OREANDA-NEWS. March 24, 2016. Digital transformation is a necessity - no matter if you are a small business or a large enterprise - you want to ensure your organization is able to leverage all technologies to their fullest potential while being nimble and cost effective. In a recent study, IDC predicted that by 2017, 80% of global CIOs will initiate a data transformation and governance framework to turn information into a competitive business differentiator but, that by 2018, 70% of siloed digital transformation initiatives will ultimately fail because of insufficient collaboration, integration, sourcing or project management.1  

Whether you are a CIO, VP of Sales, Head of Operations or an IT Manager, you want to enable your organization to be able to innovate, transform and evolve to meet the changing business demands. It’s imperative- not only that your teams have the right tools but  also the right processes that will empower them to deliver change at the pace your business demands.  For example, if the technical platform you choose is the car, processes are the horsepower in the engine that determine how fast you can achieve your vision. The first step to building those processes is defining and developing a solid governance model.

Governance is not about being reactive - it is not a simplistic prioritization exercise. Business and IT play a critical role in achieving key goals - be it productivity gains or operating cost reductions. Here are some key considerations to developing a governance model that will both enable and propel strategic alignment to key business goals within your organization:

1. Identify strategic impact: Develop a clear business case that ties into big picture company goals. Position the projects not as an expenditure, but as an investment that will carry your business into the future.

2. A Governance Structure is a collaboration between Business and IT. Involve line of business owners: Involve key business leaders. For example,get you sales leader to own the project to revamp the forecasting system or get input from your customer service leader to redesign the agent console. This not only minimizes time to value, but also ensures you are constantly checking the pulse of business needs and delivering value.

3. Develop proof of concept: Build prototypes or wireframes to get feedback on an iterative basis versus realizing the approach was completely missed after getting deep into the project.

4. Analyze and assess: Maintain scorecards that give you as well as all stakeholders visibility into progress. Tracking key metrics will also help you course correct, if needed, in advance of major roadblocks - effectively minimizing risks.

5. Evolve and enhance:  Learn from previous projects and clearly define the best practices for development, testing, change management and maintenance. Create repeatable and sustainable processes so your teams are able to churn out new features and functionality without reinventing the wheel.

Governance and change management can be challenging and confusing. But, what some call chaos, we call opportunity. At Salesforce, we have worked closely with a multitude of customers and helped them get agile and develop cutting edge technology. Based on over seventeen years of experience and through interactions with over 150,000 customers - we have developed a solid repository of governance best practices and approaches that you can leverage through Accelerators.

Accelerators are fast, focused engagements with certified Specialists who will provide best practices, guidance and hands-on support to help you reach your goals. Here are some examples of governance related Accelerators that will get you and your team up and running quickly:

1. Introduction to governance: Develop a governance framework to more effectively manage your Salesforce solution. Our specialists will provide insights from thousands of successful deployments to help you draft a governance charter tailored to your business objectives.

2. Org strategy design: Create a Salesforce organization strategy to minimize complexity and ensure scalability for your business. Our specialists will work with you to produce a high-level strategy and migration plan (if needed) based on your company’s culture and business drivers.

3. Design a center of excellence: Together with our specialists, you’ll create 30-, 60-, or 90‑day implementation plans for a Salesforce Center of Excellence framework to address challenges such as minimizing risk, managing complexity, and aligning projects to strategic organizational goals.

4. Salesforce architecture assessment: Ensure maximum value from your overall architecture strategy. Our experts can quickly evaluate your Salesforce deployment and provide best-practice recommendations to improve your architecture, strategy, governance, and security.

Interested in hearing from Salesforce Governance experts on Salesforce Governance best practices and how Accelerators could help you achieve your goals faster? Join our webinar.

Have questions about Accelerators? Get a quick overview of our extensive portfolio here.