Research
conducted
by
REPORT
The IT Complexity Challenge
A Trustmarque study into the state of IT
complexity from the CIOs’ perspective
October 2015
Commissioned by
The IT Complexity Challenge
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The IT Complexity Challenge
Contents
Overview
3
Technology both new and old adds to the complexity challenge
4
Simplification rises up the CIOs’ agenda
8
Increased complexity demands new IT skills
11
Summary: Simplifying IT will drive businesses forward
13
The IT Complexity Challenge
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Overview
The world of technology is changing at a rapid pace. For enterprises, trying to keep up with the
introduction of new technologies is becoming an increasingly difficult task. End-to-end IT management
and the responsibility of the CIO is a more complex assignment than ever before.
Whilst the latest digital technology delivers unmatched business benefits, improved usability, choice
and agility, it requires new skills and capabilities and a significant transformation to maximise the value
gained. The challenge of transforming traditional IT estates and organisations to this new platform is as
significant as from mainframes to PCs, or the adoption of the Internet.
The technology journey of an organisation now has many more considerations; with countless new
questions for CIOs on what technologies they will need to purchase, deploy, support and manage.
CIOs are under continued pressure to deliver innovative new services, whilst at the same time
maintaining existing IT services to a high standard. This balancing act only adds further to their
management burden.
This research examines how CIOs view their
current IT environment and the factors that are
contributing to the overwhelming complexity
they face. This report will also look at how
business requirements and the demands of
employees have added additional pressure to the
role of the CIO.
One thing in particular is clear throughout the
research – organisations are craving simplicity.
In order to meet the demands of the business,
“
CIOs need to be able to work with end-to-end
service providers that can help and guide them
on this journey, empowering them to drive the
organisation forward.
*The research was undertaken by independent
market research company, Vanson Bourne; the
total sample size was 200 UK CIOs and senior IT
decision makers from large enterprises with over
1,000 employees.
The transition from the internet-enabled business to the
digital one is a huge increase in complexity for IT
departments designed for business as usual technical
operations, while traditional models of integration,
licensing and management that were not designed for
cloud are exacerbating the problem.
– James Butler
CTO, Trustmarque
The IT Complexity Challenge
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The IT Complexity Challenge
Technology both new and old adds to the
IT complexity challenge
The ease-of-use associated with modern business IT environments has increased over recent years;
with more user-friendly, mobile and collaborative IT services available to employees. But delivering those
services has meant that behind the scenes, complexity has grown. When asked, 93% of CIOs stated
that IT complexity has increased.
Would you say IT complexity has increased?
7%
93%
state IT complexity
has increased
Yes
Two thirds (66%) of CIOs said that cloud
computing contributes to IT complexity. It is
interesting to note this view on cloud, as it is
often held up as a means to simplify technology
landscapes and improve businesses’ agility.
However, the transition from the internet-enabled
No
business to the digital one is a huge increase
in complexity for IT departments designed for
business as usual operations, while traditional
models of integration, licensing and management
that were not designed for cloud are exacerbating
the problem.
4
The IT Complexity Challenge
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Which of the following contribute to IT complexity?
#1
#2
51%
Legacy
#3
66%
Cloud
51%
Software
computing
technology
licensing
Increasing range of technology used
50%
Changing business needs
(e.g. business-led digital transformation)
50%
46%
Mobility
33%
Employees
Customers expectations
Half of CIOs (51%) felt that
software licensing was adding to
the complexity challenge. With
business and technology needs
continually changing, software
licensing and asset management
can become a difficult task.
Businesses need a robust
Software Asset Management
strategy that simplifies their
licensing position and ensures
23%
compliance, giving CIOs peace
of mind that risk is mitigated and
spend is optimised.
businesses back from capitalising
on the transformative power of
digital technologies.
In addition, legacy technology
was also a contributing factor
to complexity for 51% of CIOs.
Understanding how to manage
and support legacy systems is a
significant challenge. The reliance
on legacy technology can hold
For CIOs, the end result of this
multifaceted picture is confusion
over which technologies and
services will actually help them
simplify their IT landscape.
The IT Complexity Challenge
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The IT Complexity Challenge
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Which of the following statements do you agree with?
It’s increasingly complex
to understand...
71%
61%
38%
what’s the right
technology to use
what’s the right
solution to my business
problem/needs
how to manage
and support the
right technology
37%
28%
how to deploy the
right technology
how to buy the
right technology
The majority (71%) of CIOs said it is becoming
increasingly complex to understand what the right
technology to use is, and almost two thirds (61%)
feel it is now more complex to understand what the
right solution to their business problem or need is.
Significant numbers also thought that managing
and supporting (38%), deploying (37%) and buying
(28%) the right technologies was becoming
more complicated.
The IT Complexity Challenge
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Considering the rapid pace of change, do you find
it a challenge to stay on top of security threats?
87%
Yes
The research further found that
this complexity is also leading
directly to concerns relating to
cybersecurity. As cybersecurity
threats have increased
significantly in recent years, a
growing number of stringent
regulations and frequent policy
updates have been introduced,
13%
No
forcing organisations to invest in
the latest technology to remain
secure and compliant.
Most CIOs (87%) admitted they
find it a challenge to stay on top
of security threats because of the
rapid pace of change.
Clearly, while the range of
technology tools and solutions
on offer to CIOs has grown, the
ability to know what the best fit
for the business is, and how to
procure, deploy, manage and
support it, has become much
less obvious.
The IT Complexity Challenge
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The IT Complexity Challenge
Simplification rises up the CIOs’ agenda
Against this backdrop it is unsurprising that the majority of CIOs (79%) said that simplifying IT was
a priority for their organisation. In the face of this mounting complexity, achieving greater overall IT
simplicity is becoming more important for many CIOs.
Is simplifying IT a priority in your organisation?
21%
79%
think simplifying IT
is a priority
Yes
“
No
Simplicity is hard won in the fires of operational and programme
complexity, but it can be achieved with a mixture of experienced
staff and partnering with the right managed service provider.
For instance, public cloud solutions can deliver huge time, cost
and quality benefits once you’ve navigated the transformational
tidal wave of migrating away from traditional on-premise solutions.
Leveraging experts can make this journey a lot easier.
– Phil White
IT Director, Rhead Group
”
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The IT Complexity Challenge
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The research found that the complexity of managing and transforming legacy IT is difficult to reconcile
with pressures from the business to assist with innovation. For many businesses, improvements in digital
technology have increased competition and increased the importance of technology investment, with a
larger share of those budgets being controlled outside IT as digital technology becomes a differentiator.
When asked their biggest priority, 36% of CIOs said it was simplifying the management of shadow IT
and business-led IT spend. This was followed by simplifying the user experience through deploying new
digital technologies (34%) and simplifying legacy IT (30%).
Which of the following is the biggest priority?
36%
Simplifying the management
of shadow IT and business-led
IT spend
34%
Simplifying the user
experience through deploying
new digital technologies
30%
Simplifying legacy IT
The IT Complexity Challenge
However, despite a number of CIOs identifying legacy IT as an area for simplification, the pressure on
them from the rest of the business to innovate presents a significant obstacle to that aim. The majority of
CIOs (89%), when asked, stated they find simplifying legacy IT while simultaneously driving innovation a
challenge.
Do you find simplifying legacy IT while at the
same time driving innovation a challenge?
11%
89%
agreed to the challenge
of simplifying legacy vs
driving innovation
Yes
This finding is a reflection of the drive towards
bimodal IT and the challenges related to it.
Bimodal IT, as defined by Gartner, is “the practice
of managing two separate, coherent modes of IT
delivery, one focused on stability and the other on
agility.” Gartner believes that 75% of IT
organisations will be bimodal in ‘some way’ by 2017.
No
In practice, this means that IT departments must
be able to manage and stabilise legacy IT, while
encouraging innovation through activities, such as
new application development and big data analytics.
But, as the research shows, supporting bimodal IT
is problematic for many CIOs because of the issues
associated with modern IT landscapes.
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The IT Complexity Challenge
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New IT skills are required
As technology continues to develop and change rapidly, due to trends such as cloud, mobility and
big data, the skills required by businesses are no longer the same. This shift is especially noticeable
when looking at the last five years – a significant 88% of CIOs agreed that the IT skills needed by
organisations have changed in this period.
Do you agree the IT skills that organisations need
have changed over the last five years?
12%
88%
state IT skills
have changed
Yes
No
The IT Complexity Challenge
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The IT Complexity Challenge
IT is still the backbone of the modern enterprise and having the right mix of staff with the right
combination of skills is crucial to ensuring the IT department can meet organisations’ goals. IT
departments today must be agile and able to quickly and effectively scale the amount and type of
people it employs, in order to bring in the skills it requires.
It is clear that IT departments and CIOs spend a
considerable amount of time on ‘utility’ work which
is important, but is of low value to the business
in terms of innovation. As a result, CIOs cannot
devote time to developing the resources or skills
to deliver on the transformative IT projects that the
business wants.
80% of CIOs think they lack the necessary
in-house skills and resources for IT transformation
projects, preventing them from meeting the
requirements of the business in the time frames
they require.
Do you think a lack of the necessary skills and resources in-house
affects IT transformation projects and prevents you from meeting
the needs of the business at the speed you require?
80%
Yes
No
20%
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The IT Complexity Challenge
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Summary: Simplifying IT will drive
businesses forward
Our research reveals that many CIOs are currently struggling with IT complexity, as well as the need
to manage and integrate the latest technology alongside their legacy systems. Balancing traditional IT
operations with the increased rate of change demanded by digital technology disruption can feel like a
catch 22 situation for CIOs. Few IT departments have all the skills, or the bandwidth required to do this.
To drive business forward and innovate along the way, simplifying the IT that you have is imperative.
Working with the right end-to-end IT services provider is key to understanding and removing the complex
issues, at the same time creating and delivering a next-generation IT strategy to empower your business.
What the modern CIO needs is to simplify the IT at their disposal, yet this is a huge challenge for IT
departments to do it all on their own. In order to shape this new strategic IT roadmap, CIOs need to have
a clear view of what change will deliver business value, as opposed to only IT efficiencies. To ensure
success, engagement is required with lines of business alongside a broad understanding of what is
possible with cloud and digital technology.
Trustmarque works with companies in both the public and private sector across the United Kingdom,
with the goal of simplifying their IT environments. As an end-to-end IT services provider, Trustmarque
enables businesses to modernise, innovate, and achieve successful business outcomes by removing
the complexity from IT. Through its integrated services, it empowers customers at every step of the IT
investment process; from solution development, through technology provision, to deployment and
on-going support.
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About Trustmarque
Trustmarque is a leading provider of end-to-end IT services to the UK public and private sectors;
including cloud, professional and managed services, and software solutions.
At Trustmarque we give honest, simple and independent advice that helps customers navigate an
increasingly complex world of IT. We simplify business, through a flexible and cost-effective approach
that empowers organisations and their people.
With over 25 years’ experience at the heart of the rapidly evolving IT market, Trustmarque has
established a position as a leading technology provider to private sector, UK government and
healthcare organisations.
www.trustmarque.com
[email protected]
0845 2101 500
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