We’ve written before about the fact that we often talk to organisations that want to create Roadmaps, to allow a better visual represent for Senior Management. But, they don’t want to bother with the hassle of defining and capturing their current state, maybe seeing this as less glamorous!
It’s all about the destination
It’s currently holiday season in Europe, and the similarities struck me.
The exciting part about holiday planning is focused on where to go and what you can do when you get there. There are, as we all know, many different things to take into account; are you looking for a relaxing week on the beach, an adrenalin fuelled action packed adventure or a sophisticated city break; do you want a 5* hotel or a bustling hostel where you can make new friends; do you have a list of “must do’s”, be that visiting a specific restaurant or attraction or water sports being included in the price; Do you need to book ahead or can this all be sorted when you arrive.
The similarities with a future state are evident in that you need to understand where you are trying to get to and why – are you looking to outsource a business process, move applications to the Cloud to save cost, install a new ERP system to streamline processes to provide a consistent experience to your customers, rationalise applications to achieve cost savings and increased agility. All these will affect your destination and IT leaders, generally, want to make the right decisions on which options to approve to ensure the destination will be reached.
Less glamorous is the travel
So, assessing different options for the destination is great, but key is knowing the route I need to take to get to that destination.
Returning to the holiday analogy, to be able to plan my travel, I need to know where I am now, or where I will be when I set off. Whether I am in London, Lisbon or Los Angeles matters. I need to know when I am travelling, is it this week, next month or next year? I need to know my budget; can I fly business class or am I on the bus?
Leave it to chance?
Of course, I could leave it to chance and randomly leave my house and head to the nearest airport, hoping there are no disruptions or strikes on day. When I arrive at the airport, I can hope that there is a flight, within my budget and timeframe, that has a free seat. If not, I must accept, with good grace, the associated costs and wasted time that this approach might entail.
It sounds like a ridiculous approach, but surprisingly many organisations do seem to apply this approach to their IT Roadmap Planning. They are loathe to spend the time and effort required to define their current state without, perhaps, realising that without this perspective, the journey to their carefully constructed future state is a no more than a ‘hit and hope’.
Define the current state to the level required
Understanding your current state doesn’t have to be a mammoth task, we often hear ‘we don’t have time’ or ‘it’s too big a job to do’, but it doesn’t have to be all or nothing, they key is to focus on just the information you need to shine some light into the darkness. If you are looking to move your applications to cloud deployments, you need a list of your applications and where they are currently deployed – you may not necessarily need to understand the business capabilities or business processes to start this particular journey. You may need the detail later, so if you are looking to standardise your HR platform across a diverse global organisation you will need to understand the detail of the processes that are supported (see Case Study 2 in the What Qualitative EA Data Really Matter).
Having a roadmap might seem like an obvious necessity, yet it’s frequently overlooked, particularly when external consultancies are brought in to devise a future state strategy. They tend to focus solely on what they were tasked with—defining that future state. However, a common issue arises when there’s a disconnect between the envisioned future and the organisation’s current capabilities or their ability to implement the strategy. This often leads to the destination being missed.
While mapping out the journey may not be mandatory, it’s a vital step that significantly enhances the likelihood of success and should not be ignored.
Useful Links
How to succeed at Digital Transformation
11 reasons why digital transformations fail
Roadmapping and Strategy – An Approach for Success