Technology Mastery Model A Two-Year Technology Strategy Process

● Explanation of the Technology Mastery Model

● A Two-Year Model for Developing an Effective Technology Strategy

● Creating a Rolling List of Projects to Take On

 

Overview

In order to maximize the productivity of all the layers of Digital Plumbing, every

organization needs to have a separate technology strategy as a part of the overall

organizational strategy. From what we see, companies that do not have a written

technology strategy specifying what improvements will be made – as well as when they

will be made, and by whom – often exist in a state of chaos. In addition, without a

written plan, there is no good way to measure the success of our technology employees

based on the amount of time that they keep the Digital Plumbing up and running. This

is important, but it fails to give them the inspiration that will make them want to

improve the plumbing in ways that support the organization’s business goals.

When setting out to create a written, agreed-upon technology strategy that involves

both IT people and the operational side of the organization, it is good to follow a model

that can be repeated each year. A technology strategy is not a one-time exercise. The

underlying tools in the tech world change and improve so quickly it is now a

requirement to update the strategy every twelve months.

We have developed a five-step process to help organizations develop a technology

strategy that takes full advantage of their Digital Plumbing. This process solves several

problems that organizations with misspent technology dollars face today. To execute

this two-year technology strategy correctly, you need to think about to different things:

Digital Plumbing structure and the levels of the Technology Mastery.

Digital Plumbing Structure

 

In order to get a good picture in your head, think of Digital Plumbing as a series of

layers, each built on the one below it.

The bottom layer is the Communication Layer. It connects computers so they can

communicate with each other – through bandwidth, routers, firewalls, switches, and the

network infrastructure. These are the pipes that connect systems to the internet or a

data center.

The next layer is the Hardware Layer – computers, servers, storage drives, backup

systems, and handhelds. This collection of gear provides the physical means of

managing and interacting with information, and it allows us to store massive amounts

of data.

The Database Layer stores the raw data that we create in data archives, image stores,

and transactional data stores. This

layer is critical because it also gives us

tools to create new views and reports

by mining the data we have gathered.

The next level up is the Application

Layer, with its PC-based software,

web-based software, and

server-distributed software. Applications are the visual interfaces we see on our

screens every day. They allow everyday users to do something meaningful with

 

information stored in the layers below.

The top layer is the Business Intelligence Layer, including dashboarding systems,

data analysis software, and data mining applications. This is the least understood and

least utilized layer at the moment but its value cannot be overestimated. In this layer

we build tools to analyze our data and information and represent it in real-time

dashboards that give people a useful glimpse into the performance of an organization.

Technology Mastery Model

The Technology Mastery Model is something we developed for organizations to use in

 

thinking about technology strategies holistically. Each of the six levels of the model

plays an integral role in the overall technology strategy. Each level is distinct, but they

all work together and intersect. All of the levels are important; this isn’t something

where you should pick one or two levels to focus on, but rather you should build and

improve each of these levels as evenly as you can. Focusing on five levels and

neglecting one level will still leave you with gaps that need correcting and a strategy

that is less than world class.

Technology Guideposts

Technology Guideposts are technology-related goals that your organization sets and

works toward. They are mandatory because they focus the organization on a few

critical, technology-driven deliverables. They are like lighthouses that help you

navigate to an industry-leading position with how you operate. These guideposts

are the longer-range, big concepts that dictate the more detailed elements of how

you execute with technology on a day-to-day basis.

Changes and improvements in each of the other five levels of the Technology

Mastery Model should refer back to your Guideposts so that the decisions you make

are always navigating you toward your goals. This is critical because technology is

complicated, it’s changing all the time, and there is always more that can be done.

Guideposts will help you stay focused on what’s truly important.

 

Technology Augmented Culture

One aspect we always evaluate is the organizational culture that has been created

and how adaptable it is to new technology introduction. This is critical because

technology sophistication thrives or chokes in different cultures.

This is a variable that should be given a lot of thought, and any adjustments that

need to be made will have to be driven by the leaders in the organization. If the

culture does not readily adapt to change it will become toxic to technology growth.

Technology Team

You can have the world’s best strategy, but it’s hard to implement without a great

team to act on it. This means not only having the right number of people, but also

putting them in the right places and making sure they have the skills necessary to

do the job well. Sometimes you can have the right number of people but have skill

levels that are lacking.

Generally, companies don’t do a good job of matching their technology needs and

opportunities with the human resources that they have. Usually this results in not

having enough technologists who could be creating value for the company.

Even when you have the right number of people with good skills, another concern

can be cultural impediments that hamper performance levels and block progress.

 

Technology Processes

Processes make success repeatable. Today, it is absolutely critical to have mature

processes that align technology needs with business priorities. This includes

processes to maximize the productivity of hardware, software, Digital Marketing,

uptime, and security.

Technology implementation is not going to get easier as you continue to grow, it

will only become more complicated. Technology is a relatively new variable,

therefore most organizations simply have not developed the systems to build it,

implement it, and manage it well.

Critical Digital Marketing and Digital Plumbing Tasks

When looking at technology tasks we divide them into two categories:

● Digital Marketing - outreach and connection tools, techniques and concepts

● Digital Plumbing – infrastructure

We find it helpful to analyze these two categories separately.

Measurements and Analytics

 

What gets measured gets done. When you measure progress you gain visibility into

what works and what doesn’t. This allows you to constantly improve your

technology performance.

Too many companies try to do technology without really measuring the outcomes in

any formal, consistent way. We want you to be disciplined about what you measure

and how often you evaluate it. It’s been pretty clear to us that people who measure

well seem to face the truths that the measurements reveal and improve. Those who

do not measure live in a fantasy world where they think they are okay, or they

simply don’t measure because they’re embarrassed with the results they know they

will see.

Goals

There are several goals that come with implementing a two-year technology

strategy. For one, creating a world-class Digital Plumbing system can add

tremendous value to an organization. Properly spent IT dollars and help stop you

from wasting money on unnecessary technology projects. It can also help you to

become more efficient and productive, in some cases increasing top-line revenue

while lowering back-office costs. Secondly, by going through the process of

mapping out the layers of your Digital Plumbing, you’re creating a way for leaders

to have a clearer picture of their organization and the make better decisions

because of that visibility. Executives that previously were unfamiliar with the

organization’s technology platforms can suddenly become active participants in

 

debates about their improvement for the future.

These maps, or blueprints, are also valuable by helping you create a project list of

pieces of your system that need upgrades over the next year or two. You can follow

the progress of your current-state maps all the way through to the future-state

maps that you create to represent what you hope your Digital Plumbing will look

like in two years. By repeating this process each year, you move the organization to

a state of constant improvement.

Process Description

This process has been reduced to five steps that can be completed by an

organization of any size. The larger the entity, the more complicated each step

might be to complete, yet this formula works for everyone.

Step One: Create a “Today” Map that Shows the Current State of Your Digital

Plumbing

First, draw a map that graphically represents each of the layers in your Digital

Plumbing and describes how each of the elements in each layer are organized. Be

sure to include each of the five layers – Communication, Hardware, Database,

Application, and Business Intelligence. These maps should be color coded so that,

for example, dysfunctional areas are represented in red and areas that work are in

 

blue. These maps serve as a visual representation of how the plumbing is organized

today.

One way to create this map is to have the IT department draw a diagram that

shows all the databases in the company and what data they hold. Then, have them

draw lines between the ones that communicate with each other. With this map laid

out in front of you, start looking for places where data is being entered by hand and

also where it is duplicated across databases. Start asking yourself questions: Could

we use existing data to populate other databases to ensure that everything is

consistent? Can we share data between databases rather than duplicating it? Can

we collapse databases together into larger databases that will allow us to improve

quality and services (and maybe cut IT costs)?

Then start asking questions around reporting: What can’t we do because certain

data exists in a separate database? What reporting could be improved if we

collapsed or connected two different databases? This type of mapping and

questioning is easy to do, but is rarely asked for. It gives a quick picture to a

non-technical person of both how broken plumbing is impacting the organization

and what improvements must be made. Remember, it got this complicated because

you slowly brought many different software applications into your business without

giving enough thought to how all the pieces would fit together. Now is the time to

reevaluate.

 

Next you’ll need to map your data storage, and there are two different issues to

examine. The first is making sure that data is backed up in ways that ensure it is

never lost. Executives need to sit down with IT people and have them draw out the

entire backup strategy and show in pictures how all data is protected.

The other important thing to be aware of as you examine your map is the need to

standardize your technological tools. Just as the traditional plumbing systems have

standards – the size of pipes, the construction of toilets and sinks – Digital

Plumbing also has standards. For example, people have fought over whether they

should use Linux or Microsoft operating systems, or whether they should program

in the Visual Basic or C Languages. It’s frustrating to be in a situation where IT

people want a decision on which standard to use when the executive has no idea

which way to go. There is no good advice on how to resolve debates on

standardization other than to listen carefully to the motives behind each debate and

make sure the decisions are being made based on which technology standard is

best for the organization in the long term and not just what is easiest, perhaps

because the staff is already familiar with one option.

The most important message about standards is that more is better. In other

words, when you look around an organization, the more you can standardize – the

laptops you use, the personal software you deploy, the operating systems you put

 

in place, the programming platforms you maintain – the smoother the overall

plumbing will operate.

Organizations often paint themselves into a corner by giving little thought to these

internal standards, and they will sometimes end up with a hardware or software

investment that is not compatible with a new initiative, which results is failure to

reach the return on investment (ROI) they expected. Another way that

management needs to drive accountability in the IT department is by having them

present the list of standards each year and demonstrate why they make sense.

The final consideration in this step is deciding what part of the Digital Plumbing

should be mobile. Just about anything we can access from a computer at the office

we can now access from a handheld device. We have the ability to leverage mobile

technology in a bigger way, but doing so is often not at the top of IT’s “To-Do” list.

Because many road warriors and home-based workers carry laptops that can access

company data remotely, the need to drive applications to handheld devices has not

been a strong one. However, laptops don’t fit in a purse or on a belt, so they are

not handy at all times like a smartphone. Many organizations can see big

productivity gains from extending access to office data and applications to mobile

devices; determining the potential for increased mobile access at your organization

is an important element in mapping your Digital Plumbing.

 

Step Two: Upgrade the Today Maps to Show How the Digital Plumbing Should

Look in Two Years

Next, a second set of maps is created that depicts how you would like the plumbing

to be organized over a two-year timeline. Think of these maps as blueprints for

each of the layers. Even a non-architect can look at a blueprint and understand

what the plumbing might look like.

Step Three: Review the Maps

The technologists in the organization review the maps with the businesspeople –

first the current version of the maps and then the future version of them. As a

team, the technologists and business people adjust and improve the maps so that

everyone agrees on what the state of the plumbing is today and where the

problems lie. This way, all can agree on what improvements to focus on for the

future.

Step Four: Develop a Two-Year Written Strategy

From the feedback and ideas that come out of this meeting, a written two-year

technology strategy is developed and should include a list of specific improvements

for the first year and the second year. This way, everyone is clear on what the

expectations are for the coming year and has a vision of what might happen in year

two.

 

It should list the types of applications used and maybe even a few features that will

be brought online, but it should not go into such deep detail as to be unreadable. It

is important that many people across the institution are able to read it and have a

clear picture of the organization’s technological goals. This strategy document will

be central in guiding the improvements you will make to your Digital Plumbing, and

it will also include elements that would not be covered in the plumbing diagrams.

For example, areas like technology training, use of social technologies, online

marketing, and the connection of the plumbing to third parties are all areas that

might be covered in your two-year strategy document.

The plan should start with year one: list the improvements that are needed

immediately. The first year is usually the easiest to strategize; make sure that the

plan clearly states the exact elements to be installed in year one. Next, the

year-two strategy should be constructed, and it may incorporate innovations that

can’t be designed at the moment. The goal is to look for high-value additions that

can significantly impact the bottom line.

The leadership team, in coordination with the businesspeople and technologists,

then determines a budget for the improvements.

This plan will become a task list for the IT department. In reality, there will be lots

of little improvements made during the year that are not on the plan. This may

happen through new innovations that could not have been foreseen.

 

Once the strategy is written and agreed upon, you must have a process for

executing it; we suggest using our Core Team process.

Step Five: Review and Update Maps and Strategies Each Year

Once a year, the plan is reviewed and updated, including the plumbing maps. This

will allow you to create a rolling two-year plan that documents the improvements to

be made within the next twelve months, and IT people can then be held

accountable to meet these goals.

Expected Outcomes

After working through this process once, while continuing to review and update

your technology plans and maps, you will have added to your organization an

element of continual improvement. As you keep doing it, you will be building your

process of flagging problem areas, strategizing the fix, prioritizing the project, and

finally implementing the change. Doing this continually will put your organization on

the path toward technology mastery and a properly functioning Digital Plumbing

system. Also, understanding the layers of Digital Plumbing structure as well as the

levels of the Technology Mastery Model will provide you a framework for studying

your organization and finding parts that can or need to be improved.

By working through this process, you will develop maps – or blueprints – that can

create a lot of value for your organization’s leaders. These will be their keys for

 

understanding your Digital Plumbing better, and making good decisions regarding

it.

We hope the ultimate outcome is that you use the process to the fullest as you

mold your Digital Plumbing into a world-class system that saves you money

through efficiency, but also adds value to the organization through productivity and

Business Intelligence.

The tools are there for you to achieve all of these outcomes. It really comes down

to two areas though, mentioned in the Technology Mastery Model section;

processes make success repeatable, and what gets measured gets done. By going

through a structured process and measuring your results, you’ll be able to benefit

from each of these outcomes described.

For information on developing an effective technology strategy please contact us at

info@fpov.com or (405) 359-3910.