03 December 2016

Digital Innovation: Architecture for the Future...

You are the Senior Operational Risk Management (ORM) Officer in your organization.  One early morning on a crisp Fall day, your "Black Phone" rings.  It is your boss calling.
"We need your leadership and assistance in the reorganization of our enterprise.  Your job will be to head up the new "Digital Innovation" mission group.  We need you to integrate and collaborate effectively with the other 9 mission centers in our organization."
You hang up the phone and your mind begins to wander.  How will you address the digital challenges ahead?  Where will you start?  Will you combine the current silos of the security and privacy domains?  What will the new Enterprise Architecture reveal about the new focus on the potential "Insider Threat"?  Is your enterprise ready to migrate to AWS?

The time has finally arrived at this point in the organizations maturity, to address and accept the new reality.  In 2016, digital has become pervasive and the undisputed core of the lifeblood of our economy and business.  Not only has this reality started to finally gain traction with Board of Directors and Senior leadership, it is now a mandate for our total reorganization.

What is the key reason why?  Exponential change and development of the operational ecosystems of the world.  Our global ICT (Information, Communications & Technology) infrastructure has created an international trust issue.  Achieving digital TrustDecisions across directorates, business units and international partners is now clearly mission critical.  Encryption is at the center point of the dialogue.

As you glance at your e-mail, after signing in using the "Digital Authenticator" also on your "Black Phone," it hits you square in the face.  The silos of security and privacy across the enterprise will have to be integrated and a new play book will have to be implemented early.  How will you architect this vital component of the mission group?

Digital Innovation going forward requires that you effectively integrate with a previous decades old organizational structure. No longer will the owner of the digital innovation mission, reside with the person or department that runs the "Compute Utility". Whether this has been called the CTO, CIO or VP of xyz does not really matter. They have been overseeing the group who is responsible for the hardware, software and the functions that keep the compute utility running.

The lifeblood of your organization is "Data." This can be found in more than just one place within the organization. This data can be found far beyond just the "Zeros and Ones" being stored as a bulk repository, or "data lake," for analytics; backup & recovery; disaster recovery; and serverless computing.  How will you address the data across the landscape of your field operations with partners, suppliers, 3rd parties and each of their own intellectual capital?  Think about it this way:
  • Compute
  • Storage
  • Database
  • Migration
  • Networking & Content Delivery
Your current architecture is simply a utility.  Nothing more.  You want to turn it on, pay for only what you use when you use it, turn it off when you don't need it and have it available 24x7x365.  Right?  Just like your electric utility.

The new "Digital Innovation" mission center will now have a new mind-set.  A new architecture for the future:
Why?

The truth is, it starts with a model that is decades old.  It has sometimes been called "Backwards from Perfect".  Imagine yourself as one of dozens of "End-Users" in your enterprise.  What data do you need to do your job and fulfill your mission at that particular moment?  What type of device will connect to the utility to allow you to explore and create your model.

How will you build your understanding and the insight you require to fulfill the current question?  The hypothesis?  How will you deploy the new digital innovation with your stakeholders, collaborators and the trusted insiders to your latest mission?

Using a simple model like "Backwards from Perfect" with your Field Rep, Service Agent, Partner Consultant, War Fighter, Station Chief or Mission Program Manager is just the beginning.  Your future success and survival now is directly, tied to where we started.  Operational Risk Management.

There isn't one person, one department or one mission that doesn't need you and your mission to succeed.  The safety and security of your people your business unit and your purpose on the planet is at stake.  They are all depending on you...

Godspeed...

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