10 Habits of Highly Successful IT Organizations

10 HABITS OF HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL

IT ORGANIZATIONS

2©2015 Lewis Fowler

Amy Fowler, Managing Partner

Managing Partner, Lewis & Fowler 20+ Years IT Leadership and Consulting Experience Held Internal IT Management and Consulting roles Industry experience includes government,

aerospace & defense, insurance, retail, financial services, healthcare, energy, utility, consulting, wholesale distribution, telecommunications, travel and aviation among others

B.S Computer Science, PMP


Internal and External Forces Drive our Organization

Presenter

Presentation Notes

External Competitive Forces Need for Innovation Disruptive Technology Regulatory Changes Disruptive Market Conditions Evolving Technology Internal Pressure to Reduce Costs Increasing backlog of projects/work Strained relationship with internal customers Risk of losing talent Technology Obsolescence Unclear/Changing Business and IT Strategy


Top 100 requirements• Using IT in innovative ways to deliver

competitive advantage to the enterprise and enable growth

• Not only that they have executed their project well, but that they have done so in uncommon, innovative ways

• Pioneering a new technology, applying a familiar technology to a new purpose, setting the bar higher for their competitors.

• Must demonstrate business value

• Strengthen the competitive position of their organization’s product or service via the creative use of technology.

• Create an entirely new information-based product or service. • Significantly transform the way their organization conducts

business as demonstrated by its commitment to improved customer service or vendor relationships.

• Increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their organization.

• Improve their organizations capacity to manage quality through improved measurements, more responsive

• corrective actions and more effective preventative processes.

• Elevate information technology to a proactive role as part of their firm’s strategy, rather than as a passive

• response to necessity.• Demonstrate leadership in the IT community

Who Did We Consider? Industry Best Practices

• Be Proactive• Begin with the End in mind• Put first things first• Think Win-Win• Seek first to understand, then be

understood• Synergize• Sharpen the Saw

• Leadership• Strategic Planning• Customer Focus• Measurement• Workforce Focus• Process Management• Results


The Principles Description

1 Leadership How the organizations senior leaders’ personal actions guide and sustain the organization

2 Strategic Planning Development of strategic objectives and action plans

3 Customer Focus Engagement of customers for long-term success

4 Measurement Selection, gathering, analysis, management, and improvement of data, information, and knowledge assets

5 Workforce FocusEngagement, management, and development of the workforce to utilize its full potential in alignment with the mission, strategy, and action plans

6 Process ManagementDesign of work systems and design, management, and improvement of key work processes for implementing those work systems

7 Results

Performance and improvement in all key areas – products, service, financial, market outcomes, work force focused outcomes, process effectiveness outcomes, and leadership outcomes

Presenter

Presentation Notes

IT has customers, Baldridge is customer focused


Habits Create Patterns of Success

HabitAn acquired behavior (pattern) regularly followed until it has become almost involuntary.Pattern

A repeatable solution (habit) to a commonly recurring problem.


Habit #1: Leadership

Vision, Values, and Mission Communication and

Organizational Performance Governance and Societal

Responsibilities Have Broad-Based

Knowledge Know When to Delegate &

Your Strengths It’s A Process…Not An Event Key Roles Of A Leader

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Vision, Values, & Mission Trust Treat people as you want to be treated Have a vision, AND be passionate about it Management does not = Leadership Guiding Principles – like integrity, my mantra Focus: Be able to multi-task, but “Put First Things First” Be willing to be accountable Communication & Organizational Performance “Seek First To Understand, Then To Be Understood” – Listen People have to WANT to follow you Be able to have multiple lenses you look through Governance and Societal Responsibilities Governance, legal and ethical behavior, societal responsibility and support of key communities Have Broad-Based Knowledge Know When to Delegate & Your Strengths Surround yourself with complementary people - “Now Discover Your Strengths”… It’s A Process…Not An Event Key Roles Of A Leader: Team Player-- Laborer Executive-- Decision Maker Marketer-- Negotiator Quality Agent-- Financial Analyst Public Speaker-- Evangelist Mentor-- Counselor


Habit #2: Communication

Trust Have a plan IT communication IS

about marketing Communicate good

and bad news Communication is a

two-way process Collaboration & tools

– use them!

Presenter

Presentation Notes

If effective communication is about delivering your message so the audience gets it, then who are your key audiences?


Own effectivecommunicationas a leadership

function

Say it more, more consistently,

and more strategically

Make it more interactively and

personally relevant

Help staff understand

Generate constructive dialog

& feedback

Promote buy-in and the resulting better

solutions

Promote successes

Improve performance

Will these STRATEGIES achieve these GOALS? Which achieve this PURPOSE?

Example Communication Strategy


Results of Effectively Communicating the Changes

I understand my role, others’ roles, and how our roles relate.

I understand where we’re going, how we’re measuring success, the priorities, and how I fit in.

I understand the opportunities for me, how and for what I’ll be held accountable, and what the rewards are.

I understand how to use resources to help me accomplish my goals.

Benefits of the Effectively Communicated Changes

Reduced organizational conflict

Increased ability to move from project to project

Improved decision making

Improved project execution

Improved efficiency, productivity, and customer satisfaction

Increased ability to be successful

Increased sense of meaning and purpose

Improved morale


Habit #3: Strategic Planning

Strategy Development, objectives Strategy Action Plan Development & Deployment Performance Projection

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Strategy Development, objectives Trust Do a SWOT analysis on your organization Industry Awareness plays a role here What about the last 10 plans? What worked/did not work? Use a method - Norton/Kaplan, list others…. Both business and IT strategy and they better be connected Strategy Action Plan Development & Deployment Ongoing process, not a once a year activity only tied to budgets, and timely (not to be done in June) Tie projects(results) to the plan Tie it to Business results Tie it to personal performances Has to be made operational Short and long term goals Communicate plan frequently - and documented – not a mystery Performance Projection Monitor regularly (metrics) Keep focused, don’t get distracted


Typical IT Strategy Process

Vision(Stakeholders)

Capabilities(Implementers)

Vision Articulated by StakeholdersTranslation of the Vision into CSF’s done by IT

Capabilities based on current skillsand tool set

Strategy becomesself evident

Feedback and measurement against Balanced Scorecard

StrategyExecution

ITStrategy

CriticalSuccessFactors(CSF)

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Glen


Habit #4: Customer Focus

Customer Engagement Voice of the Customer

(6σ)

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Customer Engagement – external and internal Trust Solves the problems of the business/alignment – customer market focus - you have to solve this – governance is not an option Leave room for flexibility - I tell people it is okay if the business leadership decided to “buy Apple stock” if they agree - leave room in process for “thinking” Focus on where the business is going, not where it is Focus on corporate mission – it’s not about technology, it’s about delivering value in support of strategy On going dialog, proactive communication Create a customer focused culture Voice of the Customer – external and internal Listening Translate, translate, translate – yes this is IT’s job – acknowledge this Customer Satisfaction - regular 360 reviews and these are discussions not surveys – this is a relationship What about customer dissatisfaction? Lessons Learned - Talk about what works and what did not work after each project – be committed to this – create real plans to solve what did not work Doing the same thing over again and expecting a different outcome is the definition of insanity Analysis and use of Customer Data


Management of Information, Knowledge and IT Data Knowledge Information resources and

Information Technology Performance

Measurement

Habit #5: Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Management of Information, Knowledge and IT Data Trust Accuracy Integrity/Reliability Timeliness Security and confidentiality Availability Knowledge Transfer of Customers, suppliers, partners Sharing Management of Information, Knowledge and IT Information Resources and IT Reliable, secure and user-friendly Continuity/Disaster Recovery Real and practiced, not just planned for Keeping current Business processes mapped to applications and criticality Architecture tied to processes and criticality Performance Measurement Tie back to strategy – must be visible Have to define what success looks like – By company, by department, by project, by person Have a well-defined method to measure success and value/results This is not 500 measurements – keep it simple – no more than 10 for the organization to start Do not measure things you are going to do nothing about This is not a hammer, use is to drive visibility into results Must be tied to personal performance – know how organization responds Should have positive/negative consequences for achieving and/or missing Data, data, data


The 4 Keys of Measurement

The PSM model is derived from INCOSE–TP–2003–020–01

Presenter

Presentation Notes

The connections between the numbers and the decisions making process needs to be clearly understood. Here’s an example of one approach, but what your approach is must fit into the culture, technology, and business processes unique to your organization. In all cases though, separating the Performance Metrics process from the technical and managerial decision making process is a good idea. If the numbers have a political overtone not only will they likely not get used, they will not represent the reality of the situation. We’ve seen this in our practice. It occurs at times even in the best intentioned firms. It must be guarded against from both sides – the decision makers and the performance measurement leaders.


Successful Measurement Requires…

Establishing a Commitment

Planning the Measurement

Performing the Measurement

Evaluating the Measurement

Presenter

Presentation Notes

In order to successfully deliver a performance measurement initiative several steps need to be taken. Establishing a commitment starts with a good charter. This charter defines the boundaries of initiatives, the funding needs, tools and the expected outcomes. This is the beginning of connecting strategy with execution. Asking and answering “what will be better when we are done?” A plan for the performance measurement initiative is the outcome of the charter. This plan describes the steps to be performed, who is performing them, what data is needed, how it will be processes, and what priorities will drive this initiative. Since tradeoffs will be needed priorities must be clear. Do the work – this is actually the easy part Evaluate the results – this is the hard part. Without a strategy couched in the form of a testable hypothesis, the evaluation has no real outcome. The Performance Measurement Initiative is the laboratory experience performed to test the hypothesis. Establishing a Commitment Establish resources, funding Training for process and goals Tools Management commitment Planning the Measurement Define needed insight Identify, prioritize, select and specify measures Performing the Measurement Collect metrics Verify, normalize and aggregate data Evaluating the Measurement Is the measurement process effective Are the measures effective Are there opportunities for improvement


Habit #6: Workforce Focus

EnrichmentWorkforce and

Leader Development Assessment of

Workforce Engagement Remember to say

Thank You

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Enrichment Be aware of different cultures, background, roles, styles – not one size fits all Global/virtual workforce dynamics What motivates your people Acknowledge successes and failures Workforce and Leader Development Trust Face to face still matters Crucial Conversations Assessment of Workforce Engagement Communicate, communicate, communicate – this is a 2-way conversation, not a 1-way Satisfaction – true measurement and action plans Regularly assessing roles/with/needs – right fit Tie competency needs to your portfolio of work/key business results Make competency a priority - don’t forget people need to “Sharpen the Saw” Remember to say Thank You


Habit #7: Form Strategic Partnerships

Trust Two types of IT partners Look for opportunities to move

commoditized operations to transactional partners Help your strategic partners

understand ROI Integrate them into YOUR

culture Reduce vendor count where

appropriate, but not simply for the sake of doing so Have the business needs drive

the right workforce mix

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Trust Two types of IT partners Transactional: do one thing for us that we need and then leave Strategic: understand our business, be involved in our projects Look for opportunities to move commoditized operations to transactional partners Help your strategic partners understand ROI Integrate them into YOUR culture Reduce vendor count where appropriate, but not simply for the sake of doing so In other words, the best IT shops aren’t necessarily the ones that ruthlessly adhere to one vendor or supplier Have the business needs drive the right workforce mix


Habit #8: Process Management

Work Systems Design Key Work Processes

Key Work Process Management Work Process Improvement Emergency Readiness

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Work Systems Design ITIL, CMMI, COBIT, PMI, RUP, Six Sigma, Agile, Portfolio Management, etc. – what do you make of all this - practices, principles, processes? Don’t just jump on the latest bandwagon – have true value in the consistent method Repeatability works – know which processes it works for Culture matters Key Work Processes Workflow matters Key Work Process Management Doesn’t preclude thinking, it is okay to have exceptions for the right reasons – know what those are One size does NOT fit all Work Process Improvement As Is, To Be…now what? Need change agents to make old habits die This is a real project Rewards successes Have an idea generation method Emergency Readiness


Habit #9: Quality Have a process Not optional – early and often Know what done looks like Know what good looks like Assessment of this is not in eyes

of IT Make quality processes match

the outcome – i.e., “Is this life threatening?” Automation is a component –

automate the right things


Habit #10: Innovation / Opportunity

Be positioned to do this Assess where you are – not same for all

companies Forward thinking, not just rearview

window thinking Understand who is good at this and

cultivate them Take the time to do this Industry Awareness Partner with Thought Leaders in the

Industry – know what you are good at and want to be good at

Don’t do it just for the sake of it


Results Of Effective IT Habits…

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Product Outcomes Are the culmination of all the previous slides Compared to competitors/industry Customer Focused Outcomes Who gets to decide? Your customer Financial & Market Outcomes Measurable TCO going down Actual traceable ROI Workforce Focused Outcomes Process Effectiveness Outcomes Metrics moving in direction you want them to Visible behaviors changing Do not forget to take a check on unintended consequences


10 Habits of Effective IT ManagementGuided by the 7 Baldridge Criteria

Practices of Effective IT Orgs Lead

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1 Vision, Values, & Mission X X

2 Communication X X X X X X X

3 Ongoing Effort X X X X X X X

4 Listening X X X X X X

5 Simple is better X X X

6 Strategic Partners in workforce X X

7 Culture Matters X X X X X X

8 Quality X X X X

9 Innovation/Opportunity X X X X X

10 Trust X X X X


Seems Simple?

If it were, everyone would be thereWhat is the value of focusing on

the top 10 for you? These take real time / effort and

focus

Remember … 3% of a workforce can change a

culture It takes 27 days of repetition to form a

habit


Which of the top 10 resonated with you and why? Are there short term

changes you can make from today? Are there longer-term

evolutionary improvements?


Acknowledgements


Top 10 Habits of Highly Effective IT Organizations

Amy FowlerLewis & Fowler

8310 South Valley Highway, Suite 300Englewood, Colorado 80112

www.lewisandfowler.com303.618.2307

http://www.lewisandfowler.com/

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