Innovation in IT: A Blueprint for Digital Evolution

In the fast-paced landscape of the digital era, it is imperative for organizations to revolutionize their Information Technology (IT) infrastructure. A recent study by the Harvard Business Review sheds light on the transformative potential of digital and Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies. 89% of global companies embarking on the digital and AI transformation journey reported a substantial 31% increase in anticipated revenue and a 25% reduction in operational costs. This transformative success, particularly in sectors like banking, highlights the importance of fostering revenue growth and expense control.

Evolution of Aging Platforms and Challenges

The digitization journey that commenced in the '90s, focusing on asset digitization and process automation, has evolved to adapt to changing business conditions and innovation across sectors like banking, healthcare, and insurance. However, this evolution has led to the development of complex and outdated platforms that pose significant challenges for organizations.

Within large institutions, transformation, and modernization efforts encounter consistent setbacks. Often overlooked but undeniably real, these challenges, including lack of holistic approach, inadequate evaluation of platform state, incorrect technology choices, and short-term focus, among others, hinder successful digital business transformations.

Peeking at the blueprint for success

The success of digital business transformation hinges on the adherence to a set of crucial guidelines. A methodical approach involving a thorough evaluation of both business and technology facets forms the foundation for understanding the intricacies of the transformation journey. Committing to comprehensive evaluation, leaving no element unexplored, and avoiding shortcuts become crucial for navigating complexities effectively. The adoption of a reality check goes beyond documentation, demanding an in-depth comprehension of the system's current state.

Additionally, a long-term perspective proves indispensable, enabling the challenge of deviations that might impact timelines, costs, or desired outcomes, ensuring alignment with strategic objectives. Embracing a holistic approach discourages piecemeal strategies, emphasizing a comprehensive system understanding.

Informed decision-making takes center stage, urging organizations to compare multiple technology options and rigorously enforce predefined criteria. Adaptive design philosophy is important, encouraging the demonstration of architectural patterns that counter concerns of being "too big to fail." Right-sizing and tailoring services appropriately underscore the flexibility inherent in considering a monolithic approach as a valid choice.

Incorporating proven accelerators becomes a strategic lever, urging organizations to utilize and customize industry-proven tools that expedite the transformation process. Automation, implemented at every stage from infrastructure to deployment, is the cornerstone for efficiency, ensuring seamless and error-free integration. Security takes precedence from the outset, with a proactive definition of security and compliance protocols.

Digital Business Methodology – A Practitioner’s Mantra

Success requires a methodical approach. Digital Business Methodology (DBM) provides insight into the "What" that shapes your approach, with the "How" contingent on tools, ecosystem, leadership support, and team skill set.

DBM is a comprehensive strategy that empowers companies to embrace and implement digital business practices. It provides a well-defined path orchestrating data, technology, and personnel alignment. This approach yields results across the enterprise, emphasizing speed, consistency, and scalability through an outcome-driven, incremental process. This methodology's core is a business-led, agile digital culture focused on achieving bite-sized outcomes essential for accelerating business growth.

Under the DBM umbrella, businesses lead in collaboration with key stakeholders throughout the entire process, from ideation to deployment. The primary focus lies in simplifying end-to-end workflows and establishing a single source of truth (SSOT). This guided and adaptable ideation-to-deployment ecosystem facilitates seamless collaboration among business owners, engineers, analysts, scientists, and operational teams, driving innovative solutions and achieving desired outcomes.

In embracing the digital evolution, the journey through digitization highlights the importance of perpetual adaptation and the formulation of forward-thinking strategies. Setbacks encountered along this path should be perceived as opportunities, providing invaluable insights for sustaining digital excellence. A recent report by Gartner highlights that companies investing in digital immunity are poised to curtail system downtime by up to 80% by 2025, thereby directly influencing revenue streams.

As we advance into the future, a pivotal question arises: Are we prepared to lead in innovation, or do we run the risk of lagging behind? 

Authored by Sasikumar Kannappan, Head of Solutions Architecture, Business Solutions and Research, Altimetrik