19 December 2013
Martin Prendergast, CEO and co-founder, Concorde Solutions
Research from the Cloud Industry Forum indicates that hybrid IT is the future of IT estates. As businesses move away from traditional enterprise software platforms and adopt open source, cloud-based apps or mobile technology, the CIO function will thrive while the IT department withers. But when it comes to adopting technology or implementing changes, businesses must ensure that the principle of remaining in control and keeping a holistic view of their software estate remains the same.
Businesses are using powerful applications via the cloud and they are increasingly expecting all applications to be the same. But this is simply not the case for enterprise IT. Married to this is the perception of elastic capability to expand and contract as required on a pay-as-you-go model. Throw into this mix the frustrations of lengthy waits due to long development schedules, and you have a huge challenge for traditional IT departments.
The nightmare scenario for many is already here as business units are able to deal directly with service providers who will deliver fit for purpose, pay-as-you-go apps with minimum upfront capex.
It’s been said that businesses must refocus from the ‘technology of IT’ to the ‘information of IT’, and that today’s CIOs need to specifically look at developing services that understand, exploit and use the information of the organisation. This is the core evolution of the CIO as it increasingly aligns with the needs and strategic aspirations of the business.
It’s a big challenge for enterprises to manage the number devices and cloud services they have adopted; while at the same time trying to grasp how changes to the software environment will impact on usage, or alter licensing requirements.
It may seem like chaos, but making use of solutions such as business intelligence (BI) can deliver that much-needed clarity. With the help of BI, businesses can uncover the areas where risk and exposure are high, and can further deliver a complete picture of the IT environment to assist confident decision-making around questions such as choosing a software vendor. This kind of usage audit helps to ensure you are being charged correctly by your provider. For example, you can check whether you are being charged for the right amount of software used, rather than the number of devices that are connected to the network.
In a complex and dynamic technology eco-system, predicting the demise of the IT department may be somewhat premature. When it comes to maximising value from investments, the IT department still has a vital part to play.
