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Improving Technology, Where to Begin
Dean Butler • Feb 16, 2020
What is the cause for concern?
So, you feel like your company could be doing more with technology, or that technology could be doing more for your company. Now what? There are multiple technology maturity models available to help identify where you are and where you might want to go with technology, but how to begin?
Start with that gut feeling. Is your IT support chaotic and reactive? Does it take to long to pull information out of your systems and make sense of it? Does it seem like you could be missing opportunities? Before jumping into whatever fix a model, article, or colleague may recommend, try to figure out what is causing that feeling. Drill down to the root cause and find a way to quantify or measure it. That's the only way you will really know what to change and whether or not those changes will have the desired outcome.
The problems or opportunities you identify will fall into one or more of three categories.
- People: Do you have the optimal number of staff? Does your staff have the optimal attitude, skills, and/or knowledge?
- Processes: Do you have appropriate processes in place? Do they need improving?
- Technology: Do you have the appropriate technology?
Of course the answers to those questions depend not only on where you are, but where you want to go. Most maturity models have five levels. Level 1 is typically represented by reactive, firefighting technical support with low customer satisfaction. Level 5 typically represents technology as a strategic partner to the organization. Your people, processes, and technology will likely be at different levels to start. Perhaps you have a managed service provider who has implemented level 3 (proactive) or 4 (aligned) technology, but your people and processes are still at a level 1 or 2 (committed). Regardless, identifying where you are in each of the three categories will help you decide what to improve first.
Finally, don't try to jump directly to level 5. Make your improvements one step at a time, at a pace your organization can handle. Some organizations will be perfectly happy and successful at levels 3 or 4.
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