CIO Best Practices: 3 Key Steps for Digital Transformation Initiatives
Digital
transformation has the potential to revolutionize citizen services, but
efforts to bring about that change are "often hindered by top-down
hierarchies, cultural legacies and the lack of a compelling vision,"
according to information from Gartner, an information technology research and advisory company.
Gartner
spoke with numerous public sector CIOs who have lead successful digital
transformation initiatives. Based on those conversations, Gartner
identified three key steps to effective organizational change.
The
first step is to promote a compelling new vision for the organization
as a whole, including the role of IT in that transformation. The CIO
should outline that vision in a brief document written in "clear,
nontechnical terms," said Elise Olding, research vice president at
Gartner, in a prepared statement. The vision statement should specify
the problem with the current organizational direction and outline steps
toward improvement. The CIO can then present this vision statement to
executive leaders for them to "affirm, revise or reject and replace."
Once
the executive leadership is on board with the new plan, the next step
is to get buy-in from mid-level managers and frontline staff. The key
to engaging these people is to make it clear how the new vision will
improve their role, according to Gartner. Since many staff members will
have invested considerable effort in previous visions, it's important
to make it clear how the new vision builds on their previous work
rather than undoing it.
People who are comfortable in the
current organizational culture may resist change and consequently
smother innovation, particularly if the people who hold those attitudes
are in leadership positions. "The CIOs who succeed in transforming the
business actively confront ingrained behaviors, traditions and legacy
processes," said Olding. "They challenge leadership and are successful
in instilling a clearly defined sense of urgency around their vision
that gains the trust and support of the entire organization, from
leadership to frontline workers."
Gartner is holding two events "to help IT leaders harness digital transformation in their organizations. The Gartner Digital Workplace Summit will be held Sept. 21 to 22, 2016 in London, UK, and the Gartner Application Strategies and Solutions Summit will be held Dec. 6 to 8, 2016 in Las Vegas, NV.
About the Author
Leila Meyer is a technology writer based in British Columbia. She can be reached at [email protected].