securing budget for innovative projects, not just day-to-day operations.

With many options for IT service delivery available today, it’s time for business leaders to take a detailed look at the output derived from in-house IT operations and how it shifts the capability balance.

IT as a Business Blocker

Is it fair to suggest with so much invested in internal IT operations it can prevent a business from achieving its growth targets? After all, traditional IT keeps the data engine of most organisations running and without that the core business is at risk. Let’s take a measured view on how IT can be a business blocker:

• Too much capital and resources tied up in non-differentiating services (e.g. Email servers and storage).
• Talented IT staff pressured to do “more with less”, even as the business grows. This can fuel a huge disparity between what IT staff are already tasked with and what they are expected to do to satisfy growth.
• Lack of understand of the true cost of IT resulting in a reluctance to invest more to gain competitive advantage.

IT as a Business Enabler

IT is an enabler when it serves a purpose to facilitate business outcomes and helps drive growth. For IT and business leaders this means applying the right service for the right outcome. IT as a service and its delivery management are a business enabler when it:

• Supports rapid expansion of end-user computing infrastructure like communications devices.
• Scales application hosting infrastructure for deploying online applications on-demand.
• Ensures compliance and data protection during any expansion phase.

If IT is not meeting business objectives, take a look at how the right mix of in-house, managed service provider and cloud services can digitally transform it into a strategic platform for growth.