Can two-speed IT bridge traditional and digital approaches?

 

Connecting state and local government leaders

Two separate IT units -- one standard IT group and a second one for digital technology -- can help organizations work with legacy systems in today’s disruptive environment.

Two-speed IT --  having two different methods for managing an organization’s IT needs  --  can be a useful way for governments to address today’s evolving digital landscape with their current technology systems.

In two-speed, or bimodal, IT, organizations have two separate IT units -- one standard IT model, often focused on cost optimization, and a second one for today’s mobile, digital technology, which requires faster installation and build out and greater flexibility than traditional IT structures. Developing a two-speed approach can require building “a standalone entity within IT that is devoted solely to digital initiatives,” according to BCG Perspectives.

“The ability to offer new products on a timely basis has become an important competitive factor,” according to a report from management consultant McKinsey & Company.  However, “that kind of speed can only be achieved with an inherently error-prone software-development approach of testing, failing, learning, adapting, and iterating rapidly.”

That kind of experimentation is not appropriate for traditional IT where “the demand for perfection is far higher in key back-end legacy systems,” the authors continued.

Besides keeping the organization up to speed with technology advances, this dual approach helps ensure the IT department’s involvement in all an organization’s technology initiatives. Today there is often a disconnect between an IT department’s methodology and practices and the business needs of the organization -- such as working with third-party platforms such as social media, BCG Perspectives authors said.

That disconnect makes it easier for the business side to fund, launch and manage digital efforts without consulting the internal IT organization. “Interactions are more fluid, and projects get completed more quickly (or get completed, period), when [the business side] opts for third parties over the company’s IT function,” BCG Perspectives said. “The downside of the business acting on its own can be sizable, however, and includes fragmented solutions, one-off efforts that are difficult to integrate throughout the company, unnecessary duplication of efforts and inconsistent branding.”

According to McKinsey analysts, agencies seeking to adopt a two-speed approach should:

  • Develop a high-level blueprint of the enterprise’s technology architecture, clearly defining major components and dividing them into “fast” (digital front-end) and “slow” (legacy back-end) parts.
  • Define practical rules for day-to-day development of all digital solutions.
  • Avoid major architecture changes or system replacements -- unless legacy systems pose critical risks or costs.

A two-speed IT organization may not provide enough flexibility, some experts say.

“IT leaders should set up their teams to operate at many speeds at once, not just two, and thrive in any environment, not just the environment for which the IT organizational structure was designed,” Raf Gelders from CEB, a best-practices solution firm, wrote in a blog. “An adaptive IT organization can rapidly reallocate resources as business needs change, it can operate at many speeds at once, and it enables IT staff to thrive in any environment.”

Analysts at Accenture concur. “Two-speed IT is what happens when CIOs cannot manage multiple speeds,” Nicholas Bayley and John Shacklady wrote in a report. “While most CIOs can resist the temptation of bolting new technology onto already complex systems, the smartest ones will go a step further and tackle legacy system complexity.” A simplified architecture can support digital technologies and still deliver total cost of ownership benefits, they said. “In turn, this allows the organization to invest in new technologies and is critical to delivering digital transformation.”

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.