Crafting and Shaping Knowledge Worker Services in the Information Economy

Whether we like it or not, business is being transformed by technology. Whilst we don’t know what the future will bring, we have a good idea of how to prepare, so that we adopt and adapt to benefit from the opportunities presented. We know how to fix the pipes and help people. It is a matter of electing to do so. In this chapter, the background to this book is set through the consistent and persistent application of proven principles implemented pragmatically to adopt knowledge worker operations and services to rapid changes in technology. Transformation is the combination of strategy and leadership, to influence the environment, to instil the behaviours, and strengthened by skilling that gives a business the capacity and capability to be adaptive, responsive, and resilient (i.e. respond to the rapid changes in technology). It is the actions of individuals that form an emergent behaviour and environment for outcomes through which transformation occurs.

Globalisation and technology changes are working together to drive businesses to lower costs, faster times to market, and innovate new products and services. Businesses can release capital to fund these changes whilst achieving flexibility by moving ICT Operations and Services from CAPEX to OPEX funded through the use of cloud services like Software as a Service (SaaS) or Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) for ICT Operations and Services. The move from CAPEX to OPEX and the release of funds are also being applied to emerging knowledge worker cloud-based services like Project Management as a Service (PMaaS) or Audit as a Service (ADaaS) as well as for automated knowledge worker services. Cloud-based knowledge worker service, like legal services, can be readily deployed (with the required frameworks, processes, governance, best practice, training and skilling, and applications and databases), enabling businesses and operational areas for all sizes and types to deploy, adapt, and adopt. The ease of deployment, localised adoption, and incremental use without the need for systems installation encourages the adoption of cloud-based services at lower cost. The funding of, and adoption of, cloud-based services, especially ICT Operations and Services within knowledge worker services, are discussed further in this chapter.

Responding to rapid changes in technology sees the need for increased responsiveness and adaptiveness across all areas of a business. Responsiveness and adaptiveness are aligned with the Agile approach to software development, but responsiveness and adaptiveness are far more than being Agile. From the adoption of assembly lines in manufacturing, through just-in-time ordering, and to extended supply changes, businesses have had to pragmatically and practically adjust to changes in technology and operations over an extended period. Revisions and variations to services and operations have encompassed pragmatic and tactical planning, prototyping, staged implementations, trials, lessons learned, workable solutions that evolve, and scaling up as capacities and capabilities allow. The alignment to strategy, allocation of resources, securing funds, knowing what is to be achieved, managing delivery, integration into services, supporting operations, stakeholder engagement, customer engagement, regulatory needs, and working with suppliers all occur within business. These proven practices are still needed as knowledge worker services are transformed. The adaptiveness and responsiveness of knowledge worker operations and the use of Agile software development principles within operations are discussed in this chapter as part of the capacity and capability building of businesses.

Resilience is the ability of an organisation to respond to adverse events that impact its operations. Whether driven by market changes, economic factors, political reasons, or catastrophic events, the occurrence of adverse events is the business norm rather than the exception. Managing an organisation through these adverse events is the consistent and persistent application of existing business activities, though some reprioritisation and scaling up of functions may be required. By its nature, resiliency includes risk management, sustaining the business, managing a crisis, and recovery from a crisis. In addition, an organisation requires the necessary planning and capacities and capabilities for resiliency. The same components that make up resiliency enable a business to respond to rapid changes in technology and provide a common resource base for adapting operations to emergent technologies. The role of resiliency in knowledge worker services is discussed further in this chapter.

A risk-based approach to business (Enterprise Risk Management—ERM) is a consolidated way for a business to manage the risks they are exposed to so that the business can achieve its required outcomes and benefits. Whether the risk is strategic or operational in nature, or unique to a given industry, business, or market, managing risk is a core ongoing business activity using the consistent and persistent application of existing business activities. Beyond managing risk and the resultant business benefits, a risk-based approach to business also builds capacities and capabilities across a business, which enables improvement, lowering of costs, higher calibre management, and a better response to changes in the business environment. These same skills and competencies that are part of a risk-based approach are used in managing the risk of rapid changes in technology into a business and provide a common resource base for adapting operations to emergent technologies. The role of ERM in knowledge worker services is discussed further in this chapter.

Business Architecture has long been seen within business but has often been informal and an outcome from business operations rather than a benchmark and definer for process improvement. With rapid changes in ICT reorganising markets and challenging incumbents, the need for commonality operations across businesses, the supply chains, and marketplaces for business interactions makes Business Architecture increasingly important. The common set of standards, governance, frameworks, protocols, and processes for the design, operation, and management of business sees Business Architecture providing the structure against which businesses can operate and manage organisational change of knowledge worker services. Business Architecture also provides the basis for integration and automation across operations, organisations, and integration with vendors. The role of Business Architecture within knowledge worker services and the business adoption of Business Architecture are summarised in this chapter.

Like many transformative technologies, the business integration and realisation of the automation of knowledge worker services (the related analytics, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and real-time decision-making), success will come from the people who implement it and its ongoing adoption. The revision to knowledge worker services requires significant changes to the management and operation of many areas of business. Changes to ICT operations alone include revised service and support operations, variations to financial management, revised vendor management practices, enhancing workload management and processing, and greater business engagement. Beyond managing the ICT service transition are the required organisational change and revision to knowledge workers that consume the cloud-based services as well as the outcomes from automated services. The accumulative momentum from cloud computing, mobile computing, and automation, combining with Big Data and real-time decision-making is set to challenge the capacities and capabilities of businesses to respond. The right people with the required processes (frameworks) and access to the necessary information at the right time is what will meet the challenge. This chapter discusses aspects of the changes in capacities and capabilities within human capital for knowledge worker services.

The technology transformation of knowledge worker services sees increasing automation of routine operations with less knowledge workers involved in direct operations (“Run the Business”) and with revised skill sets, but also with more knowledge workers involved in managing the business (“Change the Business”) requiring different skill sets. Both in “Run the Business” and “Change the Business”, knowledge workers require higher skill sets than in current routine operations. Making this transition requires capacity and capability building, including both skilling (ability to do) and training (how to do) for existing staff and new hires. Big Data, analytics, real-time decision-making using artificial intelligence, and machine learning form Analytics as a Service (AaaS) that is not only transforming the roles of knowledge workers but is part of the capacity and capability building for knowledge worker transformations and is reviewed in this chapter.

As rapid changes in ICT drive organisations to create new products and services, to lower costs, and revise business operations, the need for businesses to respond in a managed way whilst sustaining current operations is placing increasing demands on the Organisational Change Management (OCM) capacities and capabilities within organisations. Businesses require a consolidated approach to OCM that enables them to be responsive, flexible, and adaptive. Businesses need to maintain profitability while being able to respond fast enough. Managing the risks of business transformation while assuring both current and future services is also required. It is the actions of individuals that form an emergent behaviour and environment for knowledge worker services automation through which transformation occurs. This chapter provides a consolidated approach to Organisational Change Management in response to rapid changes in ICT like artificial intelligence.

Cloud services are transforming the roles of knowledge workers and the ICT Operations and Services that support knowledge workers. Changes to ICT governance, architecture, management, and operations are all occurring. ICT is becoming more complex with increased risk from vendor management, public and private cloud management, and management of legacy systems across outsourcers, vendors, and in-house resources. ICT Operations and Services are transitioning from a “physical device focus” to a “virtual focus” with the management of complex interconnected role-based datasets across platforms, suppliers, and sources. Consequently, the risk profile of ICT to a business is increasing. The changes in ICT Operations and Services occurring from the adoption of cloud services are reviewed in this chapter.

The rapid changes in technology and the required organisational change are challenging the capacity and capability of an organisation to successfully deliver business-integrated technology transformation projects (projects, programs, and portfolios). Being able to respond fast enough, whilst managing the risks of change, and assuring both current and future services place a premium on the ability to manage projects around the ongoing operations and service delivery of a business. In addition, the alignment to strategy, allocation of resources, securing funds, managing delivery, integration into services, supporting operations, stakeholder engagement, customer engagement, regulatory needs, and working with suppliers are all aspects to be managed as knowledge worker services are automated. The role of project management (projects, programs, and portfolios) within knowledge worker service transformation is reviewed in this chapter along with the provision of Project Management as a Service (PMaaS) out of the cloud as part of the capacity and capability of an organisation to undergo transformation.