According to a recent study, many companies are losing customers and revenue to their competitors for one major reason━failure to embrace modern IT and digital initiatives. The study conducted by the Business Performance Innovation (BPI) Network interviewed over 200 IT professionals from around the world. The study found that there is a significant performance gap between organizations that have embraced the digital business age and those that haven’t.
The problem isn’t that companies do not agree that they need technology. In fact, in the study, over 93 percent of respondents said that technology has become more important in the last five years. Another 45 percent admitted that their competitors had more to offer in terms of options, flexibility and accessibility because of their use of digital tech like wireless presentation software, collaboration tools and wearable devices. If organizations know that they are falling behind their competition by failing to modernize their IT, then why haven’t they upgraded yet?
According to an article by CIO.com, one of the major reasons is that organizations realize that they need to upgrade, but they don’t have the foundation to manage it successfully. What else do organizations need to launch successful IT modernization initiatives?
Strong Leadership from CIOs
As the tech leader of organizations, CIOs have the power to influence other executive leaders by helping them realize the advantages that modern IT can bring to each department. CIOs can make recruitment, retention and employee engagement efforts more efficient and effective for HR leaders. They can appeal to CEOs by highlighting how IT can improve overall business performance, competitiveness and generate new revenue streams.
If there isn’t already a strong interest in updating an organization’s tech, CIOs can build interest by stressing the benefits with evidence of the success that other businesses have experienced. However, one C-suite member leading the initiative usually isn’t sufficient to drive it to successful completion.
Support from the C-suite Team
When other executive members are involved in projects, they are more likely to be effective. In addition to the CIO, the CEO and the rest of the C-suite play important roles. According to an IBM study, the majority of CEOs recognize technology as one of the top external influences impacting their organization.
Company leaders like the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and Chief Finance Officer (CFO) could greatly benefit by partnering with the IT department and using the latest tech. In order for initiatives to work, however, the silos that once separated departments need to be broken down. Executives need to collaborate and discuss tech projects and planning.
Clear Vision, Goals and Planning
A strong team is crucial to IT success, but ultimately, it needs to be paired with a plan of action. Organizations need to identify their technology needs and opportunities to improve efficiency, employee engagement and other performance factors. Then, they can start building a step-by-step plan that is designed to meet those goals.
Each day that a company puts off upgrading their technology and infrastructure, they are losing revenue and time. On average, it takes one to two years to update IT, so organizations can’t afford to wait. Failure to do so soon could put your business too far behind competitors to catch up.
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