2022 is fast approaching and we expect to see major increases in technology spending across most industries. The general trend is to democratize technology by providing skills and tools to as many people as possible so they can customize their own State of the Art solutions. For example, Cloud technologies can eliminate expensive infrastructure that would otherwise be needed to explore solutions and give teams more freedom to experiment among potential solutions at lower cost. Low code and no code interfaces provide do-it-yourself environments that don’t rely on hard-to-find technology experience and skills.
Thanks to new technologies, your business possibilities are increasing, which is exciting and promising, but also poses a major challenge. Out of an endless array of available technologies, how do you know what works best for your organization?
Identifying and implementing the technology that is the best fit for your organization is a multi-faceted puzzle that requires strategy and planning, an understanding of the organization’s business needs and integration of new technology into current operations. Here are tips to help you gain true business value throughout all the stages of your technology buying process:
Pre-purchase
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Assess the Problem Space to validate the business problem that you want new technology to address. Keep in mind that technology, by itself, is not a solution but one element that must fit into your existing ecosystem, which includes people and processes.
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Research the environment of those who will use the technology. What do they currently use? What are the bottlenecks they are facing? Solicit input from key Stakeholders at all levels to identify problems, find solutions and gain understanding and support for the transition to new technology.
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Appraise the technology with both short-term and long-term business outcomes in mind. What solves an immediate solution today may not be sustainable or it may reduce your flexibility going forward.
Implementation
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Ensure your implementation partners and system integrators are familiar with your organization’s business and IT architecture and landscape.
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Involve Stakeholders to avoid siloed implementation. To get the most out of your technology investment, you want it to function smoothly and efficiently across the organization in a way that breaks down silos and enhances cross-functional communication.
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Stay grounded in the Problem Space and business needs established during your strategic planning to ensure alignment between technology, business processes and value delivery.
Post-Implementation
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Provide extensive training and support so your teams understand and utilize the full benefits of your new technology.
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Build on Stakeholder involvement in the Pre-Purchase and Implementation stages to champion the new technology and address resistance to change.
Use A Product Management Approach to New Technology
A Product Management Approach can further position your organization to overcome the challenges of identifying and implementing technology improvements so your teams can utilize them to quickly deliver increased business value.
To get more tips, read How to Use Product Management to Drive Digital Transformation, an eBook that explains how to:
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Break down organizational silos with a unified Product Mindset.
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Foster a collaborative culture that embraces change and encourages innovation and creativity.
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Focus on the Problem Space, business value and the customer or user from the earliest stages of planning through implementation to the value delivery process.
Using the principles of Product Management and a resulting open and collaborative culture can help you streamline and optimize your processes to identify and implement technology improvements that fully leverage your digital assets and deliver maximum value to your customers.
