Be Prepared: Elements of an IT Roadmap
Sometimes navigating an IT map can be quite a bit like being a scout earning your wilderness survival merit badge - it feels like you are in the...
3 min read
Everyone has heard the term IT roadmap thrown around in the business world but what is it? Is this the new captivating phase? Is it a trend? How would I use a roadmap? Why can't I just create one tomorrow? Most importantly, why would my company need one?
An IT Roadmap is a comprehensive plan to strategically organize your Information technology across the organization. The roadmap is truly comprehensive and all in compassing, it ties all hardware, software, operations, and data together.
Many companies vary in their time frame approach, the roadmap can cover 1 year or up to 5 years. This is not a new trend, but it is something that many companies have started to see the value as they grow, and technology continues to evolve. At Liberty Technology Advisors, one of our very first projects in 1995 was an IT Roadmap for an automotive parts manufacturer! Since 1995 we have repeatedly refreshed that client's roadmap to adapt to their business growth and technology changes.
Why would my company need an IT roadmap?
An IT roadmap should be considered a guide for the immediate future as well as a longer-term strategic plan. We recommend a one to five-year roadmap for most companies. It is vital to revisit the roadmap on an ongoing basis as technology continues to evolve at a staggering pace. A great example is the evolution of cell phones... in the last 15 years, we have evolved from briefcase cell phones to pagers to flip phones to smartphones. A 2003 roadmap was not prepared for the rise of smartphones in 2007.
The roadmap is useful to adapt to technology updates and manage IT budgets. This allows your company to focus on key strategic upgrades and be the ones behind the wheel, as opposed to just winging it as new hardware and software are released. Regarding budget, not only will you have an outlook on capital expenditures, but you will reduce the stress of managing the IT department as a whole.
But what if the business has already survived 5, 10, 20 years without an IT roadmap?
Many companies are in business for several years before they start to feel the pain in the IT department. Items age, systems change, updates get skipped, there is no consistency when growth happens, you purchase another computer, or you fix one problem at a time. Then it seems like one day you wake up and realize you have a mish-mash of components and systems that don't talk to each other. You were busy fixing the inventory system or server and didn't truly look at the bigger picture. Your predecessors had a different vision than you do for the IT department.
If you have dealt with any of these issues, then you would benefit from a comprehensive roadmap:
- IT-related outages affecting your revenue
- Can't access systems when needed
- Systems crash regularly
- Phone lines down which would affect shipping or scheduling
- Call center cannot connect to all offices
- ERP system is not integrated into all departments
- Accounting is not connected with Inventory or Purchasing
- Inventory is not connected with Shipping or Receiving
- No management, efficient scheduling, or tracking of fleet vehicles
- Tracking inventory in Excel
- Creating financial statements in Excel
- No asset tracking
- Multiple businesses on different ERP systems
- Too many manual processes or too much duplication of efforts
- Manually installing software updates
- Manually running reports on a daily or weekly basis
- Paper forms or any kind of paper-pushing
- Printing paperwork for filing regularly
- Unsuccessful implementations
- ERP, MRP, HRIS, CRM, or SaaS
- Fleet Management
- Call Centers
- Servers
- Printers
- No crisis recovery plan
- Unsure of all the equipment in the company
- Malware or ransomware attacks
- No regular system backups
Why can't I create a roadmap myself?
While our clients could attempt to create their roadmap, it is best to have a team of subject matter experts come in with fresh eyes to evaluate the situation. At Liberty Technology Advisors, we can complete an assessment in a very short period of time which allows you to focus on the business. We are 100% unbiased in our recommendations which is what makes LTA a true consulting firm. At LTA, our core mission is improving business performance for our clients. Our clients see us as business advisors first and technology analysts second. While our solutions may be technology-based, our clients don’t want to improve their technology—they want to improve their business.
We help them streamline processes, improve operations, reduce costs and position them for growth. Our team of business operations and IT professionals—some of the most experienced people in the industry—develop efficient business processes and utilize technology to get our clients where they want to be.
No technobabble, no MBA-speak. Just a better operating organization and a clear path toward success.