DIGITAL HIGH FLYERS: PAVING THE WAY FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE IN IT

What defines a successful digital organisation? An Accenture survey of 202 senior IT executives in private and public sector organisations across industries assessed three essential characteristics that determine high performance in IT – execution, agility, and innovation. The high flyers were identified as those that performed significantly above the average across these three dimensions, and these standout performers also demonstrated several distinct similarities in their digital strategies.

While many organisations are focusing IT resources on cost reduction, production gain and process improvement, the high flyers are investing elsewhere. By directing resources towards new technologies and an enhanced customer experience, these organisations are able to identify new growth opportunities and enhance performance.

High performers devote 55% of their IT budgets to delivering strategic capabilities that support growth and business performance. Compare this to their less effective counterparts who invest only 37% and it’s easy to see why these high performers are leading the way when it comes to adopting key new technologies, including cloud computing and analytics.

Companies with a high performance IT organisation stand out in other ways as well. A relentless focus on the customer is demonstrated by the fact that the top three business objectives of the high performers centred on the customer experience. There is a convergence of business and IT strategies; half of high performers are considering their IT strategy in the context of the broader economic, social and geopolitical environment, compared to 10% of other organisations.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, high performers are also early adopters – over half of them have been experimenting and learning from early deployment of new technologies. One-third have already replaced inefficient legacy architecture with cloud solutions, that’s eight times more than other organisations. This enthusiasm for new technologies extends to the workforce, with 70% of high performers allowing their employees to use personal mobile devices and apps to manage their workload, compared to just over a third of their counterparts.

Beyond these results, high performers are winning the digital race in analytics, agile and iterative technologies, and security and risk management. They are investing heavily in strategic IT partners, aligning them with their business requirements and priorities. The gap between the high flyers and the also-rans is growing by the hour, as early investment creates a digital mindset that is receptive to change and quick to act.

As business and technology move ever closer together, high performing CIOs are now a force in the boardroom ­– and driving the digital agenda.

source:http://click.accenture.com/digital-high-flyers-paving-the-way-for-high-performance-in-it/#sf22411940