If you’ve been in the IT field for a number of years, you might have to struggle to remember a time when your team operated at one speed to manage all of the needs of the business. For years, IT departments have been operating in at least two speeds to keep up with the pace of the changing digital environment. As the landscape continues to change, CIOs have to balance an increasing number of priorities. In order to meet the demands heaped upon them and ensure their organizations remain competitive, CIOs must adopt multi-speed capabilities.
Making The Multi-Speed Change
Implementing multiple speeds isn’t always easy. Everyone can come up with reasons why their operations should run at full speed at all times. However, technology must be matched up to the speed at which each aspect of the business needs to consume it. CIOs have the unenviable task of matching the architecture to business velocity while remaining mindful of the existing stack and operational model. Once those speeds are matched, however, IT is poised to drive business performance from top to bottom.
What might a multispeed system look like when a business must manage risk, address the changing needs of its customer base, deliver new products and services and manage day-to-day operations? It should include:
- Governance: Multi-speed IT requires a governance model that prioritizes demand, and streamlines that demand to deliver value at precisely the right time. Those priorities must be examined and re-evaluated on a regular basis throughout the year.
- Architecture: Some areas of the business will require higher speeds than others, and IT architecture should be able to address those needs with agility. The first step is often to decouple legacy architecture from customer-facing channels.
- Organization: CIOs must rethink the traditional silo mentality and structures of IT. In a multi-speed environment, teams need to be able to handle a variety of tasks and responsibilities.
Evolving IT Departments Require Evolving Hiring Processes
Finding talent that has the skills and the ability to thrive in a multispeed environment will require CIOs to adopt new methods of recruiting and new ways of thinking about hiring and team structure. The evolution may require the need to hire contractors to get things up and running, and long-term needs will shift to more blended roles where IT staff must have technical skills and business acumen.
Navigating this new hiring landscape can be intimidating. Working with a strategic staffing partner can ease some of the strain and help CIOs improve IT hiring straight out of the gate. A strategic IT recruiter can help CIOs identify their immediate and long-term needs, and match the company with talent that has both the technical chops and the soft skills to thrive on the job. If your company is looking to evolve its IT hiring process, contact Contemporary Staffing Solutions in Delaware today. We can help you develop a strong IT team that will catapult your business into the future.