UPDATED 17:16 EDT / APRIL 15 2021

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

From Chaos to Clarity: BizOps unifies company culture with a focus on business outcomes

As the COVID vaccine roll-out propels the world back into high gear, companies that survived the pandemic are getting ready for another test: Generating profit in a digital environment.

Many businesses aren’t ready. Transformation has thrown internal organization into chaos as companies realize that adopting new technology is the smallest part of the change. Digital operations have their foundation in data. And while collecting data is relatively simple, reorganizing the value chain around it is not.

Companies need both intelligent technology and a united front to face the data onslaught and then convert it into business value. DevOps and agile methodologies have been heralded as the missing link to unite information technology and operations in digital harmony. But these approaches miss a crucial component: business outcomes. Filling this gap is the BizOps approach.  

“BizOps extends the advantages of DevOps to include continuous measurement and strategic business planning … [supporting] a strategic, scalable and sustainable transformation at the speed of business,” stated Mike Rosen, adjunct research advisor for the International Data Corp.

On April 21, the BizOps Coalition is sponsoring the Chaos to Clarity: BizOps for Digital Transformation event for industry leaders looking to capitalize on the economic boost brought by the vaccination initiative. With a focus on triumphing in the digital world, the event brings together BizOps experts from a variety of industries for a series of one-on-one interviews and panel discussions hosted by theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. (* Disclosure below.)

AI digs a way out of the data landfill

Organizations are being buried alive by data. Ninety-seven percent report struggling to manage data efficiently, according to a recent survey of business and technology professionals by Dimensional Research, sponsored by Broadcom Inc. In addition, the survey found that 74% are missing out on data insights due to delays in data availability. Under the assumption that more is better, executives and managers receive a barrage of metrics they don’t understand or aren’t sure how to apply to their business. Rather than a value-driver, data becomes a confusing and time-consuming hassle.

“When you start to look at the velocity of the data, the volume of data, the variety of data to analyze … it’s very challenging for [the information technology department] to understand and optimize its own processes, let alone to actually include business as an integral part of a delivery chain,” said Serge Lucio, general manager of the Enterprise Software Division at Broadcom Inc. in an interview with theCUBE.

Combining new technology such as artificial intelligence and machine learning with a cultural shift within the organization can help overcome the complexity and enable an organization to reach the next level of deriving value from data, according to Lucio. “We have to apply some core technologies which have only really, truly emerged in the last five to 10 years around machine learning and analytics,” he said.

Technology is about to undergo some of the most rapid advancements ever seen with an explosion of inexpensive, highly customizable processing power that will usher in a new era of software innovation that is world changing, according to Dave Vellante, co-founder and chief analyst at The Wikibon Project and co-CEO of SiliconANGLE Media. “AI is exploiting the combinatorial potential of machines and humans in the loop. Data has historically been separated from code and now data is code.” 

As businesses are forced to adapt to the rapidly changing environment, BizOps provides a foundation that connects operations and technology, enabling them to scale rapidly and take advantage of smart applications to create value from data.

BizOps is key to post-COVID operations

In a nod to the Agile Manifesto, the BizOps Coalition has created its own framework for software development that takes into account business outcomes. The BizOps Manifesto states that BizOps prioritize business outcomes over individual projects and proxy metrics; trust and collaboration over individualism and hierarchy; data-driven decisions over opinions, judgments, and persuasion; and learning and pivoting over following a rigid plan.

“[Agile metrics] measure technical practices; they measure technical excellence of bringing code to the market. They don’t actually measure business outcomes,” BizOps Coalition member Dr. Mik Kersten, founder and chief executive officer at Tasktop Technologies Inc., told theCUBE. The coalition was formed from a group who realized this shortfall, with the goal of “having these entwined ‘flow’ metrics that are customer-centric and business-centric and market-centric,” he stated.

According to Laureen Knudsen, BizOps coalition founding member and chief transformation officer at Broadcom Inc., “the pandemic was a forcing function for better alignment towards business goals and outcomes.”

The Dimensional Research/Broadcom survey confirmed this, with 95% of respondents stating that digital transformation is about business outcomes and not the technology.

With 61% of organizations reporting that technology choices are not linked to business objectives and 87% putting agility to deal with rapidly changing market conditions as critical for success in 2021 and beyond, the need to implement BizOps is clear. 

“While the adverse effects of the pandemic are beginning to wane, a lot of the outcomes are here to stay,” Knudsen stated.

Livestream of Chaos to Clarity: BizOps for Digital Transformation

Chaos to Clarity: BizOps for Digital Transformation is a livestream event, with additional interviews to be broadcasted on theCUBE. You can register for free here to access the live event. Plus, you can watch theCUBE interviews here on demand after the live event.

How to watch theCUBE interviews

We offer you various ways to watch the live coverage of Chaos to Clarity: BizOps for Digital Transformation, including theCUBE’s dedicated website and YouTube channel. You can also get all the coverage from this year’s events on SiliconANGLE.

TheCUBE Insights podcast

SiliconANGLE also has podcasts available of archived interview sessions, available on iTunes, Stitcher, and Spotify, which you can enjoy while on the go.

Guests

Guests who will be interviewed on theCUBE during Chaos to Clarity: BizOps for Digital Transformation include Isaac Sacolick, president of StarCIO and contributing editor at InfoWorld; Dave West, chief executive officer of Scrum.org; Kevin Surace, chairman and chief technology officer at Appvance.ai; and Pierre Viljoen, chief technology officer and head of enterprise technology and governance at HCL Technologies Ltd. Enterprise Studio.

TheCUBE will also speak with Broadcom’s Laureen Knudsen, chief transformation officer; Serge Lucio, general manager of the Enterprise Software Division; and Kieran Taylor, chief marketing officer and head of marketing.

Laureen Knudsen talks about the Chaos to Clarity event and what to expect:

(* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for the Chaos to Clarity: BizOps for Digital Transformation event. Neither the BizOps Coalition, the sponsor for theCUBE’s event coverage, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: BizOps Coalition

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