Driving Digital Transformation via Rapid App Development · just acts as CxOs. How the CIO’s Role Will Change by 2018 40% strategic partners 70% become innovation partners Source:

Driving Digital Transformation via Rapid App Development

5 Lessons from Innovative IT Leaders

ContentsDriving Digital Transformation via Rapid App Development

3 Setting the Stage

5 Lesson 1: Erase the Lines between IT and the Business

8 Lesson2:HireAppBuildersDifferently

10 Lesson 3: Foster a Culture of Self-Service

12 Lesson4:ShapeApplicationDeliveryPlansbyPrioritizingApplications

14 Lesson 5: Strive to Measure ROI of Digital Transformation Initiatives

17 Conclusion:PuttingtheLessonsintoPractice

Share | 3

Setting the Stage

The pervasiveness of new digital technologies has transformed thewayorganizationsdobusiness—atrendknownas“digitaltransformation”.Technologynowtoucheseveryfacetoforganizationsand,asaresult,everybusinessisbecomingasoftware business. Driving this trend are the desires to increase operationalefficiency,agility,andproductivity.

Businesses are achieving transformation through the rise of applications that have become their lifeblood in competing for customers’attentioninadata-richandhyper-connectedworld.Newapplicationsareemergingdaily,andForresteranticipatesglobalSoftware-as-a-Servicerevenueswillreach$106Bby2016,increasing 21% from 2015.

IT is now faced with a broadening spectrum of applications. Once focusedonmissioncriticalinitiatives(e.g.,ERPsandwebsites),applicationsthat“delightthecustomer”(e.g.,CRMsandcustomerportals)andfocusonemployeeproductivityoroperationalefficiency(e.g,ticketing,projectmanagement,andbudgetingapps)areincreasinglybeingrequestedfromITbyinternalstakeholders.

Butnotalltechnologyleadersarereadyforthischange,asdigitaltransformationcontinuestoheapanever-growingbacklogofapplicationrequestsattheirdoors.Hereare5lessonsfrominnovativetechnologyleaderswhowereabletotransformthischallengeandintoastrategicgrowthopportunity.

Share | 4

Increasing operational efficiency

83%Increasing business agility (speed of reaction to market changes)

75%Increasing employee productivity

73%Gaining competitive advantage

72%New revenue growth

63%

Importance of Key Digital Transformation Drivers

critical / very important not important

Source:IDGResearch,“DigitalTransformation: CrossingtheChasmfromITtotheBusiness”,September2009.

Source:Forresterforecast,ForresterResearch,Inc.

$43$56

$72

$87

$106

2012 2013 2014 2015 20162016

Saas Software Subscription Revenue by Year(US$ billion)

Saas software will equal $106 billion in 2016, with over 20% growth in 2015 and 2016.

Share | 5

Lesson 1: Erase the Lines between

IT and the Business

Technology is now in every department and business users more thaneverhavetheknowledge,desireandcapabilitytomakemanyoftheir own IT decisions. The old approach of having ‘IT’ and then ‘the business’ascompletelyseparatedisnolongerthenorm,especiallywithheightenedexpectationsfromvariousstakeholdersthathasresultedinaneedforfasterdeliveryofapplicationswithuniqueworkflows.ManycompaniesareworkingtoerasethelinesbetweenITandthebusiness,andtwonotablewaysofdoingthisare:1.)startfromthetop,and2.)createhybridteams

1. Start from the topCIOsandITstaffusedtobethesolesourcesoftechnologyknowledge;theywereabletomakedecisions,inmanycases,unilaterally.Todaynotonlyhavenon-ITexecutivesbecomemoretechnologicallysavvy,buttechnologyhasalsobecomeanengineofmultiplelayersofgrowthandrevenuegenerationacrossorganizations.Notutilizingtechnologyisnolongerjustahindrancetoprogress;itleadstoasubstan-tivedecreaseincompetitiveness.Asaresult,technologychoicesaremorestrategicthanever,andplatformandappli-cationchoicesmustbedeeplyintegratedintocorebusinessplanning—fromrevenuegenerationtoprojectplanning.

Share | 6

“IhavebeenaCIOfor20years,andalot has changed. More and more people understandhowtoleveragetechnology,andsotechnologydecisionsarenotleftentirelyuptome.Infact,Isharethatrolewithprettymucheveryotherexecutivewithinmyorganization.” —Will Weider, CIO, Ministry Health Care

Forward-lookingCIOsshouldtakethereignsinengagingwiththeirC-levelpeersandseekamoreactivestrategicroleintheirconversations.Theycanandshouldhelpguidefarmoreofthebusinesses’planning.Tactically,thisformofmoreactivecontributioniscomingbycarvingouttimeatboardroommeetings,holdingoff-sites,andsendingseniormembersoftheITdept.toengageinfiscalyearplanning.

2. Create hybrid teamsAnotherapproachtoapplicationdeliveryhasbeentocreate“hybrid”teamsoftechnologyandbusinessleaderstoidentifyanditeratesolutionsaroundtheneedsofthebusinessfaster,moretransparentlyandmorecollaboratively.Inmanycompa-nies,thesearecomingintheformofContinuousImprovementteams,CentersofExcellence,andBusinessOperations.Theyarefocusednotonlyonimprovingtheday-to-dayofbusinessusers’operationalexcellence,butalsoontranslatingbusinessneedsintotechnologyrequirementsandidentifyingtechnologygapsinthebusiness.Theseleadersarebusiness-minded,firstandforemost,andtechnologists,second.Theseprocessleaders form a critical connection between the business and IT,allowingeachgrouptoactfaster.

Share | 7

“AtNorwegianCruiseLine,ourcontinuousimprovementteamworksalongside our 13 ships out on the fleettotrytostreamlineasmanyprocesses as we can.” — Jeffrey Wessels, Continuous Improvement Analyst,

Norwegian Cruise Lines“I” in CIO Means InnovationDuring the next two years, the primary role of 70% of CIOs will change from directly managing IT to becoming innovation partners.

From CxO to Strategic Planning PartnersBy 2017, 40% of CIOs will rise to the challenge of becoming strategic partners — and not just acts as CxOs.

How the CIO’s Role Will Change by 2018

40% become strategic partners

70% become innovation partners

Source:KarenFrankel,CIOInsight,“HowtheCIOsRoleWillChangeby2018”,January2014.

Share | 8

Lesson 2: Hire App Builders

Differently

Application development and deliveryusedtorequirecomplicateddevelopment environments for programmers to hand-code in languageslike.NET,C#orJava.Thetalentthatcreatesthesetypesof applications was and continues to be scarce and expensive.

Whiletheneedforthesetypesofdevelopersisnotgoingawayanytimesoon,thebroadeningspectrumofapplicationsandincreasing digital-savviness of constituents of the business creates anopportunityforassemblingadifferentkindofappbuildingteam.LighterapplicationsbuiltbylessexpensiveITpersonnelcanservethegrowingneedsofthebusinessfaster.ProgressiveITleadersare turning to cloud-based low-code platforms for rapid application development,whichdoesnotrequiretalentwiththesameskillprofile.

Manycompaniesarebuildingnimble,low-costteamswithinITthatcan deliver on the growing number of less-than-critical applications requestedbythebusiness.Applicationsbuiltonlow-codeplatformsalmostalwayshaveshorterturnaroundtimesandareorientedtowardenablingprojectsthatrequiredeliveryindaysorweeks,notmonthsoryears.

Share | 9

“Iuselower-skilledlabortoworkonthingsthatneedfasterdelivery.Let'sfaceit—mostapplicationdevelopment is under-invested in.” —Francois Tricot, CIO, Ceva Sante Animale

Source: Glassdoor.com

Salaries for Developers

$83k$91k

$74k$66k

$61k

Net Developer

C Developer

Java Developer

BusinessAnalyst

BusinessOperationsAnalyst

Share | 10

Lesson 3: Foster a Culture of Self-Service

Every IT departmenthasabacklogofrequests.Quitesimply,ITcannottakeoneverythingthatthebusinessasks,norshouldit.Astheworkforcebecomesmoredigitallysavvy,leadingITorganizationsareenablingbusinessuserstomakebettertechnologydecisions,whileprovidingnecessarygovernancetoguidetheevolvingrelationshipsbetweenorganizationsandtechnology.Low-codeplatforms for rapid application development are instrumental in this enablement,allowinguserstocontributetoapplicationdevelopment—atleastduringthelastmileoftailoringapplicationstotheiruniqueneedsormakingpost-launchcustomizations.

However,asmostITleaderswillagree,handingovercontroltobuildappsshouldnotbedonelightly.Acoreaspectofenablementistrainingbusinessusers–ofteninformalizedanddocumentedsessions–onhowtomakechangesandwhatcanbechangedinapplications.Inmanyorganizationsthisiscalled“thelastmileofinnovation”.Creatingacultureofself-servicenotonlyoffloadstime-consumingworkthatwasoncedonesolelybyIT,butitalsopromotesbuy-infrombusinessusersandcanincreaseapplicationadoption.

Share | 11

“Idon’tknowwhatITdepartmenthasenoughbudgetandskilltocreatealloftheapplicationstheywouldlike.So,anotherplacethat’schangedoverthelastfourorfiveyears,inparticular,is how do we get technologists that are not in the IT department to actuallyhelptheirdepartmentsgrow.” —Isaac Sacolick, CIO, Greenwich Associates

“Self-servicewins.Whydowehave big teams of people in IT receiving calls from business users saying,Please can you change the permissions for this user? Self-serviceisveryimportant.Itsavesalotofmoney.Itmakesappsquicklyavailableinthefieldforusers.” —Francois Tricot, CIO, Ceva Sante Animale

Share | 12

Lesson 4: Shape Application Delivery Plans by

Prioritizing Applications

Business users will almost always push for fewer governance policiestogettheirtechnologyfaster,butITleadersknowtheyarethereforareason.WhilemostorganizationsseekformalizedITgovernancepoliciestoimprovealignmentwithbusinessstrategyandimprovebothITvalueandoperationalefficiency,theironicresultisthatITgovernanceisoftenperceivedasonerouslyrigid,especiallywhenitcomestoappdevelopment.Placingtherulesof10,orevenfiveyearsagoontoday’stechnologyisnotonlyunwise;itcanalsostifleinnovation.

ItisimperativethatITleadersworkwiththeirpeersinthebusinesstoprioritizestrategictechnologydecisions.Inmanyinstances,thismeansidentifyingandapplyingahierarchytodatatypes,initiatives,projectsand/ordepartmentsthatareofmorestrategicimportancethanothers,potentiallyrequiringmorerigorousgovernancepolicies.Tothatend,someleadingorganizationscreatetiersofapplicationstoputthroughgovernancepolicies,requiringtoptiersofapplicationstobewhollyownedbyIT.

Beyondhierarchiesofapplications,whatisthebestmethodforprovidingthesetechnologysolutions?Customcoding?Purchasingapointsolution?Quicklybuildingonalow-codeplatform?Take,forexample,arequestfromthebusinessforaticketingapplicationtotrackrequestsfromonedepartmenttoanother.Understandingwherethistypeofrequestliesalongthespectrumofappshelpsidentifynotonlywhoshouldbuildtheapplication,butalsowhatsolutionyourITdepartment needs to best meet the needs of the business.

Share | 13

What do organizations seek from formalized IT governance policies?

Better alignment with business strategy

79%Improved value from IT

76%Improved operational performance of IT

64%Improved risk management/ compliance

54%Reduced IT costs

50%

Source:DennisMcCafferty,CIOInsight,“ITGovernance: CIOsLeadtheWay”,March2011.

“IdonotwanttogothroughmyownITorganization’snormalgovernanceprocess to get new applications approved.It’sonerous.Andwetrynowtoonlyworryaboutthosethingsthatarehigh-riskandverycomplexwhen we run applications through the governance process.” — Will Weider, CIO, Ministry Health Care

Share | 14

Lesson 5: Strive to Measure ROI

of Digital Transformation Initiatives

Successfully shepherding organizations through digital transformationrequireswisetechnologyinvestments.Makeonebigpurchasethatflopsortoomanysmallonesthatdon’taddenoughvalue,andyou’relost.Manytechnologyleaders,however,struggletoassesstheROIoftheirinvestments.Herearefourwaysforward-lookingITleaderscanbegintoevaluatethepotentialROIofdigitaltransformation initiatives:

• Userexperience

• Useradoption

• Speedofdeployment

• True cost of ownership

1. User experience & ease-of-useWhenevaluatingorbuildinganewapplication,it’simperativetoexploretheuserexperienceorusability.Asknon-technicalusersforfeedbackthroughusabilitytestingandpost-testingsurveys.Understandingrealusers’painpointsandhowmanystepsittakesthemtocompletetaskswithinanapplicationarefundamentalpartsofanyuserexperienceevaluation.

Share | 15

2. Speed of deploymentSpeedisthecurrencyforadigitallytransformedworld,soplatformsthatcansavetimeonapplicationdeliverycreatemorevalue.Fasterapplicationdeliveryresultsnotonlyinbetterefficiencyinfulfillingbusinessstakeholders’requests,butalsomoreeffectivedeliverywithmoretimeaffordedforprototypinganditeratingonapplicationsagainstnascentbusiness processes.

3. User adoptionIfyouinvesttimeinbuildingapplicationsandusersdon’tusethem,theapplicationsobviouslyarenotrealizingtheirexpectedvalue.Lookat“successful”applicationsinyourorganizationasbenchmarksagainstwhichyoucancomparetherateofadoptionofnewlylaunchedapplicationsandmeasure success. It is also important to note that involving the end users of applications in application production or enabling themtheabilitytocustomize“thelastmile”oftheapplicationgoesaconsiderablewayinensuringbuy-inandadoption.

“Usersalwaysprefertheapplicationwhere the ergonomics are the best. Soifyougivethemtwosolutions—oneiscopyrighted,controlledandsecure,andtheotheroneisnotsecureatallbutiseasytouse— theywillusethesecondone.” —Isaac Sacolick, CIO, Greenwich Associates

Share | 16

“Isitdown,andIgotothevendorandsaytothem,Can I learn how to do basic name and company matching in a week?TheylookatmelikeI’mcrazy.AndIlookatthemandsay,I have to look at another platform.” —Will Weider, CIO, Ministry Health Care

4. True cost of ownership ITleadersoftenreachforoff-the-shelfpointsolutionswithoutconsideringthetotalcostofownership.Bakedintothesetools’pricepointsarenumerousfeaturesthatmayormaynotberelevant.Ifasolutiononlysolvesonepieceofabiggerproblem that must and will be solved with more point solu-tions,itmayendupbeingmoreexpensivethanaplatform,whichmayinitiallyseemmoreexpensive.Includetrainingandadministrativecostsofmultiplesolutions,andthecostofownershipisevenhigher.Findingtheright-sizedsolution—whether it’s a single application or application development platform—canmakeallthedifferencekeepingcostsdown.

Get Started with QuickBase Today

Free30-daytrial. Nocreditcardrequired.

Conclusion: Putting the Lessons into Practice

These lessons highlight the potential need for a low-code

platformforrapidapplicationdevelopment,likeIntuit

QuickBase.IntuitQuickBaseisalow-codeplatformfor

buildingexpressive,scalable,interoperableapplications

fororganizationsofallsizes,withoutcompromisingonIT

governance and controls.

Unlikedevelopmentenvironmentsforhand-codedapplications,

IntuitQuickBaseprovidesaneasy-to-uselow-codeplatform

onwhichcitizendevelopersinbothITandthelineofbusiness

build applications faster than ever. It also enables IT leaders to

elasticallyscalegovernance,asthenumberofbothapplica-

tionsandapplicationbuildersintheirorganizationsgrows.

WithIntuitQuickBase,ITleadersreducetheirbacklogof

requestsbyenablingcitizendeveloperstorapidlyprototype

processes,buildscalableapplications,andmodifythemon

thefly.IntuitQuickBaseisbasedinCambridge,Massachusetts.

Visit us at www.quickbase.com.