Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Mind your intranet...
Those of you that regard intranets as a technical issue should read Dr. Jennifer Stone Gonzalez�s book called "The 21st Century Intranet." I, myself, have always argued that the intranets I encounter as a consultant seem to miss the point all the time.
IT auditors will generally agree with me that most companies� intranets were built by the IT department with little participation from the rest of the company. These intranets all seem to miss the point. To become a successful communication tool, an intranet should be the work of the whole company and grow, as shown in Exhibit A, from a structured Organization Chart to the so-called "Networked Enterprise." In other words, it needs to grow from a hierarchy-driven model to a cellular one.
The success of intranets throughout the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries has prompted many companies in desperate search for intranet solutions. Luckily, not only the "Fortune 1000" companies can afford intranets � there are many off-the-shelf intranet packages that are both affordable and relatively easy to install.
Traditional Organization Charts are therefore structured as shown in Exhibit A.
EXHIBIT A
Such organization charts reflect a management model on the way out. Such a hierarchical management style is unsuitable for the new Internet economy. Successful Internet companies typically operate successfully by empowering their employees to make decisions and take actions. Slowly, traditional hierarchical environments are being replaced by new, networked environments.
This concept of a company represented by a network of connected cells requires an intranet implementation of a completely different nature, as Dr. Jennifer Stone Gonzalez proves in her interesting book. She explains that the organization of the 21st century will require a different intranet paradigm: one created by moving the whole company in a new direction. This can only be achieved by involving all the cells in a company � official and unofficial. At least one or two promoters of the new intranet ways must get the others in their cells to participate in creating content, rather than disseminating information using the traditional top-down approach. The new network model enables employees to participate in problem solving and to generate business opportunities, regardless of their rank or position in the organization.
(For more information, see Dr. Jennifer Stone Gonzalez�s website at http://www.luminella.com, and read the "Intranet Development Roadmap" article summarized from the book at http://www.builder.com/Business/Intramap/index.html.)
The new organizational model, promoted by the development of a successful intranet, will look as follows in Exhibit B:
EXHIBIT B
The objective here is to achieve this change without a major upset in the organization. This type of networked environment enables the organization to evolve slowly but surely to a more dynamic structure.
How can this be achieved while avoiding dramatic changes in the organization? In my opinion, the intranet must become the agent of change. Many organizations have already accomplished this by using the following graphical model shown in Exhibit C:
EXHIBIT C
The Path
This model develops from the very "converts" from each original cell. They are the messengers who promote the use of the intranet. They make their cells dynamic and get more people involved in order to promote a "quiet revolution" in their companies.
How does it work?
Normally, an outside consultant, is brought in to help. He/she must have top management�s support and the help of the Human Resources Department.
The next steps involve discovering the real communication paths of the company, not only those derived from the existing organizational chart. To be successful, the intranet must become used by all, formal and informal, working cells.
The result is a cellular company that should become more responsive to change.
What should be the role of IT Auditors in these environments?
The auditor�s role certainly must not be one of alarming management with the risk factors of such a new network � although the risks are indeed plenty:
Communication flows freely from secure departments to open areas of the company.
Everyone handles critical information, and not always properly.
HTML files can be moved to the Internet or to a disk in seconds and are merely a few bytes in size.
An optical copy could carry the whole know-how outside the company.
IT auditors must be resourceful in proposing document handling methods that become normal practice at the cell level, allowing everyone to become conversant with them, and avoiding major breaches of security. They must do all this without interfering with the new organization.
We must all become familiar with this form of cellular working. The networked enterprise of the next millennium will not maintain the present structure and consequently, auditing must reflect a new paradigm. Guaranteeing free flow of information but avoiding massive breaches of security.
Not an easy task!
IT auditors will generally agree with me that most companies� intranets were built by the IT department with little participation from the rest of the company. These intranets all seem to miss the point. To become a successful communication tool, an intranet should be the work of the whole company and grow, as shown in Exhibit A, from a structured Organization Chart to the so-called "Networked Enterprise." In other words, it needs to grow from a hierarchy-driven model to a cellular one.
The success of intranets throughout the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries has prompted many companies in desperate search for intranet solutions. Luckily, not only the "Fortune 1000" companies can afford intranets � there are many off-the-shelf intranet packages that are both affordable and relatively easy to install.
Traditional Organization Charts are therefore structured as shown in Exhibit A.
EXHIBIT A
Such organization charts reflect a management model on the way out. Such a hierarchical management style is unsuitable for the new Internet economy. Successful Internet companies typically operate successfully by empowering their employees to make decisions and take actions. Slowly, traditional hierarchical environments are being replaced by new, networked environments.
This concept of a company represented by a network of connected cells requires an intranet implementation of a completely different nature, as Dr. Jennifer Stone Gonzalez proves in her interesting book. She explains that the organization of the 21st century will require a different intranet paradigm: one created by moving the whole company in a new direction. This can only be achieved by involving all the cells in a company � official and unofficial. At least one or two promoters of the new intranet ways must get the others in their cells to participate in creating content, rather than disseminating information using the traditional top-down approach. The new network model enables employees to participate in problem solving and to generate business opportunities, regardless of their rank or position in the organization.
(For more information, see Dr. Jennifer Stone Gonzalez�s website at http://www.luminella.com, and read the "Intranet Development Roadmap" article summarized from the book at http://www.builder.com/Business/Intramap/index.html.)
The new organizational model, promoted by the development of a successful intranet, will look as follows in Exhibit B:
EXHIBIT B
The objective here is to achieve this change without a major upset in the organization. This type of networked environment enables the organization to evolve slowly but surely to a more dynamic structure.
How can this be achieved while avoiding dramatic changes in the organization? In my opinion, the intranet must become the agent of change. Many organizations have already accomplished this by using the following graphical model shown in Exhibit C:
EXHIBIT C
The Path
This model develops from the very "converts" from each original cell. They are the messengers who promote the use of the intranet. They make their cells dynamic and get more people involved in order to promote a "quiet revolution" in their companies.
How does it work?
Normally, an outside consultant, is brought in to help. He/she must have top management�s support and the help of the Human Resources Department.
The next steps involve discovering the real communication paths of the company, not only those derived from the existing organizational chart. To be successful, the intranet must become used by all, formal and informal, working cells.
The result is a cellular company that should become more responsive to change.
What should be the role of IT Auditors in these environments?
The auditor�s role certainly must not be one of alarming management with the risk factors of such a new network � although the risks are indeed plenty:
Communication flows freely from secure departments to open areas of the company.
Everyone handles critical information, and not always properly.
HTML files can be moved to the Internet or to a disk in seconds and are merely a few bytes in size.
An optical copy could carry the whole know-how outside the company.
IT auditors must be resourceful in proposing document handling methods that become normal practice at the cell level, allowing everyone to become conversant with them, and avoiding major breaches of security. They must do all this without interfering with the new organization.
We must all become familiar with this form of cellular working. The networked enterprise of the next millennium will not maintain the present structure and consequently, auditing must reflect a new paradigm. Guaranteeing free flow of information but avoiding massive breaches of security.
Not an easy task!
# posted by Rodolfo @ 3:23 PM 
