Without question, the cloud has transformed the way organizations buy and use technology.
History would indicate that IT departments within the business are the primary drivers and implementers of cloud in every form: public, private, and hybrid. However, in a world that sometimes seems upside down, when technology giants are dropping from the cloud race and CEO’s strive to become major players in the media industry, it is not surprising that IT organizations may not be the true innovators in the business.
For years, business units have been exposed to slow response times and frustrating procurement processes from their IT organizations, to a point where they have taken matters into their own hands, creating a phenomenon called “Shadow IT.” Shadow IT is often used to describe IT systems and solutions deployed without the proper corporate authorization. In this process, IT was seen as a barrier to innovation while the business units were seen as the innovators, resulting in several fragmented systems, and, often, misused data security practices.
IT organizations and business units acting completely independent from one another is not in the best interest of the business or their clients. But, what are the benefits of working together? And why should IT organizations and business units work towards common goals to realize the promise of cloud technology? Here are three simple but powerful reasons:
- Make better business decisions – Business units have incredible insight into what customers want but may not necessarily have the expertise on how technology can help them respond to external demands. The collaboration can lead to applying technology to products, services, and processes and, ultimately, to accelerate business growth.
- Improved customer satisfaction – Customer service often falls under the responsibility the business unit. However, customer satisfaction mostly depends on the technology customers use to interact with the enterprise. If the web interface isn’t fast and user-friendly, customer satisfaction will be impacted. The partnership of the business unit and IT organizations can simplify and enhance the customer’s experience and allow businesses to increase market share.
- Managing costs – The pressure to implement technology within the enterprise is ever increasing. Both IT organizations and business units are coming together to select and deploy technologies that will yield a positive return on investment. The cloud is the perfect example as it enables IT organizations with a cost-effective way to add new applications without capital dollars, while business units can access hosting, compute, and storage as needed.
Today, neither IT organizations nor business units can afford to act separately. In order to unlock the true promise of cloud and realize its flexibility and economic benefits, these organizations must redefine themselves as enablers for innovation. Read more about the benefits of cloud computing.
