When the CTO of a large UK retailer approached us, they came with a question: "How can we deliver change faster to our online store?" It's a simple question, but to answer it effectively, we had to get deep into their business to understand the context in which they operate.
They were aware of the symptoms: it took between 3 and 6 months to deliver value from ideation compared to their competitors, who were making frequent releases. This slow time to market threatened to close the gap on their enviable number one market position.
Internally, there was recognition that they'd hit a limit of what was achievable and that something had to change. Less apparent to them was the root cause of these limitations and what they needed to do to answer the question they came to us with.
We begin most engagements with our fast but thorough Understand assessment, which is part of our Transformation through Delivery (TTD) framework.
The assessment allows us to understand the problem the client is trying to solve, the context in which they operate and the outcome they want to achieve. We deliver an ‘operational blueprint’, which includes our observations and a comprehensive set of recommendations. It also includes a now/next/later roadmap, detailing how to achieve their desired outcomes. These blueprints often include recommendations on operating models, organisational structure, people, process changes and of course, technology.
Our approach is collaborative and hands-on. With this retailer, we embedded two Principal Consultants (one of whom was me), specialising in technology, delivery and operations into their business to:
Within a number of weeks, we’d uncovered the key root causes. Some of what we found wasn’t a shock to them, but other issues were harder to see from the inside. Individually, these issues might not seem too severe, but when combined, they create an environment bound to struggle.
Our findings are mapped onto maturity models; simple but powerful visuals showing the current state across several dimensions, including people, processes, frameworks, and technology. We benchmark the results across our clients and the industries we work in. These visuals are powerful because they highlight areas that need attention. Even the least technical person can see that 1 out of 5 against ‘CI/CD’, for example, is poor, especially when benchmarked against the industry.
Based on our findings of how the business operated and how they delivered change, we produced an operational blueprint: a sequenced and prioritised view of the actions we recommended and a roadmap to set them up to deliver change faster to their online store. It gave the client a tangible plan covering 3 to 18 months, some of which they could start executing immediately, with or without us.
The next step for us and the client was to present the plan to the board to secure funding.
One of the most meaningful aspects of this engagement was sitting down with their team to collaboratively build the return on investment model. It’s not enough anymore to claim that something will ‘save time’ or ‘modernise the stack’, so we translated these into pounds and pence, so that the business could see the potential value:
These sessions were collaborative. The client had the context and sector expertise, and we brought the experience of executing what ‘good’ looks like. The result was a business case that was presented to the board which secured funding.
Looking back, one of the most important decisions we made was to share our findings and recommendations with the client as we discovered them, rather than at the end in a presentation. That early and frequent feedback loop meant they had time to digest the tougher messages, challenge us and our thinking, and start working through the implications ahead of time.
Would we do anything differently? We could bring the commercial modelling piece in even earlier next time. When the client is involved in calculating the potential value, when they’re the ones putting the numbers in, the conversation changes. It becomes more collaborative and grounded in reality, and that builds trust.
If you’re a CTO, CIO or a Product and Technology leader facing similar questions, such as how do we go faster? And how do we get more value from our teams? My advice is to:
Change will always be uncomfortable. But with the right insight, the right people, and the right plan, it's entirely possible.
Get in touch to learn more about our technology assessments in retail and other industries. Follow our author, Cameron Ramsay, for more insights.