IT of the Future – What Companies Must Keep in Mind

Companies face the challenges of changing customer requirements and disruptions. New digital services, new competitors and new business models based on digital technologies are at issue. In the future, having a strong internal IT department will become increasingly important to companies. Experts in technology and in handling data (big data, unstructured data, data analysis, etc.) are required internally.

The reasons are multifarious:

• IT is crucial for survival. In times of disruptive change, superior IT affords a competitive edge.
• IT plays a central role in developing new digital business models.
• The requirements on the departments are tightening. In particular, Generations Y and Z are very IT savvy and have grown up with the technical possibilities of digitization.
• Business and IT must closely intermesh with one another and maintain a mutual understanding.
• Owing to the high risks from hacking and malware, cyber-security experts must be on hand.

Both the departments and corporate IT must accordingly fulfill level 4 requirements.

To meet these challenges, companies require state-of-the-art IT that will work closely with the departments. The IT of the future must have a deep understanding for customers and for the processes in the departments. Only then can successful revenue models and digital services come into being. Methods like Customer Journey Management and Design Thinking are necessary for the digital transformation to succeed. Intensive and long-term organizational change management supports continued development of the corporate culture.

To design the business IT of the future, organizations require a comprehensive perspective – from processes and roles through culture to governance and architecture. Here Scheer considers numerous parameters. From our past experience with implemented projects, we have developed a tried and tested framework that is undergoing constant further development and being expanded in breadth and depth by the experts at Scheer. The following diagram illustrates our framework:

Following a thorough analysis of the situation, from corporate strategy to an assessment of corporate IT, we can sketch the target IT organization. Our framework is employed in meeting numerous challenges on behalf of our customers:

• Optimization of the IT organizational structure
• Re-design of the collaboration between business and IT
• Development of IT governance
• Design of a target operating model for IT
• Gearing of the core processes to customers
• Re-conception of roles and activities
• Design of the innovation governance
• Development of open data concepts
• Development of digital transformation offices

Our structured and tested framework has enabled us to design the IT of the future for our customers by shaping the appropriate processes, organization structures, etc., that allow a high level of innovativeness. As an enabler, IT is combined with an innovative business model.