Cloud based offerings encouraged Shadow IT, problems brought them back to Core IT

The launch of the new disruptive solution was well attended by CIOs and Business alike; some of the early adopter customers spoke highly of the solution, especially the business who claimed freedom from IT after integration was done with existing ERP solutions during implementation. Euphoric pronouncements elevated the solution to the next best thing since the spreadsheet came into their lives. The going was great until some of the audience started digging deeper into the success seeking clarifications.

Yes the solution was easy to deploy, it is Cloud based; we pay as we go based on number of users (aren’t most licenses like that ?) and there is also an app which I can download and use when I am traveling. There was some help taken from IT for integrating with the ERP and then with the CRM and yes they had to work on cleaning the data feed. No it is not complete freedom from IT as the system administration and user rights management is still done by the IT team; but I can build my own reports and workflows !

Opening up the conversation in contrast another customer mentioned that many of the users don’t actually use the mobile app which was seen as a prerequisite for selecting the solution and paying a premium. The self-service model had started with a bang, but was floundering with users now wanting IT to generate the information and insights for them to consume. The novelty factor had gone down with other work taking precedence over extracting information on demand or accessing it while on the move.

Who wants self-service was a discussion that suddenly filled the room much to the embarrassment of the organizers who attempted to deflect the discussion and bring it back to the merits of their solution and why the prospects present should seriously explore their brand of snake oil. A senior CIO refuted the claims that competition did not offer the same agility, flexibility or feature set which was grudgingly accepted with a counterclaim that some existing customers had been transitioned from competition.

Conventional IT a score of years back did pose challenges to agile deployment of solutions and at times delayed success with challenged projects. A decade back the same IT organizations began to push the business to actively participate in creating mobile engagement models, pushing the realms of self-service across functions. Initial candidates were travel and expense, followed by Employee and Manager Self-service driven by Human Resource solutions, though some even today continue parallel paper processes.

Closer to the beginning of the current decade, service providers proclaimed victory over IT by wooing the business with solutions that could be bought with a swipe of the credit card. You can get anything you want without asking your IT folks who normally say NO to everything; the promise led to a smattering of success and large number of headaches for IT who were being called out for tasks like opening up ports on the router, data dumps (instead of integration with on premise systems) and rescue when something did not work !

The last bastion was management reports, dashboards, and analytics moving to the Cloud with a promise of self service; what they got instead was garbage in-garbage out ! Some power users did manage to hold on for some time, they succumbed when on-demand analytics and complexity of data across sources needed them to go back to IT for real-time integration. The shift to collaborative design of solutions between IT and Business brought back the success which alluded companies in solo forays.

Today most solutions are pushing the limits on self-service with mobile first strategies (browsers are passé now). Leave & Attendance, Travel & Expense, Approvals of all kinds are all mobile; the rest require a login from a larger screen – tab or laptop or desktop. Thumbing around is the new way of working with no time limitations; what started with email pings on mobile is a flood of notifications vying for attention. Everything is urgent and requires hyper speed and attention stretching the already extended work day.

IT has embraced the self-service culture even though it puts higher demands on resources; data security requires locking down devices and monitoring, and diversity of devices increases complexity of deployment and maintenance. CIOs are also innovating with new technology disruptions pushing the envelope to automate everything in sight. On the flip side, busy executives are happily delegating some of the critical and important work downwards compromising the quality of decision making and possible outcomes.

I wonder when the breakpoint will be reached !

Who wants self service ? Not employees or managers ! Customers ?

In the good old days before technology stormed the world, interactions were always in person; people met each other and remembered faces, names, salient points about professional and personal lives. Conversations were the way to engage, communicate, serve and ask for services. This was typically followed up with some paperwork to record the intent and agreement between the interested parties. Business was all about people connecting with people, building relationships and sustaining them over a lifetime.

Initially technology was all about automation, to create faster processes reducing execution time. It was followed by reengineered process automation with workflows to reduce paper movement between involved stakeholders and approvers. The internet revolution offered remote working capabilities extending the reach of technology enabled workloads; mobile data and smartphones broke the last barrier creating a mobile workforce that could work on the go anytime, anywhere, as long as they were connected.

First few deployments were selective with the devices being seen as status symbols to be proudly flouted when in meetings or with friends; as the price points dropped exception became the rule and almost every employee and manager was equipped with a device or connectivity. Expectations rose with every audible or vibrating message alert wanting to be attended to immediately intruding into life, breaking relationships, pushing the limits, creating compulsive disorders and medical conditions unknown thus far.

Technology continued to evolve, get better and smarter creating new possibilities; every manager now expected to know adequately every function that impacts their working. Start with Attendance, Leave and Travel, Vouchers, Expenses and Reimbursement, Delegation of Authorities and approvals, Budgeting and Expenses, Revenue and Profitability, Resource Planning, Manpower allocation, Hiring to Attrition Management, Outsourcing to Contractor Management, everything has converged in the new Digital World.

It was a matter of time that self-service became the norm, the default way of working; the rising bar continued to push the limits of workloads that could be transferred to the staff and reducing the “overhead” costs at Branch, Region and Head offices. The App world completes the delegation of work with no option; quicker, faster, cheaper being the mantra, the inflection point reached rather quickly with every new proposition adding to the checklist of the busy executive, manager and 24X7 worker, no option, no choices.

Cost cutting and optimization continues to challenge enterprises and their constituents pushing the proverbial envelope continuously; enterprise solutions were never designed for self-service, functionality that was added with evolution and time. After the initial set of training conducted with operationalization of the system, people were left to their own devices to understand and use the systems. As time taken for self-service tasks kept increasing, exceptions too rose simultaneously casting shadows on efficiency and effectiveness.

Managers having the option reverted to paper and delegated the chore to their Assistants creating a gap in the process and eliminating benefits that could have been accrued with solutions deployed. Organizations continue to push the change agenda in the endeavor to keep elevating operational efficiency. With limited connect to ground realities, the seeping inefficiencies go unnoticed until a new wave is created to review why the business growth or profitability is challenged in a growing industry or market.

Industry is witness to the fact that today customers are being cajoled into self-service of all types; drop boxes, machines and kiosks, websites, portals, and mobile apps. Did they embrace it willingly and thanked the providers ? Probably yes in a few cases considering the people based services were minimalistic and did not create customer delight; for the rest it was initial euphoria of owning your destiny and controlling the way you are served which later turned into frustrated experiences with unresponsive unaligned backend resources.

Today technology providers are building systems that obviate the need for technical resources to build and deploy solutions. Business self-service is the new mantra where functional users are being egged to drop their dependence on IT resources and implement business friendly solutions. History again appears to be repeating itself with most Business Users enthusiastically wanting to take up the offer, again based on past unsatisfactory experiences from IT and technology vendors; shadow IT is being touted as a good thing !

Attending the launch of a new disruptive solution, the pitch was all about self-service by anyone who wanted to use it; their journey next time…

CIOs beware, CIOs rejoice

The hall was brimming with people, hardly a seat empty and many standing with their back to the wall. Safe capacity of the premises was pegged at 5000; if there were more, no one paid heed. The session was to be broadcast live and streaming media on screens across the venue. It was not a show on how to get rich quick, nor the speakers had a magic formula on how to lose weight, the speakers were global IT industry icons and leaders who draw crowds when they get on stage with their charisma and speeches.

The audience comprised of CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, in fact CXOs across countries, industries, global and local companies, big and small; many were accompanied by rising stars from their teams. It was a big event spread over 4 days that makes it one of the largest. Partners, system integrators and consulting companies invest their time and money annually to network with customers, solicit new ones and also hear about new offerings that typically get announced in such events. As a bonus, you get to see what competition is up to.

We got off to a great start with a few announcements and partnerships between past adversaries which was a significant milestone that helped the industry and customers. The star speaker did not show up, but most stayed put. The session however took a direction that had many in the audience surprised. The collective energy level suddenly dropped and to bring up the intellectual level in the room, many started playing with their smartphones. A few dozed off which was quite expected, but there were many who listened attentively and took notes.

The speakers had started explaining the step by step process on how to provision a virtual server on the cloud with various options; how to migrate from one platform to another, how to upgrade a few technology components, and how to benefit from the new offerings. The people awake and taking notes were not all IT folks, a large number were users with no technical background or past experience in technology. Were they trying to help their IT folks back home or had a sudden urge to learn cloud server management ?

I met some of them post the session and many more during the evening drinks seeking to unravel the mystery behind their new found love for an IT back office activity which is mostly outsourced. What motivated them to take active interest in something that many CIOs shy away from. I cannot say that the answer surprised me, what did was the extended outcome. The context determines how you view an event and its impact. What would happen when users start provisioning IT infrastructure and services themselves ?

Typical response, how can we allow them to do that ? It’s our job ! They do not know technology, they don’t understand the interdependencies and lack the skills; they should stick to what they know best and come to us when they need something. The IT Relationship Managers will understand the holistic big picture and then get the stuff done. There have been so many instances when they bought some solutions and came running to us when something broke or the project had challenges which were out of their league.

Alternate view, it is good that they are getting into self-service. With interfaces getting idiot proof and general awareness improving, there is no reason for them not to do it. Most of these tasks are easily done by anyone. It takes away a chore from us and gives us time to focus on what matters. Some of the IT team can now move to other value added activities. We are always there in case something was to fail or require deeper expertise or require escalation with the service provider or integration with other solutions.

Which view do you endorse ? The first believes that technology should remain within the IT domain and IT will service requests or provision based on project requirements. The alternate view encourages giving up and offers independence to everyone. The federated model with adequate controls does not necessarily free up many IT resources but creates a perception of self-reliance. Applicability of the model is dependent on enterprise IT maturity and partnership between business, IT and vendors.