Align an IT Strategy to the Industry Vision

Introduction Aim Use of the Guide This presentation is prepared to support and give a general overview of the ‘How to Align an IT Strategy to the Industry Vision’ Guide and should be read in conjunction with the publication. Use of the Guide This guide: Considers why it is important to develop a vision for the future Includes Construct IT’s own vision for the future of IT in construction projects to help a company develop a vision Offers step-by-step procedure for developing and implementing an IT vision This presentation and the original guide should be reviewed in conjunction with the ‘How to Develop Your Information Strategy Plan’ guide.

Why an IT Vision? Construction industry needs to communicate large volumes of complex information Diversity of projects and large number of different stakeholders make it difficult IT can help construction companies reduce problems of communication and information sharing Under-investment in IT and lack of common standards and formats still major barriers

Why an IT Vision? By developing an IT vision: Construction companies can gain a competitive advantage in their business. The can also squeeze more value from their expenditure on IT.

Why an IT Vision? A company can start to establish an IT vision by asking two familiar questions: What is our position in today’s market? Where do you want to be in the future?

Why an IT Vision? Vision is… a wide and distant vista of the future in which the desirable image of the company is set, directing its course and generating strategies there.1 Visioning is… a multi-phased process which includes the generation, implementation and renewal of a vision. It is a highly imaginative process. However, the managers must be careful to create real visions, instead of extending the past. The important point is visioning is not static however it is an on-going process. 2 [1] Okazaki-Ward, L. (1998) “The Practical Side to Visioning: The Case of Toray Industries Inc.” [2] Korac-Kakabadse, N. and Kakabadse, A.P. (1998) “Vision, Visionary Leadership and the Visioning Process: An Overview”

Lack of Vision Causes3: Organisational turbulence Direction is provided by each individual manager Short-term orientation Achieving results would become the only common denominator shared Paradoxical empowerment Messages from upper management leads to confusion In-fighting One manager’s view may compete with another [3] Kakabadse, A., Nortier, F., and Abramovici, N. “Visioning: Promoting a Shared Perspective Towards Organizational Success”

Construct IT’s Vision Construct IT has formulated an IT vision for the management of construction projects and the way their processes will be supported by IT Purpose of this vision is to: Paint a picture for the industry Gain competitive advantage Platform for discussion and debate Dynamic ‘picture’ Identify gaps between research and implementation Increase academic/industrial collaboration and knowledge exchange Identify barriers Realisation Illustrate how IT could benefit the industry

Seven Major Themes Model driven information management Life cycle thinking between project phases Knowledge Management e-Procurement Visualisation Simulation Change management & process improvement

Seven Major Themes Model driven information management Sharing project information via a shared concept or process model. Information is entered once and can then be used by all the different stakeholders during a project.

Seven Major Themes Life cycle thinking IT allows information to be shared seamlessly between the life cycle phases. Knowledge Management The construction industry should rely on past project knowledge and information when dealing with new projects

Seven Major Themes e-Procurement Internet brings new opportunities for the tendering and procurement phases of construction companies. Visualisation Communications between the construction parties could be enhanced by the computer visualisation technologies, such as 3-D walk-throughs.

Seven Major Themes Simulation Simulation would help construction managers to analyse and measure productivity, analyse risk, allocate resources, plan sites, etc. Change management & Process Improvement To achieve all the items above, construction organisations must implement fundamental structural changes.

Vision Scenario Conception of needs Tendering and team selection Developed to help interpret the seven proposed themes. Covers five life cycle phases: Conception of needs Tendering and team selection Design and briefing Construction Facilities management

Conception of Needs Geographical Information Systems (GIS) would help site selections Visualization will offer a better understanding of the project.

Tendering and team selection IT Capability would become a partner selection criteria Long-term partnering would be preferred Process Capability would become a partner selection criteria

Design and briefing Sharing visual information would be facilitated by new IT tools Simulation would be used to make feasibility and buildability analysis Internet would bring out new procurement approaches

Construction Material flow in construction sites would be improved by new devices such as web, bar coding, hand-held computers etc. 4D Simulation would be used to assess buildability issues

Facilities management Electronic as built information is used for operations and maintenance of the facility Intelligent tagging will become part of the project and form a base for FM activities

Implementation Barriers Only 5% of the work force understands the strategy Only 25% of managers have incentives linked to strategy 85% of executive teams spend less than one hour per month discussing strategy 60% of organizations don’t link budgets to strategy 9 of 10 companies fail to execute strategy The People Barrier The Learning Barrier The Vision Barrier Operations Barrier Visioning must be integrated into a continuous strategic planning process to overcome these barriers

Incorporating Visioning How to Develop an Information Strategy Plan guide explains how to link business strategy to IT investment Business Strategy Continuous Development of Information Strategy Plan from Business Needs 2 Identify your Business Position Increasing IT Capability Integrated with Business Strategy Planning 6 Develop IT Vision 1 Initiate Information Strategy Planning Project 4 Develop System and Technology Roadmap 5 Prioritise Solutions Implementation Continuous Development of Information Strategy Plan due to Changing Technology 3 Examine Capabilities and Technologies This guide proposes additional stage that ensures the visioning process becomes an integral part of continuous strategic planning.

How to Develop an IT Vision i. Generating Conceptual Vision The visioning process usually starts with the creation of a vision concept. Construct IT’s vision could be used at this stage ii. Debating the Vision Debating the vision brings unforeseen issues to the surface; unresolved issues will cause problems in future. Develop IT Vision iii. Testing the Vision Test if your vision is in line with company strategies and, If it fits in with your company’s interpretation of Construct IT’s Vision. iv. Communicating the Vision Share the company vision with your employees as you need their support during the implementation.

Concluding Remarks Vision is an important motivator that prepares companies for the future. It must be remembered that developing a vision is a continuous process. The visioning process is an important step in your ‘Information Strategy Planning’. Consider both of them together.

Finally … In terms of technology uptake, a distinct pattern exists in the way organisations adopt technology. Think about your place in the ‘Bell Curve’ to understand the intention of your company.