ASAE #tech14 General Session Description

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The pace of change in IT is increasing at break-neck speeds and it affects all parts of the organization. This has created the need for IT leaders to be significant drivers of innovation. Our new environment requires IT leaders to collaborate with their colleagues to ensure that IT is leveraged to deliver an exceptional customer experience. IT strategist, author, and Forbes columnist, Peter High will provide examples of leading companies in which IT has played a significant role in innovation and enhanced customer experience. You will also hear examples of practical steps any IT executive can take to emulate the best IT leaders.

Peter will be signing copies of his new book, Implementing World Class IT Strategy: How IT Can Drive Organizational Innovation, immediately following the session. Purchase your copy in the bookstore and get it signed.

Hashtag: #tech14 GS1

Handout: PeterHighHandout

MY NOTES:

Reggie — beacons! that use bluetooth. What for? Connect with ASAE Event mobile app.

And now for Peter High — Circuit City, hot tock of the 80s. grower 8,265 percent? How, focus on the consumer — how do we make the customer experience more compelling. Used windfall to develop lots of other companies such as carmax, DIVX video, North American Banking Company. Featured by Jim Collins — Good to Great. Then by 2009, they went from good to gone. Now think of another company that focused on customer service — Best Buy with GeekSquad — after CC took eye off the ball.

Now think Amazon. Physical retailers have become Anazon’s showroom. New way to win in the marketplace is not based on product or price. Now consider Netflix.

Case example: Summer Olympics (2008) — iPhone out in 2007 — planning probably didn’t consider iPhone. Twitter. MySpace vs Facebook. Then Cloud came. iPad wasn’t even around. Need to take an R&D attitude toward IT.

What has emerged in the last few years? Uber. Drones. Wearables. NFC. Gaming. How do you develop a more customer experience with these new technologies?

Organizations need to measure itself. What skills do we have and more important what skills will we need? Training or hiring? Infrastructure: software, hardware and apps. Must be managed well. –Proactive vs reactive organization. Project and portfolio management = sound method of delivering new technology to organization, add Agile techniques. Partnerships! with other departments with IT. External partners! Engage them better — what does success look like?

Five steps to implement world class IT strategy: Develop a mission — can help you engage rest of org; work with the rest of org on their plans; develop IT’s own plan — as you engage with rest of org, think about what themes are emerging across conversations; employ enterprise architecture — ensure you have a means to tabulate the tech at your disposal — what are you assets? and finally sound means to communicate this plan. Essential part of strategic planning.

Online education has led to a revolution not just with university-aged students, but with workers. So, never stop learning! You really have no excuse. Endless opportunity for more endless opportunities.

CIO — career is over. IT is becoming strategic among organizations. IT’s becoming how good ideas come to life. CIO to CEO —  a possible progression since executives need to understand how technology will impact organization.

CIO Plus = additional sets of responsibilities. CIO Beyond = CIOs who moved on to COO or even CEO. Increase IT’s role by developing an ecosystem of external partners; ensure that it speaks the language of business — focus on finance; there is only one customer, the external customer — the member.