Australia's largest businesses have a long list of technology projects to consider, commence or progress in 2015.
Many of these projects, particularly those involving mobility, automation, digitisation, cloud computing and analytics, can transform the ability of these businesses to understand and respond to changing market conditions and consumer demand.
However, companies that take on too many projects at once risk placing too great a workload on their technology teams. The likely outcomes of this burden are project delays and compromised results, as well as a lack of focus on business-as-usual IT activities. So how can businesses determine which projects to proceed with and which processes to implement to achieve the best outcomes?
Prioritise based on value to business
The first step should be to prioritise each project based on the value it can deliver to the business (this includes when that value starts being realised). This value − and its timing − will vary depending on the operations and structure of the company.
For example, a business with a large mobile sales team spread across the country may be more likely to obtain value quickly from a mobility project than a business with teams based largely at a corporate head office.
This prioritisation exercise would also have to account for the fact that some projects are likely to be complementary; that is, situations where the full value of one project can only be realised when other projects are completed as well.
For example, a particular mobility project may only deliver full value when the business moves certain applications to the cloud. To fully determine the value of individual projects, all affected business teams and functions need to be consulted and involved from a very early stage.
Develop a complete plan
Once this step is completed, a business can further develop this evaluation − including budgets, milestones and required internal and external resources − into a full plan for each project it proposes to implement. Once each project is signed off, the business will need to choose vendors that can help deliver each component.
This is a crucial step. Select vendors with the technologies, skills, industry partnerships and culture that your business needs, and work with them as partners. By doing this your business will maximise its chances of completing a project on time and within budget, and fulfilling all its objectives.
Get users on side early
For projects that transform business activities and processes, winning support from users is crucial. For example, older employees may resist changing work practices to accommodate digitisation or automation as they may feel threatened or uncomfortable with newer technologies.
IT teams themselves may confront the need to retrain or re-skill to accommodate the transition from a wholly on-premises technology environment to hybrid environments incorporating public clouds. By engaging users early, continuing to work closely with them and making the transition to new processes and practices as seamless as possible, businesses can remove a potential roadblock to success.
Ensure executive and business-team support
Another crucial step is to maintain vital support for major IT projects from executives and business teams. One way of doing this is to include representatives from each team or function that is affected by a project on the committees that oversee the project's implementation. This helps ensure the project remains on track and that business objectives remain a priority.
For many businesses, the potential of the cloud, analytics, automation, digitisation and mobility is enormous. By taking a disciplined approach to deploying these technologies, your business can realise considerable benefits and gain an essential edge over its competitors.
