Turning Systems Into Strategy: How Tech Capabilities Drive Competitive Advantage

Historically, IT departments have been viewed as a support function for organizations—teams that keep the lights on and the systems running. But there’s been a major shift over the last decade: IT departments are now getting a seat at the executive table.

CEOs and CFOs are realizing that to grow effectively and efficiently, they need a solid digital foundation. Leadership has tied these capabilities directly to revenue growth, and the agility of IT has become front and center in driving new and innovative ways to expand the business.

From Static Systems To Evolving Platforms

Oftentimes, people assume that systems in an organization are what you might call static. You install them, and then you just maintain them. But in reality, modern platforms evolve constantly. Upgrades happen monthly, quarterly or annually, and each time they do, they require some tweaking.

Technology isn’t something that stands still; it grows with the business. The main focus behind all this advancement is to have clean, accurate data. Data has become a commodity; it has been for quite some time, and companies that harness data effectively are using it to make strategic, well-informed decisions.

For example, we worked with a mid-market manufacturer that tied its ERP data into its CRM data to help with analytics and understand sales trends. Within months, predictions started to normalize, and it helped them drive their commercial strategy. That’s the kind of insight that comes when your systems are not just running but talking to each other.

The Value Of Clean, Actionable Data

Technology should be treated as a shared service within an organization, part of the culture. That culture can shift quickly the moment business users start seeing technology as part of their own toolkit. Once that happens, alignment follows.

But one major pain point that often comes up with technology is governance. Having a governance structure that focuses on clean and actionable data increases the overall value of your systems. To make sure that data is clean and correct, organizations should develop KPIs associated with their data quality.

Data quality is extremely important. Data is currency, and it ties directly into your strategy. If your data isn’t reliable or if it’s siloed across systems, reporting and developing KPIs becomes extremely difficult. On the other hand, when your systems are fully integrated and communicate seamlessly, you gain a complete view of your domain. That’s a real competitive advantage.

Read the full article published by Forbes Business Council.