As the surge in technological innovation continues, driven by AI and other emerging technologies, the traditional IT landscape is undergoing a radical transformation. As well as opportunities, this evolution brings significant challenges, particularly in strategy, risk, and governance.
Addressing this new landscape and how IT leaders can navigate it, Info-Tech Research Group has introduced its latest blueprint, Exponential IT for Strategy, Risk, and Governance. This provides a comprehensive roadmap for IT leaders to embed IT within the business framework, co-own business outcomes, and drive growth through both organic and inorganic means.
Info-Tech’s research for the document underscores a pivotal shift in IT’s role within organizations and advocates for a transition from traditional IT strategies to an enterprise strategy that is driven by technology. This shift entails moving from centralized IT operations to a more federated and hybrid model, requiring technology leaders to take a more active role in driving business outcomes. Their performance, as the research indicates, will increasingly be evaluated based on their contributions to business growth targets.
The firm’s research also addresses the integration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles within technology operations. The shift highlights the need to take a holistic approach to information and technology governance and to align it seamlessly with the broader organizational governance framework.
The research emphasizes that embracing exponential technological advancements involves more than just adapting to technological change; it’s about fundamentally rethinking how IT contributes to and leads within the organization. This profound shift enables IT leaders to not only align more closely with enterprise strategies but also to proactively address the challenges and opportunities presented by rapid technological evolution. Such challenges call for a redefined approach where IT is not just a support function but a central driver of business growth and innovation.
Info-Tech’s blueprint lays out a strategic framework for navigating this new era of IT. The framework is structured around four key actions that IT leaders can take to ensure their teams are not only keeping pace with technological advancements but are also actively shaping and leading these changes. The four key actions offered in the new resource are outlined below:
Stop Being Pulled, Start Pushing: co-own organizational outcomes – IT services will get even more commoditized and outsourced or out-tasked. IT leaders must spend much less time strategizing about the delivery of applications and much more time on organizational outcomes.
Own a Seat at the Table: lead new technology governance – in the near term, IT will need to take a leadership role in consultation with the organization for governing the responsible use of new technologies throughout the organization. In the longer term, governance will need to be adaptive to new ways of working.
Do More Valuable Work: transform infrastructure and applications into utilities – IT must shift focus from managing IT assets to managing value and risk, thereby focusing on maturing data, security, risk, and vendor management practices.
Leverage Risk’s Potential: integrate IT and enterprise risk management into all practices – IT needs to ensure technology risk is integrated with enterprise risk management and is adaptable in nature to address known and unknown risks.
