How are you viewing technology?

A recent insights podcast from McKinsey (In Conversation: The CEO’s new technology agenda) highlights the change in how organizations are or should be viewing IT right now.

Technology enabled organizations to quickly shift gears as staff were sent home to work.  A spotlight was shined on the adequacy, or inadequacy, of the business capability during this time.  For some clients there was a mad scramble for funding to purchase laptops to enable desktop bound staff to work from home.  For others it was a much easier transition, staff were already mobile with laptops or multipurpose devices such as Surface Pro’s.

When working in an office-based environment, it is easier to get by, but during this period there was nowhere to hide.  The importance of understanding technology and how each organization interacts with it became a priority, particularly when it came to programs such as Microsoft Teams or Zoom.  The physical connection of going to a workplace was replaced by a technology connection and for some having to work this way exposed holes in capability and understanding.

In the podcast, Krish Krishnakanthan of McKinsey says “Today, you need a technology-led business strategy, not a business strategy supported by technology.

In the past IT was seen by many as an area that supports the business, but COVID flipped that paradigm of how many viewed the role of technology and what technology’s involvement in business looks like moving forward in particular changing the tools we use to communicate.

Whilst we may have HAD to move to online meetings, just because we are moving out of the pandemic doesn’t mean we have to move back to in person.  It’s now about finding a balance for your team, but more importantly COMMUNICATING it.  When everyone knows what the expectations are, for example, 2 days a week in the office for face to face meetings and 3 days working from home, not only is stress removed, but everyone knows what the expectations are.

So, have you and your team communicated what the future looks like from both a technology and communications perspective so everyone is on the same page?

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Read the full McKinsey article here.

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