Are you deriving competitive advantage from your IT?

In today’s business environment where markets are won or lost in split seconds and where information flows at the speed of light and control of information is becoming a source of competitive advantage, are you giving as much attention as you should to your IT systems?

IT often is a maze to business leaders whilst it should be an enabler of data mining and data analytics. CEOs need to tap into their IT systems to gain insights on their customer behavior patterns, to access market intelligence and its key business performers. IT is also at the centre of risk management framework as it ensures adequate controls are in place to enable directors to discharge their duties. Without appropriate tools, it will be impossible to navigate the new regulatory landscape that the corporate world will face tomorrow - information explosion, cybercrimes, increasing regulations and need to respect privacy consists a potentially dangerous cocktail. Are you paying enough attention to your IT control risks?

With social media the power of consumers has amplified. The company’s reputation, image and brands are very much in the hands of the worldwide web. The speed at which news is travelling is posing serious challenges to management as social media has provided exponential access to information. Today everyone has the potential to be a citizen journalist. A poor service can go viral in minutes just as a new product can become the buzz of the moment by social media users. In addition, social media is a low cost medium which enables interaction with customers, can orientate the customers to higher value products and services and their behaviour better understood and anticipated. Are you taking heed of your digital marketing and communication strategy?

We are all experiencing information overload. There is asymmetry of information among players in the same industry. However, managing the information overload, managing the data overload and converting it into relevant, meaningful and timely intelligence are where the competitive advantage lies. The famous Garbage In Garbage Out adage is so relevant as not having the right data might lead you to take the wrong decisions. Do you have the appropriate tools to take those key decisions?

IT has been commoditized at the hardware and network level. The availability of the infrastructure is in abundance, service providers mushroomed over the past years, costs are declining, and improvement in specifications is the name of the game. The only constant element in IT is change and thus innovation is key. Cloud computing will decouple infrastructure from application and will open up lots of possibilities in big data, analytics, social media, especially for SMEs who have not been able to tap into the full potential of IT. For the larger enterprises, Cloud will allow quick implementation, and shorter time to value. Are you staying abreast of the latest technological trend?

There is indeed convergence between IT and Telecommunications services. This convergence is providing business opportunities to enhance effectiveness of financial management, HR management, supply chain management, enterprise asset management, customer relationship management, data warehousing and business intelligence.

Today, many enterprises have their own ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and according to The Hackett Group Study, there is a lack of confidence in process, reports and data that are submitted for strategic decisions as the finance functions rely predominantly on manual intervention for narrative reporting.

According to the predictions of Brian Sommer, CEO of Techventive, in 2014, we will see the gap become ever more pronounced between those firms that possess old, rigid, inflexible systems and processes versus those that truly change and adapt in wondrous ways. The best firms will have fleshed out competencies around:

The successful exploitation of social content

Interpreting big data feeds and how they’ll impact planned and actual financial results

Understanding all manner of new mobile applications (not just the ones their firm created) and how their constituents will apply these in a business context

Modern process designs and how their firm can quickly support new processes, mobile cloud-powered applications, machine data, etc.

How does a CEO gain assurance that his CIO [Chief Information Officer] is ahead of the curve? Do you have a sound IT strategy that will ensure that your business is at the cutting edge of the technological play? Do you have a trusted IT advisor who will tell you what you need to know not necessarily what you want to hear? As enterprises get bigger, they need a trusted IT advisor. The latter should combine the IT requirements with the business requirements. Are you paying enough attention to your IT? Because if you are not, just remember your competitors are.