The (ever emerging) technology problem of businesses:

Businesses around the world are buoyed by global markets, lower cost bases (Chinese manufacturing, Indian IT etc.) and WTO driven shift to fairer trade regimes, which are now a given. However, this is creating higher than ever existential pressure on the enterprises.

No organization can be a sitting duck today. They have to be in a continuous pursuit of new markets, newer services and cost saving mechanisms and/or newer ways to achieve customer delight, to stay differentiated and to strengthen their market positions.

Adding to the causticity are the rapidly emerging technologies, of the kind of big data analytics, IoT, cloud, etc., which hold a promise in their pursuit above.

While the troubled enterprises see an olive branch in these technologies, the healthier ones see an opportunity to improvise further, with all trying to redefine themselves. This has fuelled a race to innovate.

It would be fair to say that the ease of crossing oceans, physically and electronically, has made conducting ‘competitive’ business more difficult!

Across the world, the CEOs and the CIOs of organizations across most industries, are grappling with this technology led wave of business disruption, and are in the hot seat!

Some big troubles for the CIO:

The CIOs in particular have a formidable set of problems at hand.

While the pure-play advisory firms give structure to the chaos of the CIOs’ minds, they get away sounding big, obvious and scary, leaving CIOs more informed (of the gravity of the problem), more convinced (of the need for action) and yet more uncertain and insecure.

The technology providers, on the other hand, sound more motivated by the downstream business opportunities than CIOs’ real needs. It is not uncommon to see CIOs and IT managers doubt the vendor’s articulation of ‘ideal’ technology end states and of the enterprise’s distance to the same.

Furthermore, a typical CIO organization (i.e. IT) is more often than not, unable to differentiate noise from sound, when it comes to evaluating the promise of these technologies or vendors’ advice/recommendations around the same. Yet, it stands to lose, if these indeed turn out to be THE technologies of future. If so, this could mean a lost opportunity to acquire a timely ability to support business in quick market launches of products/initiatives or to do so at lower than industry costs or at higher than industry quality. It stands to lose otherwise too, in terms of sunken investments. It is a double edged sword for every CIO!

Finally, a majority of non-IT organizations are low on their IT capabilities, simply because IT is not their core business, and their IT is struggling to prove its worth to the business. Most CIOs face a credibility crisis in the board room where IT stands less understood, is perceived costly and is seen hungry for investments that are hardly ever returned on time!

All in all, the situation is perplexing for the CIO, who is unclear on many things – ‘whether’ to go forward, to ‘what extent’, to which ‘vendor’ and ‘how’ to convince the CEO!

This is nothing short of the impossibility of securing venture capital on an idea that is vague by a team that has not proved its worth!

As much as it is a professional challenge, it is also a BIG personal challenge for the CIO, with his career and confidence at stake. Take for instance the case of the newly appointed CIO of a large Australian bank, which has progressively slipped from the top to the 4th position for lack of providing a technologically fulfilling (let alone delightful) experience to its customers, over the years. He is invariably the focus of the entire Australian business community – banking & otherwise – as the bank banks on him to turn around its most pressing problem!

Serious trouble for the CEOs too:

For the CEO too, it is no different. Given a level playing field, imagine if a rival firm is able to derive an early technology advantage and grow market share or command price premium, over his own firm! If he fails to lead or even follow suit, how good and credible would he be seen, as a leader? The ultimate bottom line would be his, eventually.

IT service firms not shielded either:

Like all firms, IT organizations are not shielded either. Adopting newer technologies, demonstrating consulting / delivery expertise in these areas, gaining customer confidence etc. are some key challenges for them. These are the things their clients look for today, all the more closely, to award business, isn’t it?

So we have a situation in this world where most businesses are competing to differentiate themselves by trying to shift to lower cost-bases or trying to know their customers more and invent newer services for them by wanting to use powerful new-age technologies. In this process, they really need a trusted vendor partner (for whom the technologies are new as well) that manages the right implementation of the right technology. Sounds like a narrow cliff walk!

Now that is a big technology problem at hand, and is a problem for all.

What to do?

When there is a problem for all, it is ‘collaboration’ that holds the key.

In my humble opinion, the answer lies in ‘owning’ the problem – first by the CEO, followed by the CIO, and then the IT providers, and all of them being bent on solving it. Only upon plugging this missing piece, of ownership and acceptance of the technology problem, will the emergence of natural solutions to the problem begin.

CIO:

Possible solutions lie in CIOs getting experimental (in trying new technologies, IT processes & above all, vendors), articulate (in projecting the real role of IT) and seeking (higher investments and say in the business) and for all of these, being committed to bringing capability discipline in their function.

CEO:

CEOs must accept the ‘grown’ role of IT, grant IT its fair share of attention and begin to stop perceiving it as a cost center, even if traditional IT may not have delivered on its promises. Those shortfalls in IT must be analyzed and corrective action commissioned with easing of funds for it – be it change of CIO, or of vendor partners or choice of technology or whatever else necessary. CEOs must realize that their businesses will move just as fast as their IT and that their IT capability must at least match, if not exceed, their core capability.

The above can be achieved by the CEO by easing policies that bring IT investment leniency, foster IT experimentation, support IT capability uplift. He must then demand stake based partnership with IT vendor partners.

IT firms:

Well, they can help CEOs cross this difficult bridge to the enterprises’ new avatar! Taking into the fold their customers concerns and compulsions (besides needs) and then being creative and flexible in their pricing/engagement models, is what could create an atmosphere for a symbiotic business relationship!

This convergence of philosophies and mindset from all three stakeholders is needed to jointly ride over the technology tide and discover newer horizons of conducting business. And it is a burning need for this, which presents what seems to be a rather exciting time for business leaders the world over!

<This is a version of the blog I wrote for my employer, in 2015>