I’ve seen a lot of articles lately about Digital Transformation and Internet of Things. The entire business world, it seems, is all a flutter over these sexy new(ish) technology ideas. I get it, business leaders and technologists get excited about the potential that these initiatives represent for their organizations and their customers. I, too, see the benefits of these burgeoning technologies; however, I also see many cases where organizations aren't ready for such endeavors and have their cart placed well and decidedly… before their horse.
There’s a lot of core infrastructure, services, policy/procedure, and, more importantly, security concerns that still haven't been addressed in many organizations. I understand the desire to be on the bleeding edge of technology, but I often see a break in the critical connection between solid fundamentals and the next “big thing” in technology. If you work in the tech industry, you know this isn’t new. One of the classic examples I’ve seen so many times is deploying VoIP on a network that isn’t ready. In this example you're moving a service, with expectations of utility grade reliability, onto a network, that in many cases, isn't close to utility grade. Another example that I see all of the time is running ancient operating systems on desktops and servers. This goes directly to the organization's commitment to keeping up with the pace of technological advancement. No doubt, it is a challenge on both the fiscal and governance fronts.
Layer on the pace at which the world and businesses want to adopt new technologies, and you have a challenging confluence of competing factors. I mean, really, who wants to slow down and spend significant time and big money on boring technologies like structured cabling, firewalls, ethernet switching, WiFi, physical security, climate control, power protection, much less policy and procedures?
Evaluation and remediation of these fundamental aspects of IT can be a bitter pill, but they are essential to the successful adoption and deployment of new and exciting technologies. The biggest change we must make is how we think about these technology investments. The old “IT Is Just A Cost Center" mindset has to be rooted out and replaced with a new “IT Is Essential...” mindset. If you’re operating anything more than a lemonade stand… You have to accept that all businesses are technology businesses now... because even if you don’t believe it, your customers do.
Understand, I'm not advocating endless spending on the biggest and the best or the latest and the greatest. I'm all about right-sizing solutions, and in most cases, you don't need the marquee brand either. There are great products from solid companies that cost a fraction of what similar items from certain top players in the industry cost. It's really about making smart choices and planning for the future.
You want to tackle deploying the latest "Ooh Shiny" technology... Great! But first, take the time to evaluate where your organization is on the basics. Invest the time and money to ensure you have a solid technology foundation. Your new initiatives will be much more likely to succeed, and you'll be ready for the next "big thing".