DIGITAL DISRUPTION

Five CIO tips for

building an IT strategy
in the digital age
CIOs and strategists share their experiences of creating an IT blueprint
that makes the most of the digital revolution with Mark Samuels
M odern IT leaders are under siege. CIOs are expected
to keep systems up and running, while keeping
track of fast-changing business demands and the
technologies that can help improve organisational
effectiveness. Juggling those mixed objectives is a tough gig.
Many CIOs developed their expertise in the closed confines of
the IT department. But their C-suite peers now expect technology
chiefs to move beyond operational concerns and to spend more
time engaging with the business.
CIOs should use such forms of engagement to match broader
organisational aims with digital capabilities, including those asso-
ciated to cloud, mobile, big data and social media.
But, once again, the challenge is significant, as buzz phrases
such as disruption, experience and experimentation help to cre-
ate unrealistic boardroom expectations about the likely effect of
digital transformation.
So how can CIOs develop an IT strategy that delivers real
change and lasting business benefits in the digital age? Experts
offer five examples of best practice for transforming an organisa-
tion through technology.

Create a single business strategy

BRANCA_ESCOVA/ISTOCK

Former CIO turned digital advisor Ian Cox says disruption usu-
ally happens in industries that have not seen any major change
in business models, products and services for prolonged peri-
ods. He has strong words for people who hype transformation.

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 DIGITAL DISRUPTION

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News “Disruption is nothing new,” he says. “For as long But not every sector is changing in the same
as businesses have existed there has been disrup- ❯Digital disruption is radical way. He points to the motor industry and
National Crime Agency tion. And the disruption has usually been made inevitable, but different says that – despite advancements in car modelling
builds on global efforts forces in different industries
to roll back cyber crime
possible by technology in some form. But the mean the pace of change
and customer relationship management software
power of IT is undoubtedly much more relevant in varies by sector. – there have been fewer changes to the basics of
Candy Crush maker the digital era.” manufacturing, so the industry’s rate of change
King secures mobile One approach some CIOs have taken is to has not been as great. “Business value and digital
access through cloud
authentication develop a digital strategy separate from the organi- growth are not always directly connected,” he says.
sation’s overall approach to IT. But Cox is adamant that no such Wilton says this lack of connection means C-level executives,
IT director lifts separation should exist. In fact, he believes a CIO’s approach to who are all too eager to sling buzzwords to mask their lack of
Gulf Air’s operations technology should be integral to the broader business strategy. activity, need to proceed with care.
into the cloud for mobile
“What every organisation needs is a single business strategy, “There’s no single label for digital,” he says. “The pace of change
and the CIO should take part to provoke debate and extend capa- is instead largely determined by direct business value of certain
Editor’s comment
bilities,” he says. “The modern CIO should be a person who knows products and how IT can seamlessly connect and improve opera-
Buyer’s guide
what’s coming in IT and the startup community.” tions, rather than a need to overhaul an entire business model.”
to service integration
and asset management
Use IT to improve operations and boost value Share information in a meaningful way
Andy Wilton, CIO at Claranet, says the adoption of digital tech- Richard Norris, head of IT and business change at Reliance
Five CIO tips for
building an IT strategy
nology has made one important change – the line between IT Mutual Insurance, joined the business in 2014 with the job of
in the digital age and the other departments has been blurred to the point that transforming legacy IT. The programme helped create a plat-
a boundary no longer exists. “Today, your industry determines form for change, both in technology and human resources.
All-flash array your IT strategy, not your department,” he says. But despite the focus on all things digital, Norris must keep
roundup 2016: the
big six suppliers Wilton has seen huge change in the technology industry, yet he a watchful eye over more traditional operational IT concerns.
believes retail is probably the best industry-specific example of The legacy business – the firm’s longstanding insurance cli-
Downtime where CIOs had to significantly adjust their strategies. He says ents – remains an important element of Reliance’s strategy. The
the ease and efficiency that comes with in-store digital devices – reformed technology organisation now serves two roles – first,
and the boon of online ordering and automated processes along supporting existing systems and clients of Reliance; and second,
the supply chain – have driven huge growth. supporting the development of website There.co.uk.

computerweekly.com 1-7 March 2016 21

 DIGITAL DISRUPTION

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News Norris recognises that strategic development plays a key role, GLH Hotels puts customer experience at
both in his own approach and the skills of his IT team. “I’ve brought the centre of its IT transformation
National Crime Agency Gartner in to mentor people inside their departments and to help
builds on global efforts
to roll back cyber crime
them understand how IT can make the business more efficient,”
he says. “By developing experience in other people, I can reduce
Candy Crush maker the pressure on me – and I can focus on areas that will really make
King secures mobile a difference in competitive advantage.”
access through cloud
authentication Norris recognises that he focuses his IT leadership on human
co-operation, rather than systems engineering. He says the tran-
IT director lifts sition from bits and bytes to communication and collaboration is
Gulf Air’s operations far from unusual. As an individual moves up the IT career ladder,
into the cloud for mobile
they start to leave the technology behind, he says. However, the
smart CIO will always keep one eye on IT.
Editor’s comment
“I’ve worked hard to develop my people and relationship skills,
Buyer’s guide
but I’ve also always strived to ensure that I don’t leave my techni-
to service integration cal awareness behind. I still speak to enterprise architects about
and asset management
governance concerns, for example,” says Norris.
“I can play that information back to the rest of the business in a
Five CIO tips for
building an IT strategy
meaningful way. I can go to the business with a good understand-
in the digital age ing of how the available technology might be used to help meet
key executives’ aspirations. “
All-flash array
roundup 2016: the
big six suppliers Let business functions choose their own systems
Since joining the company in 2012, Chris Hewertson, chief tech-
Downtime nology officer at hotel group GLH, has been at the forefront of a
transformation that put customer experience at its centre. The
hard work began in spring 2013, when he started making deci-
sions regarding the future direction of IT in the business.

computerweekly.com 1-7 March 2016 22


Home
News “We started with a fairly traditional technology roadmap,” says
Hewertson. “We came up with an output that, to a greater or
National Crime Agency lesser extent, was implemented. But rather than simply imple-
builds on global efforts
to roll back cyber crime
menting that plan, we did something different – we stopped.”
Hewertson says the technology strategy that was originally cre-
Candy Crush maker ated felt too focused on the core of the business and too tradi-
King secures mobile
access through cloud
tional. “If we wanted to transform our revenue-generating busi-
authentication nesses, we realised we’d have to give the hotels the power to
decide which systems they would use. Rather than focusing on
IT director lifts the core, we started to go from the outside in,” he says.
Gulf Air’s operations Hewertson ran a project called Ship Alongside, which recog-
into the cloud for mobile
nised the existing capability of the hotels was so broken the IT
team would need to bring a new ship, kit it out, move everyone
Editor’s comment
over to the new platform and sink the old way of operating.
Buyer’s guide
Looking back on the project, Hewertson says the approach of
to service integration the project has been transformative. “There’s hardly a service in
and asset management
the hotels that hasn’t changed,” he says.
“We got three competing teams of individuals from across the
Five CIO tips for
building an IT strategy
IT department and business and paired them off with technology
in the digital age partners. They were tasked to find systems for different areas of
the business and they evaluated hundreds of services. The teams
All-flash array were passionate and their competitiveness drove them to find
roundup 2016: the
big six suppliers innovative solutions to our business challenges.”
Hewertson says the competing teams had many dialogue ses-
Downtime sions across a three-month evaluation period. After each team
sent back their findings, the senior team at GLH merged the out-
put from the groups. He and his peers then evaluated the short-
listed systems and implemented the technology.
DIGITAL DISRUPTION
“The benefit of this approach is that the business has chosen
its own technology,” says Hewertson. “We handed over what was
the historic responsibility of the CIO. But this is what every IT
leader should want the business to do – to step up, to engage and
to be clear on what it wants.”
Work in an agile way to deliver expectations
Andrew Agerbak, associate director at Boston Consulting
Group, says the opportunities of digital transformation can be
big. Some of his clients have reduced costs by as much as 30%
– and agile development plays a key role. “Transformation can’t
be done in a siloed way, like traditional IT,” he says. “You have to
work across sales, marketing and operations – you have to create
alignment and a consistent way of talking about the customer.”
Agerbak recognises that customers have changed expectations.
IT is no longer about internal technology needs. “If your online
banking app is being evaluated in the App Store, then the stakes
are considerably different. People want everything to be simple
and intuitive. And outages are completely unacceptable,” he says.
To create a strategy that delivers high quality services, CIOs
must help the business to become more agile and to feel more
comfortable with experimentation. “You have to show the prod-
uct regularly to customers before it is scaled-up,” says Agerbak.
“You have to prioritise your actions in response to feedback.
Have a strict definition of what ‘done’ means. If you’re looking at
changes on a two-week basis, you get better at tracking changes
and analysing accuracy over time. You start to move to a much
higher level of accuracy.” n
computerweekly.com 1-7 March 2016 23
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