Building the Businesstechnology Agora
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TechnoVision the way we see it Building the BusinessTechnology Agora With Capgemini’s TechnoVision Contents 3 The New Relationship Between Business and Technology 7 Business Drivers 9 Technology Clusters 27 From Drivers and Clusters to Actions 34 Towards Business Technology 39 Conclusion The New Relationship Between Business and Technology With the new millennium began a new era of This new era is the era of Business Technology Information Technology: It became part of our (a name proposed by independent research lives. It expands our brains, multiplies our firm Forrester Research, Inc.) 1. relationships, moves with us. Based on our work with many clients, Information Technology also started to become Capgemini’s TechnoVision has evolved part of the lives of enterprises and administrations. into a simple and powerful approach No longer just an indispensable support to understand Business Technology function, but an expansion of the organization’s and discuss its consequences for intelligence, a universal connector, the way to enterprises and administrations. become adaptive, the generator of new ideas, new products, new services, new business models. This booklet describes TechnoVision’s state- of-the-art. It starts with the Agora – the With executives, employees, partners, clients place where business and technology meet. and customers experiencing Information It shows how business and technology Technology in a new way, with business making people prepare themselves for fruitful technology its own, we need a new way to exchanges on the Agora, how the results are deal, jointly, with business and technology. captured and how they lead to actions. The ambition of Capgemini’s TechnoVision is to Of course, such a booklet can only show a trace this new approach. Introduced in October general picture and give a taste for Business 2007 and undergoing continual development, Technology. We at Capgemini are keen to Capgemini’s TechnoVision provides the tool for engage with our readers to help them come business and Information Technology to enter to grips with the new world of Business a new era of dialogue and united construction. Technology, and how to move there. With business making technology its own, we need a new way to deal, jointly, with business and technology. 1 “My View: IT To BT,” Forrester Research, Inc., August 18, 2006. 3 4 The Necessary Dialogue where business and technology people gather, High, thick walls separated business and discuss, dispute, conclude, transact. They Information Technology. Different people, define what needs to be done, and distribute different languages, different time lines, different the work to the surrounding workplaces. measurements. As a result, one had to throw Instead of manufacturing weapons, crafting “requirements” over these walls, and wait for amphoras and building bridges, the modern the corresponding applications in return. Agora’s workplaces manufacture processes, craft systems, build products and services. The advent of Business Technology requires a very different relationship. Business Our Agora is the BusinessTechnology and technology people have to meet, Agora. It is designed to make the meeting understand each other, act in concert. of business and technology minds happen. For this purpose, business and technology Capgemini recognizes this need people must come to the Agora equipped with and introduces the Agora. powerful tools, the tools of their trades. We are familiar with the Greek Agora. This is where citizens gathered, discussed, disputed, concluded, transacted. The new Agora is The BusinessTechnology Agor A 5 The Necessary Tools Business drivers and Discussing “freely” on the Agora would not produce smart results. It would only technology clusters perpetuate the misunderstandings, maybe are described in even deepen the gulf separating business and technology people. For a productive, terms that make targeted exchange, the participants need to prepare the tools of their respective trades. sense for everybody. The business people enter the Agora equipped with their BUSINESS DRIVERS. Not only do The seven clusters build a clear landscape of they know what they want to achieve, they technology and trace its expected evolution. also know how they want to achieve it. Capgemini is ideally positioned to provide this clear and balanced picture. Our technical Business drivers are not just business objectives communities, notably the one networking our or, worse, intentions – they are, as the name Chief Technology Officers, look at technology indicates, the levers used by business to change without prejudice, with the objectivity that the business, going after opportunities or Capgemini’s independence and dedication resolving issues. Each lever is a project, under to services permit. To facilitate the Agora way or under consideration, defined crisply and exchanges, the clusters are described in jargon-free. Taken together, the drivers describe terms that make sense for everybody. the evolution and progress of the organization. Thus equipped, business and technology The technology people enter the Agora people will be ready to meet on the Agora. equipped with CAPGEMINI’S TECHNOLOGY Each dialogue, between one business driver CLUSTERS. Not only do they know “representative” and one technology cluster how technology works today, they also “representative,” will generate specific Business know how technology is evolving. Technology insights. The sum of these dialogues will be a full picture of business and technology. 6 Business Drivers For successful dialogues on the Agora, identifying What Is a Business Driver? and describing an organization’s business drivers A business driver is a significant is as challenging and important as identifying and describing the technology developments. effort within an organization to execute a strategy, correct an Business drivers shape a company’s strategy, issue, exploit an opportunity, exploit large opportunities and resolve major operational issues. They translate into the boost an innovation, ensure right projects and sets of significant actions. compliance or cope with disruption. The driver finds the Let’s explore what sorts of drivers our clients found, and what makes a well-defined driver “pin code” of the organization, and a good list of business drivers for a fruitful unlocks its energies and makes discussion on the Agora. it operate at a higher level. What Sorts of Business Drivers Do We See? There are two major types of drivers: the generic ones, common to companies and organizations of 2. Translations of general trends (aging a given segment or sector (such as retail banking, population, globalization, etc.) are or a country’s local governments) and the specific important when they create a disruption ones, specific to one company or organization. It or an opportunity, and therefore turns out we need the specific ones most. require a major company project. We have identified a wide variety of drivers – over 3. Execution-related drivers focus on 300 – which can be grouped in a few categories: efficient and flexible execution within the organization or its supply chain. 1. Strategic business drivers – A TechnoVision without at least one of these is hard 4. Finally, there are drivers related to corporate to imagine. They define the growth or behavior (doing things in a responsible differentiation strategy of an organization. manner) or to corporate hygiene, like They should not be confused with avoidance of risk and compliance issues. higher-level statements that express the mission and vision of an organization. Business drivers are not static, they evolve over time and depending on the circumstances. Which implies that any list needs to be revised periodically. 7 What Makes a Good Business Driver integrate over 50 acquisitions per year into the and a Good List of Drivers? operations” or “being able to accommodate A significant amount of effort needs to be 1 million new mobile subscribers per month.” invested to come up with well-formulated, shared and concrete enough drivers. A total of four to six drivers is the right number: some of them short-term oriented, They should be distinct and crisp, with a some of them longer term; some focused on defined effort, a clear end goal and timeline, a specific important issue or opportunity, and represent a workable and action-oriented some more strategic. One or two should statement about a desired future state. Drivers be truly disruptive for the organization. should not be too broad or too narrowly defined, such as something that only holds In the end, each organization will have to make for a small group within the organization. its own strategic choices and define its own drivers. We found, however, that guidance “Eternal truth” statements like “we are a people and inspiration is needed to create a good company” are of little value in a meaningful list of well-formulated drivers. References discussion about Business Technology. Examples and examples, especially from other industry of good concrete drivers include “being able to sectors, usually lead to stronger drivers. Business drivers should be distinct and crisp, with a defined effort, a clear end goal and timeline, and represent a workable and action- oriented statement about a desired future state. 8 Technology Clusters Capgemini’s TechnoVision asserts that the resources. Technology helps us free ourselves ongoing evolution of technology creates from current constraints and obstacles freedom for businesses, notably in two ways.