From 37signals:
The problem with IT departments seems to be that they’re set up as a forced internal vendor. From the start, they have a monopoly on the “computer problem” – such monopolies have a tendency to produce the customer service you’d expect from the US Postal Service.
The IT department has all the power, they’re not going anywhere (at least not in the short term), and their customers are seen as mindless peons. There’s no feedback loop for improvement.
Ouch, but very true. Is it time for them to go (or are they already headed out the door)?
But change is coming. Dealing with technology has gone from something only for the techy geeks to something more mainstream. Younger generations get it. Computer savvyness is no longer just for the geek squad.
You no longer need a tech person at the office to man “the server room.” Responsibility for keeping the servers running has shifted away from the centralized IT department. Today you can get just about all the services that previously required local expertise from a web site somewhere.
And I know this to be very true. I’m not a 100% born-and-bred IT professional and would never apply or get hired as one and yet I know my way around a server enough to handle the needs for a budding startup and profitable business.
Fascinating idea. Thoughts?
Will P says
More commentary sparked from the 37 signals blog post: http://systemsboy.com/2011/02/the-end-of-it.html
I lean toward the view of System Boy.
BenJPickett says
Being a 1 man IT shop full time for a SMB and an occasional consultant for a couple other very small business in the area, I disagree with the view point of this being the end. It is simply a change in the atmosphere and culture. IT is currently not a face; an impersonal mandatory relationship that companies don’t want but know they need. And this goes for in-house departments just as much as it goes for remote support. With the growth of mobile devices and mobile work force, security is more important than ever. An example would be a stolen iPhone that has been hacked in 6 minutes using common methods documented on YouTube. If just used for corporate info by a low man on the totem pole, it may contain nothing of real value, now let’s say that phone belonged to the CEO and had access to financials including bank account info. Is this person that knows enough to get around, setup and even do basic troubleshooting on a server ready to tackle this?
The new face of IT has to be relational and very ready and willing to adapt to a much faster culture. Even 5 years ago, IT could throttle and control the growth of their network but this isn’t the case anymore. The users are now in control of how fast the network grows and this leaves IT struggling with the control they had compared to the users wanting to be enabled and empowered to do more work in more places. We need to remember, the LARGEST driving force for computer hardware development was not the enterprise, it was the enthusiasts, the over clockers, and the gamers. Those enthusiasts, over clockers and gamers are now in the corporate work force, most of them didn’t go into IT, and do desire the latest and greatest gadgets and if they can use them for work, they will. These enthusiasts know a lot, but they don’t know security the way the pros do and most importantly they don’t play by the rules.
The new IT department isn’t there to worry about control the machines on the network and access into and out of the network, they are there to manage the data on and off the network. They are there to secure the users, no matter what they bring in. And most importantly they are there to enable the corporate productivity engine. They are still just as needed but the area of focus and the climate of the work has shifted from controlling equipment and access to security. What will drive the change that is needed here the most is IT getting away from being a faceless machine to being relational and a productive part of decision. To do this they need to get to know the users, what they need, what they want and involving them in the decision process and adapting to how they work.
Jon says
Any department that doesn’t directly perform integral business purposes and tasks could be considered as forced internal vendors. This also includes HR, Payroll, and Security. While those functions will never go away, they are often outsourced. With that said, in order to remain relevant and successful, it is important that IT departments have a vision as being a service organization to the business. Their projects and goals should be properly aligned with business needs. It is also in the business’s self interest to have an IT organization that is customized for and knowledgeable about their specific business processes and requirements. Using completely external vendors or a “website somewhere” is a bad idea. Most see you only as a paycheck and getting customized service that fits your particular needs can be very time consuming and costly.