Today’s market place is subject to constant change. As a business leader, you need to be vigilant and understand your business’s competitive situation to stay ahead of the game. Using the analogy of a talented athlete with the skill and co-ordination necessary to play a game of football, playing the game requires little thinking which means that the athlete can focus on achieving greatness. Likewise, to stay competitive in the world of business, your business needs to integrate & automate core capabilities through the effective use of Information & Communication Technology (ICT) in order that you and your management team have more time to focus on new business opportunities while spending less time on routine activities. In summary, this means that you need to have in place the right ICT foundation to provide the capability for your business to go in the direction you have chosen for achieving success.
To understand if you have the right foundation for business execution consider the following questions:
Q1: Is information unavailable when you need to make key product and customer decisions?
Q2: Does meeting a new regulatory or reporting requirement become a major effort for you, requiring continued pushing from the top and significant infrastructure investment?
Q3: Does your business lack agility, i.e. does every new initiative feel like you are starting from scratch?
Q4: Are similar activities in your business performed using different processes and systems?
Q5: Are you unsure if you are getting good value from your ICT investment?
If you have answered yes to some or all these questions, then your enterprise may lack the capabilities needed to deliver improved business performance.