5 steps to building a winning and innovative IT strategy

As the digital transformation of society and the economy progresses, companies are becoming increasingly aware of the immense value generated by their IT departments. Often, the IT department does more than just provide operational support for business objectives: it can also drive the organisation's vision, especially if that vision is innovation-driven.

That's why we recommend that you pay particular attention to your IT strategy, so that it supports your ambitions as effectively as possible.

How do you define a high-performance IT strategy ? By following the 5 steps described in this article! 🤓

But before we get to the heart of the matter, a quick definition point so you know exactly what we're talking about.

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Definition of IT strategy

IT strategy refers to the roadmap, the plan for employing the IT department for the benefit of the company's business.

It defines the objectives to be achieved over a given period and the actions to be taken to achieve them, all with a view to aligning them with the organisation's priorities.

IT strategy is therefore one of the pillars of corporate strategy in the broadest sense, and is built around elements such as :

• vision
• processes
• resources
• infrastructure, etc.

The 3 key challenges of IT strategy

#1 Alignment with business objectives

IT strategy crystallises many challenges, especially at a time when companies are becoming more aware of the added value of their IT department.

IT is proving to be a powerful business enabler, providing the tools needed for the digital transformation that has become essential if we are to remain competitive.

☝️ Companies therefore have every interest in thinking about how to align IT and business objectives if they want to take full advantage of technology.

#2 Value for money

Obviously, while companies are driven by their vision, they also have to deal with the economic reality, and therefore optimise their resources, whether in terms of :

• budgets
• personnel,
• infrastructure.

Devising an IT strategy is therefore a skilful balancing act, in which these resources must be allocated intelligently to maximise their impact, while ensuring financial stability.

#3 Innovation and adaptation

As we saw in 2023 with the boom in artificial intelligence, technological developments are shaking things up for professionals, both in terms of processes and the very nature of the products/services on offer.

Technologies are evolving at breakneck speed, and watch out if you're left behind! The IT plan must therefore enable the company to stay up to date, to take advantage of innovations to maintain its place in the market, and even to win additional market share.

Having said that, let's move on to the IT strategy itself and its various stages, which we're going to detail right now 👉.

Step 1: Determine the company's objectives

Every strategy is driven by a specific goal, and the IT division is no exception to the rule.

So start by identifying the company's objectives, from which those of the IT department will flow.

👉 For example, is your company aiming to increase its revenues by 20% over the coming year? The IT department's job will then be to make your online sales platform more user-friendly and available, with a view to boosting sales.

👉 Or are you looking to reduce your operating costs? In that case, IT will work to find solutions to further automate its processes and those of other departments.

💡 Tip: to remove any ambiguity and stimulate motivation among the troops, set SMART objectives, i.e. objectives that are:

• Specific,
• Measurable,
• Attainable,
• Realistic,
• Time-defined.

Step 2: Take stock of what already exists

While it's important to know where you're going, it's just as important to understand where you're starting from.

In other words, you need to take stock of the current strategy and structure of the IT department. This will enable you to identify their strengths and weaknesses, and therefore potential areas for improvement.

To do this, you need to analyse various components, in particular :

• the processes and policies in place (in terms of IT security, for example),
• the software and applications used in each department
• the IT infrastructure
• governance methods
• the skills available in-house.

💡 Tip: we recommend that you also carry out technological and competitive intelligence . Thanks to the data you obtain, you can keep abreast of the latest innovations and actions by the competition, and adapt accordingly.

Step 3: Establish your IT strategy

Here, you need to determine which levers to activate and which projects to put in place to achieve the objectives you have defined.

In other words, you will formulate your IT strategy itself, taking into account the actual situation and the conclusions of your monitoring.

To achieve your objectives, there are several scenarios open to you. For example, you could

• introduce other processes and methodologies;
• recruiting talent
• deploy new tools;
• strengthening IT security ;
• optimising network infrastructure;
• provide more training for staff, whether in the tech department or not;
• make even greater use of expanding technologies such as artificial intelligence...

... and the list goes on! It's up to you to determine what's most relevant and adapt it to best meet the company's ambitions.

Step 4: Define the implementation map

It's time to define the implementation map! Yes, but... what is it 🤔 ?

The implementation map is like a roadmap used to plan all the actions to be put in place, and then associate :

• deadlines
• costs
• the resources to be mobilised
• roles and responsibilities.

💡 Tip: monitoring the implementation map is greatly facilitated by the use of dedicated software. We're thinking in particular of PPM (Project Portfolio Management), invaluable allies for IT departments in intelligently managing their various projects and programmes.

And it's even better with a solution like Triskell, which goes further than just PPM because it integrates strategic management of the organisation. Managing and prioritising requests, planning, budgeting, optimising resources... all IT initiatives are centralised within a single platform to align and adjust your master plan to the overall strategy.

Step 5: Measure the performance of your IT strategy

Once your strategy has been deployed, you need to measure the results on a regular basis in order to stay on course in the right direction and get early feedback on any areas for improvement.

As you will have realised, you need to define KPIs in advance. For example, you need to know

• the system availability rate
• the incident reduction rate
• problem resolution time,
• customer satisfaction
• IT security index, etc.

In short, there are many metrics to monitor. There's no need to track them all, just concentrate on the ones that are most relevant to your main objectives.

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What can we learn from the IT strategy?

This is an example of a common IT strategic plan, which starts with the company's vision and then leads to concrete actions.

Although other models exist (problem-based, scenario-based, etc.), they all follow the same pattern.), what they all have in common is that they follow a precise methodology, which is essential for establishing and deploying a robust IT strategy that reveals the full potential of your technology!

This essential rigour often requires the use of software, such as PPMs, which help you get organised and give you complete visibility of your projects. Because at the end of the day, that's what's most important: understanding how the IT department, business lines and management can move forward hand in hand to boost the company's performance 💪.