INSIGHT: Why NZ business and IT need a common language

In New Zealand, there is always some tension between the IT team and the rest of the business.

So much so that any lack of effective communication results in a feeling that technology isn't serving the business well meaning a journey becomes difficult without shared understanding.

When I was visiting Yangon, I had some problems getting back to my hotel in a taxi - because the driver didn't speak much English and I didn't speak any Burmese.

He didn't know where my hotel was, despite me handing him the hotel business card - which included a small map on the back of it. I think he couldn't read the street names and couldn't figure out where it was because the map was so small.

I had a brainwave and got out Google Maps, thinking I could hand him my phone and he could use that to navigate. Unfortunately he also didn't seem to know how to use the app - and it was in English as well, so it wasn't much help.

Despite me having technology that showed exactly where to go, I couldn't effectively communicate this with the driver. We just didn't have a common language.

Lack of understanding leads to lack of trust

I knew what direction the hotel was, so I pointed and we at least got moving. But communication failed again when I tried to direct the driver as I was in the back seat, speaking a foreign language and using technology he didn't necessarily trust.

The driver did trust locals on the street, however, so he stopped regularly to ask for directions. When we got close to our destination, he finally found someone who knew the name of the hotel and gave reasonably complete directions.

Interestingly, the technology wasn't always right; in the crowded, confusing and changeable streets of Yangon, the driver and the locals between them knew better which roads to avoid and which to take.

Businesses often lack a common language

I think that this is a common scenario in business - the IT team sometimes know where technology could take the business but struggle to get the rest of the business on-board.

Non-technical business stakeholders have different knowledge and experience - and have their own goals and needs specific to their role - prioritised higher than the technology that supports them.

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This lack of common understanding can create a perception gap that can lead to a lack of trust in the CIO and the IT team.

How to get a common language

To get a shared understanding of business and technology needs, you need to create a common language that everyone can understand.

A workshop session to create a Digital Roadmap is a good way to start, to create a visual representation of your current technology landscape with a group of stakeholders from throughout the business.

It's important that the model used is understood by everyone; the brain thinks in pictures so this approach is the quickest way to get on the same page.

This is a chance for the CIO and IT team to learn about what makes the rest of the business tick in some detail - business unit goals, pain points and personal KPIs. This information is vital to shape the business technology strategy.

Non-technical business stakeholders will learn more about the technology they are increasingly reliant on. Not the nuts-and-bolts, but how to get the most out of it, what is possible now and also what technology trends will impact them in the future.

A Digital Roadmap can then set out your direction for the future - and describe what the transformation will achieve in business terms.

With understanding it's a better journey

If I had spent more time learning a few Burmese phrases and location names, we would have had a common language and I wouldn't have had to rely so much on pointing and maps.

With the language barrier lowered, the driver may have been interested in learning how Google Maps worked. If I had zoomed out and showed key locations on the map, he may have gained perspective and got a point of reference.

This would probably have made him more comfortable with following directions from my phone - but also using his local knowledge when that was better.

We had the combination of his local knowledge and my technology to make the journey easier. We just needed to understand each other better first.

By David Reiss - Business technology specialist, Spark Digital