3 Tips for Modernizing IT With Business Requirements in Mind

The siloed nature of many government organizations has rippling effects that run deep.

One of the more telling consequences magnified amid COVID-19 is the inability for some agencies to quickly meet workforce and public demands through technology. “Agencies looking to be more agile and shift gears rapidly are hard-pressed to do so with traditional, three-tier infrastructure,” said Heather Eakin, Manager, Data Center Practice at Connection. “Resources are siloed, and so are the people who manage those resources.”

Eakin and her colleagues at Connection are working closely with agencies to update their legacy data centers and migrate to a hybrid cloud. Connection is a Dell Technologies titanium level partner that offers a complete suite of assessments, including LiveOptics, an industry standard for visualizing and analyzing IT infrastructure and data center workloads. The goal: to architect a custom-fit solution for organizations according to their unique requirements.

“Having an infrastructure such as a hybrid cloud, which pools the resources together, makes it easier to reallocate them as the mission needs change,” Eakin said.

With hybrid cloud, agencies have access to self-service options and a consolidated view to manage IT resources both in the cloud and on premises. Eakin shared three best practices for agencies to consider when taking an agile approach to acquiring such custom-fit solutions.

1. Understand business and technical requirements

Having a clear understanding of your agency’s business and technical requirements is critical. “Without a clear understanding of the end goal, you could easily implement a solution that won’t do what you need it to or one that isn’t’ easily adopted by the end-user community.”

Either way, you’re left with a solution that might only meet a fraction of your needs — if any.

2. Prioritize assessments

Assessments are closely tied to understanding your agency’s needs and supporting those efforts. “An assessment is a good place to start because it can help you understand what you actually have in your environment,” Eakin said. It can help you answer key questions, including what issues may be festering in your environment and any constraints you might not be aware of.

“All of those questions play a role in understanding how you can get from where you are now to where you want to go,” she said.

3. Don’t make the journey alone

“You don’t have to do it all alone,” Eakin said. “Develop a relationship with a trusted adviser who can help you discern those technical requirements and present options and solutions that meet your agency’s needs.”

One of the biggest challenges that agencies face is finding the right fit because there are many solutions that could potentially meet their needs. “With partners like Connection and Dell, we can help guide you through your options and cut through the chaos to form a clear picture of what will work for you,” Eakin said.

This article is an excerpt from GovLoop’s recent guide, “Agile for Everyone: How to Improve Everyday Work Processes.” Download the full guide here.