CIO as a Service in Action: What You Should Know
In today’s hyper-connected and fast moving world, the role of a CIO (Chief Information Officer) has become more and more important for those businesses wishing to stay one step ahead of the competition. But investing in a permanent full-time staff member to implement the IT strategies required for successful solutions can be very expensive and, in many cases, cost-prohibitive.
However, there’s no reason to get left behind and the alternative allows you to reap just as many, if not more, growth and fiscal rewards. In order to maintain a competitive edge and not be found lacking in terms of digital and technological innovation, many companies are now opting to outsource their CIO services to a third party also known as CIOaaS. Not only does this save money, having an independent consultancy come on board with a business has the potential to afford important change without the challenge of unnecessary or unintended bias. That’s where we come in.
At Defended Solutions, we offer CIO as a Service to clients across a range of industries, with bespoke strategies and solutions tailored to their individual financial and operational goals. But what exactly does that mean, how will your business benefit and what is the ‘change’ you can expect? Below we offer an overview of what a client can expect from us when we are hired for our CIOaaS.
Sharing Innovation, Expertise and Future Proofing Your Business
Because of our expertise, when bringing CIOaaS to a business we bring with us not only the most up-to-the-minute technological know-how and big picture global innovation, but also genuine forward-thinking change management, with the power to completely transform a company and lead them into the future.
However, by the same token our comprehensive service is continually developing, and we’re committed to delivering best practice methods that go beyond simply implementing technology strategies, to encompass issues like security, training and culture change at a grassroots level. By being able to manage a company’s IT solutions from conception through to implementation and support, we can and do facilitate significant positive change and profitability.
Managing Risk and Return
Not everyone can be an expert on IT and, in fact, using existing staff to try to manage the intricacies of the latest digital innovations can come at the detriment of a company’s core business. When we come on board (whether on a regular weekly, monthly or ad-hoc basis when needed) we effectively become an adjunct staff member, by immersing into the organization at an executive level and undertaking a full audit of existing operational/departmental processes. Then, by consulting with upper management and taking away the distraction of them having to consider technology, we’re able to drill down and create an IT strategy that is acutely focused on the company’s key operational and financial goals.
Affecting meaningful change within a company can be difficult (particularly when it comes to investment in IT), but as independentconsultants working within the business we’re able to maintain an impartial view and create bespoke strategies and solutions based on the most up-to-date technology. We’re also able to help a business look at their IT spend in a way that manages the investment ‘risk versus return’ in a different way to what they may be used to. This birds-eye view also affords us the ability to create strategies that encompass a much broader scope across the business than an on-staff consultant may be able to do.
Effective Company-wide Strategies and Solutions
By the very nature of keeping the cogs of a business turning, separate departments are often working to somewhat different or not entirely aligned agendas. While this can allow them to be highly focused and efficient in their own tasks, in the case of IT strategies it’s vital that systems and processes are working in tandem across the company.
By our thorough immersion in order to understand the fundamental operational goals of the company, we’re able to help prioritise change and innovation with consideration across the entire operation. With this broad vision we’re also able to transfer solutions between multiple departments to effect creative strategic planning that encompasses the companywide IT.
Focused Solutions
There’s no point investing financial and administrational resources in IT just to tick the boxes; the challenge is to create solutions that are effectively managed to their full advantage. We pride ourselves on thinking outside the box, but beyond that, because we understand the nuts and bolts of a client’s organization before we do anything, each and every strategy we create for them has a specific benefit. This delicate balance between innovation and operation is what we do so well.
CIOaaS: The Takeaway
Here at Defended Solutions we’re proud to offer CIOaaS to companies of all sizes and across a range of industries. We’re dedicated to creating and managing the most appropriate strategies for each and every client on an individual basis to ensure their organization maintains optimum efficiency, productivity and profitability.
By employing our external CIOaaS, you can be assured that the IT strategies and solutions we implement are not only at the cutting edge of technology, but are also in perfect alignment with your overarching financial and operational business goals. For more information on why businesses choose to outsource this job check out this blog post.
If you’d like to find out more about what we can do for your business in terms of providing CIOaaS, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with one of our consultants. They’ll be more than happy to discuss your needs and create a bespoke strategy that works for you.
