New year, same conversation. Generative AI exploded onto the scene more than a year ago, and now you can’t go an hour without a new announcement about AI. While AI isn’t new, the introduction of generative AI has brought about the art of possibility. It brought what seems impossible within arm’s reach. Suddenly content at scale and personalization is attainable, or so it seems.
Any business can implement technology. But the most successful organizations align their technology to drive a unified business strategy to both meet today’s needs and bring flexibility for tomorrow. Their teams have the willingness to bring agility to their processes if needed. These organizations sit at the intersection of digital and commercial maturity, capitalizing on meaningful opportunities for scaled, market-ready offerings. They use technology to drive both a seamless customer experience and operational efficiency.
So how can all organizations mimic this future-ready technology ecosystem?
Four levels of maturity
- Functional IT
At level one, master the core data, platforms and capabilities that power your business. Most companies operate at this level, as it refers to the software infrastructure itself. Getting this foundation right is hard but necessary for a future-ready organization.
- Agile delivery
At maturity level two, technology teams master the process for delivering effective changes, updates and implementation of new capabilities without error. Getting here is successful, but staying here is risky. If your transformation ends here, you run the risk that capabilities are not driven by the business, and your org becomes an IT delivery farm.
- Adaptive ecosystem
The third level of maturity operates at the enterprise level. Think of this level as the enterprise architecture being able to deliver across the ecosystem regardless of channel, team or origin (internal or external). Transitioning from level two to this stage is arguably the hardest part of maturing, but organizations that achieve it are well poised for the future.
- Future-ready technology
Level four is the business of technology. This means technology and the teams that support it become strategic for the business, as the technology propels growth and evolution. Organizations that operate here have the mechanisms, process, culture and infrastructure in place to drive revenue, adapt with innovation and operate ahead of the business curve.
Examples in the market
This all sounds good in theory, but rest assured, this is not just a concept. Businesses exemplify this maturity frequently.
Instacart – This organization has single-handedly created a new operating system for an extremely complex industry. Grocery has been the category to avoid for ecommerce given the high complexity it entails. However, Instacart has made it widely available and turned a winning consumer proposition into a growing business as the operating system for grocery through its platform. Instacart’s product serves consumers, shoppers, retailers and brand partners, and they deliver on each experience through a solution that is underpinned by a shared foundation of technology, infrastructure, data insights and fulfillment, truly demonstrating the power of technology maturity driving business outcomes.
Microsoft – Microsoft transformed from a hardware-focused company to a cloud computing powerhouse, embracing a consumer-centric approach and shifting its entire culture and business while still meeting consumers’ needs by allowing its software distribution across operating systems. Their evolution allowed them to become the leader in the AI space in recent years, positioning them as a key distributor of exciting new technologies through its Azure cloud platform, which is delivering accelerated growth right now. Embracing a culture, process and technology shift, they defined how a transformation to be future-ready pays off dividends in this time of accelerated innovation.
To embrace future-readiness, your organization needs to foster a culture of experimentation and innovation. Leading brands are not afraid to test new ideas, learn from failures and iterate quickly using technology to run experiments and optimize their marketing performance. The first steps here include using the maturity framework above to understand where your organization currently sits. Once established, organizations can start to revise their technology release cycles to include business stakeholders, adjust prioritization of user stories to account for business outcomes and provide a common framework and language for both the technology teams and business teams to speak to. Breaking down traditional silos in mature organizations is difficult, but it starts with the directive from the top. When everyone understands the business outcomes and goals, all teams have skin in the game and work to drive forward the vision through what they own.
The future is here. Future readiness is not just a concept; it’s a culture offering the opportunity to spark change, disrupt the market and master the business of technology.
