Who is the Head of IT, what role do they play in the organisation and in the company's digitisation process, and what challenges do they face in their daily work? Who can help them solve their problems and when should they seek support from IT outsourcing? We answer these questions in a series of Britenet articles.
Digital transformation by 2025
A digital approach to business development paves the way for streamlining and automating internal processes, improving customer service, and increasing return on investment. Advanced solutions in the form of machine learning or hybrid cloud allow you to make more effective business decisions and adapt faster to major changes in the market – and 2020 has shown us the importance of flexibility and dynamism. No wonder that more and more companies are choosing to digitise their businesses.
Implementing an efficient digital transformation is now a priority for any company that is serious about maintaining and strengthening its position in the market. According to the World Economic Forum, digital transformation of companies is expected to cause the global economy to grow by more than 100 trillion dollars in the coming years – by 2025 to be exact. According to expert predictions, during this time, companies worldwide will spend around USD 2.8 trillion on investments related to the digitisation process. This confirms the key role the Head of IT plays in the transformation process of businesses.
Role of the Head of IT in the organisation
At the centre of this digital enterprise race, the Head of IT – with their technical expertise and ability to plan and predict - seeks the most effective IT solutions to support the company growth and realise its full potential. In their organisation, the Head of IT acts as a technological and innovative mentor whose knowledge, experience, and instincts enable them to take the optimal path in the demanding process of digitisation.
They steer the technological strategy, adapting the company to changes in the market, and use advanced technologies to ensure the security of the organisation's key resource – data. The Head of IT is a bridge between the two worlds – technology and business, enabling the company to succeed in the digital age. They also play an important role in identifying and implementing new technologies to optimise the organisation's IT infrastructure, thereby increasing its efficiency and effectiveness, as well as impacting profits.
What are the characteristics of a good Head of IT? A good leader in this position is first and foremost someone who looks boldly into the future and takes actions that others might not dare to, and who strives to be ahead of their time and take daring steps towards the future - while making their decisions based on solid data, knowledge, as well as effective learning from the past and the experiences of their competitors.
What does a typical day look like for an IT Director?
A typical day in the life of the Head of IT will vary depending on, among other things, the type and size of the organisation they work for and the industry in which their company operates. In every case, however, the main challenge the Head of IT faces is finding the best way to take their company into the future – with a reasonable and deliberate choice of innovative IT solutions.
Among the main tasks of the Head of IT are regular meetings with representatives from other departments in the company to discuss and understand the current technological needs of different areas of the organisation. Naturally, each department reports the needs that, from their perspective, will be most important and ought to be addressed first.
It is the Heads' responsibility to place the reported demands in a broader perspective of company-wide performance – analysing and prioritising needs with the greatest benefit in mind and confronting them with the budget. The costly and time-consuming task of building and implementing a substantial solution for managing and organising data can prove far more cost-effective in the long term than immediately strengthening the marketing department with campaign automation and customer service tools – as the latter will perform better while supported by high-quality structured data.
Here comes another difficult task in the daily schedule of the Head of IT – convincing the management board of the validity of implementing the presented projects. In this case, knowledge and understanding of the latest technologies and digital trends are not enough. It is also necessary to be able to speak the language of benefits that is most understandable to stakeholders – this means consistently, clearly, and convincingly communicating the benefits of investments, both in the short and long term, including improved operational efficiency, increased competitiveness of the company, or cost optimisation.
Skilful identification and balancing of risks involved in a given project are equally important – and here, too, it is necessary to prepare a strategy for minimising potential risks in advance by, among other things, working with a trusted and flexible outsourcing partner. Communication skills and the ability to build trust are also a great asset of the Head of IT. During meetings with the management board they can be paramount to the ultimate success of the discussions.
The day-to-day tasks of the Head of IT also include managing the company's human resources and mentoring IT staff. The Head has a major role in building an effective team that is able to cope with market changes and technological challenges. This requires them to, among other things, find the right talents and then support their development and boost their motivation, as well as match their potential to the team structures and the company as a whole. However, the complexity of the tasks and challenges that the Head of IT faces every day means that they do not always have enough time to carefully address this process. Adding to this the time it takes to respond to unexpected changes and issues, the Head of IT turns their sights towards an external IT partner more often.
Effective team leadership also involves striving to co-create corporate culture focused on cooperation, continuous improvement, and innovation. Building a good team will allow tasks to be assigned to the right people, enabling the Head of IT to devote valuable time to larger tasks - including the search for a trusted outsourcing partner, comprehensive analysis of technological trends, or strategic planning of the company's wider development.
For more about the greatest challenges and traps awaiting the Head of IT and how to find a responsible business partner, see our upcoming articles.
Summary
The IT director faces numerous challenges every day. However, he doesn't have to confront many of them alone - a good IT partner can be a tremendous support, not only supporting him in choosing the best digital solutions for his company, but also supporting the execution of the project at every stage of its implementation to maximize the benefits for the organization and minimize the burden on the budget. At Britenet, we know these challenges and are in a position to help you profit from them.
If you would like us to talk you through the opportunities for digital transformation in your organization, please contact us.
