Vendor consolidation a hot-button topic for CIOs as they try to manage the tensions between innovation and efficiency
CIOs
have
always
had
to
find
a
balance
between
the
need
to
deliver
innovation
and
the
need
to
establish
operational
excellence.
However,
this
tension
has
become
even
more
challenging
in
recent
years.
CIOs
have
always
had
to
find
a
balance
between
the
need
to
deliver
innovation
and
the
need
to
establish
operational
excellence.
However,
this
tension
has
become
even
more
challenging
in
recent
years.
After
several
years
in
which
businesses
of
all
sizes
and
across
all
sectors
were
forced
to
transform
rapidly
in
response
to
the
pandemic,
CIOs
are
now
facing
the
need
to
drive
optimisation
and
re-focus
on
the
stability
of
the
IT
environment.
According
to
The
Human-Centered
Insights
To
Fuel
IT’s
Vision
2022
report,
conducted
by
Reach3
for
Lenovo,
83
per
cent
of
CIOs
are
still
seeking
digital
transformation,
but
76
per
cent
also
acknowledge
that
they’re
grappling
with
the
challenge
of
finding
the
right
balance
between
business
innovation
and
operational
excellence.
In
a
report,
EY
highlighted
five
steps
towards
delivering
innovation
in
a
way
that
also
achieves
cost
efficiency.
These
steps
are:
-
Leadership
and
Culture
–
where
embracing
the
entrepreneurial
mindset
across
IT
motivates
individuals
and
brings
transformation
initiatives
to
fruition. -
Technology
Transformation
–
particularly,
however,
the
CIO
needs
to
understand
what
technologies
to
invest
in
that
maximise
a
company’s
value. -
New
Methodologies
–
Agile
methodology
is
more
needed
than
ever,
so
organisations
can
experiment,
measure
outcomes,
and
learn
fast. -
Governance
and
Ownership
–
striking
the
right
balance
between
retaining
the
right
level
of
control
while
also
allowing
the
Agile
approach
to
thrive
is
critical. -
Sourcing
and
Partnerships
–
revisiting
and
improving
the
sourcing
strategy
is
critical
for
minimising
the
total
cost
of
ownership
while
maximising
the
value
of
the
investment.
One
of
the
key
steps
in
achieving
all
of
the
above
will
be
vendor
consolidation,
and
there
will
be
a
strong
trend
towards
this
in
the
year
ahead.
For
example,
one
key
piece
of
advice
for
CIOs
looking
at
constrained
budgets
and
inflationary
pressures
in
the
year
ahead
is
to
be
open
with
suppliers
regarding
those
budget
constraints.
Having
a
true
partnership
with
an
end-to-end
supplier
allows
the
CIO
to
more
strategically
engage
and
drive
both
optimisation
and
efficiency
across
the
IT
environment.
A
full
21
per
cent
of
CIOs
say
that
a
major
focus
of
theirs
is
negotiating
with
IT
vendors.
Reducing
the
number
of
vendors
helps
to
minimise
this
disruption.
What
does
the
right
technology
partner
look
like?
According
to
the
Lenovo
and
Reach3
report,
there
are
three
qualities
to
an
end-to-end
solutions
provider
that
will
help
to
drive
successful
optimisation
and
consolidation
across
the
organisation:
-
Productivity
and
Collaboration
At
a
top
level,
one
of
the
key
benefits
of
consolidating
the
number
of
vendors
to
a
single
end-to-end
provider
is
that
the
technology
is
inherently
designed
to
work
well
together.
This
helps
improve
reliability,
and
reduce
the
amount
of
time
that
the
IT
team
spends
on
managing
technology.
In
addition,
it
improves
the
security
of
the
IT
environment
by
limiting
any
gaps
in
the
connectedness
between
technology.
One
in
four
CIOs
spend
a
significant
amount
of
time
managing
IT
crises.
In
addition,
51
per
cent
and
43
per
cent
have
security
management
and
improving
IT
operations
as
key
priorities.
The
wastage
that
comes
from
poorly
structured
IT
environments
can
consume
far
too
much
timefor
the
IT
team.
Vendor
consolidation
provides
a
way
to
quickly
start
to
address
this
challenge.
2.
Agility
and
Optimisation
Just
as
the
modern
business
needs
to
operate
according
to
agile
best
practices,
CIOs
have
to
find
suppliers
that
can
scale
quickly
as
the
business
needs.
This
ranges
from
the
technology
and
devices
needed
to
access
work,
through
to
their
service
and
support
and
end-of-life
management.
To
address
this
need,
Lenovo
created
the
TruScale
Infrastructure-as-a-Service
solution,
which
offers
day-to-day
support,
flexibility
backed
by
a
pay-as-you-go
model,
and
complete
transparency
into
the
whole
environment
at
all
times.
This
solution
allows
CIOs
to
shift
most
of
the
IT
environment
to
an
OpEx
expenditure
model
while
working
with
Lenovo
to
deliver
a
solution
that
is
tailored
to
the
specific
needs
and
objectives
of
the
organisation.
Meanwhile,
at
the
device
level,
Lenovo
provides
technology
that
has
been
designed
to
meet
all
needs
and
require
minimal
customisation
and
support.
The
ThinkPad
X1
Carbon,
powered
by
Intel
vPro,
An
Intel
Evo
Design,
for
example,
is
built
for
what
IT
needs
and
users
want.
Backed
by
Lenovo
accessories,
the
CIO
can
streamline
their
device
fleet
rollouts
and
management
by
working
with
a
single
provider.
3.
Intelligent
Infrastructure
With
the
ongoing
migration
to
the
cloud,
organisations
are
realising
significant
improvements
to
the
efficiency
and
productivity
of
their
working
environment.
Having
IT
solutions
that
are
structured
around
cloud
computing
as
the
default
is
essential.
The
bulk
of
corporate
data
is
now
stored
in
the
cloud,
and
workplaces
have
become
completely
decentralised,
flexible
and
hybrid
in
nature,
so
flexibility
in
infrastructure
is
critical.
CIOs
realise
the
value
of
finding
the
right
vendor
partner.
Lenovo
research
shows
that
92
per
cent
of
CIOs
believe
that
their
vendors
play
a
valuable
role
in
their
company’s
overall
success.
However,
having
too
many
vendors
can
result
in
incompatibilities,
confusion,
and
time
lost
in
vendor
management.
For
CIOs
that
are
looking
to
deliver
an
agenda
that
both
supports
innovation
while
realising
efficiencies,
finding
the
right
partner
for
an
end-to-end
technology
solution
is
going
to
be
a
priority.
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