It ain't broke, but you still need to fix it.

Most businesses don't change overnight. They grow, add people, develop new services, win different customers, restructure, merge or acquire. Processes change, responsibilities shift and the information needed to understand and manage the business becomes more sophisticated.

The problem is that data and technology don't always evolve at the same pace.

Decisions that were entirely sensible for an earlier version of the business can gradually become less appropriate for the organisation it has become. Processes stretch to accommodate new requirements. Responsibilities that were once obvious become unclear. Policies no longer quite reflect how people work. Systems may still function, but the information within them may be organised around needs, structures or decisions that have moved on.

Nothing necessarily breaks. In fact, everything can continue working well enough that there is no obvious reason to change it.

But working isn't the same as being fit for what comes next. The question is whether your technology, data, processes, policies and information can support the growth and change you now want to achieve – or whether the way the business used to work is quietly constraining what it can become.

In this talk, Alan explores how to recognise when the way you manage data and technology has fallen behind the business itself. He looks at the signs that something which still technically works is no longer fit for purpose, how to distinguish a genuine business requirement from a legacy preference, and how to decide what needs to evolve without changing things simply for the sake of it.

Because maturity isn't about replacing everything that came before. It's about making sure your data, technology and the way you manage them are capable of supporting the business you are now and the one you're trying to become.

Who is this talk for?

Founders, business leaders and senior decision-makers in organisations that have grown, changed or become more complex and are starting to question whether the way they manage data and technology has kept pace. Particularly those who know the business needs to take another step but are finding that existing systems, processes, policies or information are making that harder than it should be.

What will they take away?

A way to recognise the difference between something that still functions and something that is genuinely fit for purpose. They'll leave better able to identify where data, technology, processes, policies or information need to mature, challenge legacy decisions and decide what needs to change to support where the business wants to go next.

About Alan

Alan Paterson is the founder of AIK Advisory and has spent more than 30 years helping organisations make sense of data, technology and information. His experience spans businesses of very different sizes, sectors and levels of maturity, including highly regulated environments. Find out more →