Anything new brings with it a sense of excitement at what it will offer and mean for us individually, organisational, and culturally.
Technology especially has been on the forefront of transformation for the last 40yrs – never more so than in the last 10 years with Cloud. But are we getting the benefits that were proffered?
More and more research is indicative of the fact that whilst as individuals we are, many organisations are not. Does that mean the benefits aren’t real or that many of us are missing a trick?
It’s all about Balance
All change, regardless of its purpose or approach, needs to ensure that it is balanced across 2 infamous models – ensuring all 3 aspects are addressed across both dimensions:
Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle of Why, How and What, and Harold Leavitt’s Golden Triangle of People, Process and Technology
It is, in our experience and opinion, the balance of these that is integral to the success of the transformation. All too often when the leading dynamic is technology – the people and process aspects are overlooked reducing the what (benefit) by diluting the why (purpose) – often to astonishing levels.
Traditionally the PPT framework was referred to as a three-legged stool where usage and stability is only possible when all 3 legs are of the same length.
When they aren’t, you’re on your ass on the floor!
At an individual level we can relate to this – we all have sophisticated tech that we use in very unsophisticated ways. Our phones/ laptops/ cars can do so much more than many of us know how to utilise!
The people who step back and assess how the tech can affect how they achieve their goal, will uncover more efficient ways to speed it up, or learn additional features they never knew they’d want or need.
If we scale just that view up to an organisational level – that’s missed opportunities for both customers and employees – double whammy of a far lower ROI that anyone wanted.
Turning specifically to Cloud and this is even more true – it is kind of unfathomable why a simple move to use another companies’ hardware could create such systemic transformation in ways of working, financial modelling, talent development, procurement, risk management – it’s so pervasive to each core function yet it is just moving the tech!
So many organisations are missing the people and process aspects of technical transformation and their people and bottom lines are missing out as a result.
The Future is Cloud
Most companies realise that Cloud is not optional – trends predict that if you haven’t adopted Cloud extensively in the next 5 yrs you will be at a clear competitive disadvantage – if you’re still around at all that is! Research from the likes of Gartner, E&Y, AWS, Microsoft etc. show not only the scale of investment in Cloud, but also that it the new “normal”.
Various studies across a range of industries in 2020 show that regardless of industry and company size Cloud features in all strategies and plans. With the market set to top £622bn world-wide this year – that c.10% of the total global IT spend
“Cloud adoption therefore becomes a significant means to stay ahead in a post-COVID-19 world focused on agility and digital touchpoints.” – Gartner
Cloud Adoption versus Cloud Utilisation
There is, however, a fundamental difference between cloud adoption and cloud utilisation when it comes to driving competitive advantage. Adoption is the tech, driving utilisation is the people and process. We like to use this equation to demonstrate this.
In this series of Blogs we will explore 4 massive reasons why it is often so easy to overlook people and process when it comes to technology-led change and what you get from it; and how to step back and really ensure your technical transformation is embracing the whole of your organisation. The reasons we will be exploring are:
