Your IT Transformation
What is IT Transformation?
IT transformation is the digital transformation of your business by optimising and revolutionising its infrastructure. The result is that the traditional IT Department as we know it is obsolete, however it goes beyond the reach of a traditional waterfall project. In this new era your IT and business teams need to be fully integrated for optimal results, and success will depend on empathy and leadership. Parker Shaw and the teams that we provide can help you to implement the change to this responsive way of working within your business, providing solutions for both SMEs and enterprise clients.
Businesses need to think faster and more inventively than their competition. We can supply bespoke development solutions which will transform how you work and what your business can offer, taking Parker Shaw far beyond the, now redundant, supplier/vendor and contractor/consultant recruitment agency models. We have evolved a large pool of talent that is constantly expanding, helping our clients to meet these new challenges.
Further, IT transformation means that the associated role of HR has changed too. We can provide a traditional HR service to our clients that require it, but we can also implement and advise on the more pressing needs of talent attraction and development. A survey in the Harvard Business Review last month [1] reports that people will happily earn less in exchange for a more meaningful role. This new integration of IT and business provides just such opportunities and will sit particularly well with millennials seeking a worthwhile and diverse working life experience.
We can help you move from legacy systems into the new frontier of faster and smoother business processes, planning and manage your IT transformation. We understand that this might be a huge leap for your business, and we are here to guide you, showing you the way forward that best meets your business goals and budget.
How do we do it?
Parker Shaw will initially help you clarify your business goals, establishing what your needs are and how a smooth IT transformation can help meet them. This assessment will cover what IT could do for your operations, and the best technologies and methods to achieve this. Success comes from good planning and communication during the project, and our specialists will make sure that they seamlessly integrate with your team.
The stages needed for an IT transformation project are very much like that of a property renovation. The first stage is to get everyone onboard as to why it is going to happen. The building equivalent would be that the central heating just isn’t doing a good enough job anymore so needs replacing. Once everyone is onboard, the real work can begin.
When it has been established what added business value is hoped for, then we move onto deciding exactly how your new IT will be interacting with the rest of your business. We make sure there is a detailed ‘building plan’ to work from. This will include a project timeline to be worked through covering all aspects of the project from infrastructure to architecture. A project manager will be in charge of keeping the whole team on track to smoothly implement the plan. As with a building project, the project manager will be skilled at dealing with any hiccups and challenges that could derail the job. They will make sure that the right vendors are ready when required with the deliverables needed. We will advise you on the funding required and make sure you are prepared to release the monies when needed to keep the project flowing smoothly.
Why agile?
There are two methods of delivering your IT Transformation. The traditional and most familiar way is waterfall development. A project is worked through from a feasibility study, through planning, designing, building, testing, production, and then finally support. These stages are discrete and there is little room for change. To use our analogy, the house is designed and then built exactly as planned. If you realise during the build that you need an extra bedroom added, it probably cannot be accommodated with the waterfall method.
Agile is different and could revolutionise your business. A short development cycle is in operation, with a constant process of understanding the needs to be met, adding those features, and then rolling them out. This repeats in quick cycles every two to four weeks. Features are prioritised according to business or user need, and short feedback cycles ensure that the product is fully evolved for your needs. We specialise in Agile development, and believe this is the most successful way to bring your project to completion. In some cases however, the waterfall method could be more appropriate. Our teams will fully assess your needs and advise accordingly.
We ensure that your whole company understands why their business is embarking on a rip and replace exercise. Such a monumental transformation will require everyone to be involved and invested, and we will ensure that this is the case, delivering results that will revolutionise the service that you provide. We have found this to be the most critical aspect of any transformation project. Agile development is ideally suited to team inclusion, which is why we recommend it.
The future
Going forward, we expect that the next stage of IT transformation will be unbounded systems. As more and more companies have already undergone IT transformation, this further stage will become about how these new systems can work together beyond the boundaries of their home businesses. This will provide far greater integration and collaboration between enterprises.
As technology changes at an ever more dizzying pace, leaving a trail of disruption in its wake, Parker Shaw are best placed to help you navigate this changing world.
[1] https://hbr.org/2018/11/9-out-of-10-people-are-willing-to-earn-less-money-to-do-more-meaningful-work