IT Support

IT Plans and Architectures

Developing sound Information Technology (IT) infrastructures requires solid planning and execution. Business needs often require that existing technology be updated to meet growing demands or to take advantage of Internet opportunities. An IT plan provides a practical blueprint for describing how technology can evolve to meet these business requirements.

Our IT plans will typically result in recommended "Architectures". An IT architecture provides a target set of standards and methods to be used in executing the plan.

IT plans can be concise or extensive, depending on the degree to which the existing IT environment is meeting business needs, and the level of detail required in the reports:

• Concise, practical plans are ideally suited for companies that want advice on how a specific technology can help their business. Often smaller companies that want suggestions on how to take advantage of the Internet will request this type of IT plan.
• More extensive plans are often developed for enterprises that need more strategic advice or have a need to make wholesale changes to their technical environment.
  

We offer IT plan development services using a team approach. Our consultants have expertise in business area analysis, data modeling, application architectures, technical architectures, IT operations management and Internet technologies.

These services are delivered as part of an IT planning project, with client involvement and participation being key to the success of the plan.

Technology North's IT plans are typically delivered within one of three types of planning projects:

• Strategic Planning Projects offer decision-makers a long-term and often conceptual view of how IT can meet business needs. Goals are set based on the needs of the organization in two to three years, then IT strategies are developed to meet those goals. Our strategic plans also include "quick hit" and interim recommendations towards the implementation of long-term solutions.
• Information Technology Architectures Projects provide both conceptual and practical frameworks for implementing "foundation" technologies. Architectures can be developed for applications, databases, servers, network and even workstations, depending on the standards that need to be developed.
• Tactical Planning Projects provide shorter term plans that are often focused more on a specific business need for technology. A good example of a tactical plan is one that could be developed for Internet integration. This type of plan would provide a number of details around the what functions the web site will perform, how Internet transactions will be integrated with existing systems, what data will be made available online, how security needs will be met, etc.
  

In addition, research activities are also an important part of IT planning processes due to the changing nature of business and technology. Research can include a number of data gathering activities including web-based research, client questionnaires, analysis of industry publications, etc.

Regardless of the type of planning work performed, TN consultants focus on the practical and measurable aspects in their IT designs. To this end, our IT plans result in ‘do-able’ solutions for meeting business area needs. These recommendations must meet the organization's need for interoperability, integration, scalability, security, and performance.

TN also offers value to its IT planning assignments by advising clients to focus on the results of the plan. Emphasizing how a plan will be carried out and who will be responsible for its implementation helps to increase the success of the projects that follow.