Challenging the status quo; the emergence of a new type of business

When we think back to the start of 2020 when we had to almost restructure our businesses overnight, the main thing which comes to mind is the challenges this presented that needed to be overcome. Not a single business wasn’t touched by this complexity; some just faced larger obstacles than others. Having worked with a huge variety of organisations through this period, we saw how some were able to turn this catastrophic event into an opportunity and capitalised on being able to quickly adapt to change, whilst for others, this was not so simple.

Not every business is a tech business at heart. Some organisations simply just need to ‘keep the lights on’ and provide the customer value in a different way. Some have a culture that puts people at its centre, focusing on them and using simple tools to make things happen. And for a great many of those, the office is the synonym of work, not because of technology limitations, but because of the simplicity of interactions and social aspect of things.

Things are not easy when a business struggles. But sometimes there is a vision, a business plan in place that ensures that differentiator of yours is the reason your customers return when things return to normal.

However, with every vision, strategy and project that follows, a key aspect to consider is the company culture and employees’ resilience to change, as this will have a significant impact on business productivity and adaptability to execute the strategy. Where your entire sector is being inhibited by an outside force, your ability to deliver within those constraints makes all the difference. This means that in order for your project to be successful, it should be driven by the business as a whole to take all considerations into account, rather than just the IT team.

When the business stands behind you, you can respond much quicker to change- for example moving systems to the cloud, adopting Agile & DevOps, and changing the way your employees interact with resources, giving them the freedom to work from anywhere. It is about the business stepping in to challenge the ‘status quo’ and reshape expectations around the office and productivity.

In order for all of the above to fit in place, you have to really have a grip on your adoption and change management process, and what better time to do so now employees are eager to return after a long period of remote working?

At the end of what has been a long tunnel, an entirely different business has emerged. People are still at its core, but now supported by technology and processes that amplify its strengths and mitigate its weaknesses.

At Ultima we know the technology is just part of the solution; it is the processes using the technology and the people governing it that really make it work. With a team of over 200 technical experts who have years of experience across a huge spectrum of industries and technologies, we can help you turn your vision into a success. We have experts on the ground daily helping customers achieve their goals, overcome challenges and make thinks work in new and imaginative ways. To learn more about Ultima’s Business Consultancy, click here.