Conquering Complex Data & Systems Modernizations (Part One): The Power of Holistic Planning

In a time when technology evolves at a breakneck pace, government agencies are under immense pressure to modernize their systems to keep up with operational demands, evolving workforce needs, and the expectations of the communities they serve. Embarking on a systems modernization effort, however, is a significant undertaking that requires meticulous planning, strategic vision, and a comprehensive understanding of the organization’s current landscape and capabilities.

To optimize operations, empower people, and design the most effective technology solutions, it is essential to approach modernization with a deep knowledge of the needs and perspectives of impacted stakeholders, the intricacies of existing workflows, and the systems and tools that enable them.  

In this blog, North Highland public sector experts outline what they’ve learned through years of experience partnering with agencies and organizations to modernize systems. You’ll discover:

1. Critical planning phase landmines that derail projects - and how to avoid them
2. Why a razor-sharp current-state analysis is your secret weapon for system-focused procurement success
3. Proven strategies that we help clients employ to plan, execute, and sustain transformative systems modernization initiatives
   
   

Current approaches and common traps in systems modernization planning

Embarking on a systems modernization journey in a government agency is a complex undertaking. You might have felt that initial rush of excitement when the funding came through and you received the green light to replace those aging, failing systems. Despite the initial excitement, however, this enthusiasm often gives way to a narrow focus on meeting technical requirements and rushing to implement new systems quickly, while also juggling continuous urgent and emergent needs. Have you felt these pressures to implement new systems as quickly as possible before?

While this approach might be tempting to meet your agency's urgent and evolving needs, find a moment to pause. Now zoom out. Consider your current mission and your vision for the future. Do you have a deep enough understanding of the people and processes this new technology is meant to empower?

North Highland is unwavering in our perspective that tools and technology should be designed to meet people’s needs, not the other way around.  

Consider this real-world example: A state agency needed to modernize its outdated IT systems. In a rush to get the job done, they were focused primarily on finding the newest technology at the lowest price. However, they didn't take the time to thoroughly understand their business and workforce needs first. As a result, the agency built a cutting-edge system with a fresh look and feel, but it didn't meet the needs of its staff. The new system failed to account for existing business processes, emerging requirements, policy changes, and opportunities for continuous improvement. Employees struggled to adapt to the new system, leading to decreased productivity and widespread frustration. The agency faced significant backlash due to poor user adoption. In the end, the agency had to invest additional time and resources to better understand user needs, reconfigure the system, and refresh its processes. This dampened and delayed the intended benefits of the modernization effort.

This scenario highlights the critical need for government agencies and organizations to balance technical requirements with a thorough understanding of their people, processes, and future-state vision.

So, where do you begin? Let’s dive in.

Know before you buy: Conducting a robust current-state analysis

As a thoughtful steward of public funds, you’re aware just how vital it is for government agencies to plan and execute this work in a way that maximizes investment returns and ensures both success and sustainability. To achieve this, your agency needs a thorough understanding of its people and business needs before investing in a technology solution. This understanding is crucial if you want the new system to seamlessly integrate with your core functions, optimize processes, and empower your teams.

The logic is simple: By deeply understanding the complexities and needs of your people, processes, and business, your modernization efforts can more successfully serve them.

You’re in a position to make a difference. Prior to system procurement, you can prioritize a deep discovery of your current state, collect feedback and perspectives from relevant groups, and rigorously document business processes and needs. 

In partnership with North Highland, this deep discovery involves:

• Strategy and vision alignment. You will develop a future-state vision and shared goals for systems modernization and operational excellence. Understanding your current state and defining your future-state vision are crucial to strategically planning your modernization efforts, selecting the optimal solution, and gaining alignment on investments in new technology.
• Early input and diverse perspectives. You will identify and engage diverse groups early and often. Through stakeholder interviews, focus groups, and surveys, you can regularly gather quantitative and qualitative data, identify hidden needs, and use tools powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI) to uncover sentiments related to your current-state mission and future-state vision.  
• Current-state capabilities and gap analysis. You will conduct a deep analysis of your teams’ current ways of working, business processes, operational health, and organizational capabilities. This is a powerful way to identify strengths, gaps, and opportunities for continuous improvement within and across bodies of work in your organization.
• Change impact and readiness assessments. You will assess your organization’s current attributes and the changes your modernization efforts will bring to spot potential disruptions, allow for proactive mitigation, enhance engagement, tailor training and support plans, and optimize resource allocation. All of this leads to a smoother transformation process.

As you emerge from this discovery process, you now have a comprehensive understanding and panoramic view of your agency's needs. Picture yourself on-site, surrounded by your leadership teams and staff members. Together, you can now build stronger business cases that get to the heart of your staff and customer's needs. You now have data and the depth of knowledge to inform solid financial justifications for your systems modernization goals. Your teams now feel equipped with a broader understanding of your agency's needs beyond their own roles, daily obligations, and existing silos. Your leadership team now has a clearer vision for improving operations and workforce capabilities, and more. With this improved starting point, you and your teams are better positioned to meet your modernization goals and bring your future-state vision to life.

Proven planning strategies for systems modernization success

With the discovery stage complete, funding secured, and an official directive to replace your agency’s aging systems, you and your team are likely eager to begin procuring a new solution. At this critical juncture, you might be considering who to turn to for guidance. 

For decades, North Highland has partnered with organizations at this very stage. And, in the last five years, our teams have been immersed in complex systems modernization initiatives across the U.S. and all major industries. Our proven approach has helped clients:

• Keep people at the heart. As we’ve emphasized here, this transformation is about more than swapping out old systems; it is an opportunity to optimize your entire organization. To do that, you must prioritize your people every step of the way. We help you incorporate change management principles and practices from the start. This helps you resist the temptation to simply mirror current work processes or make assumptions about what your people need. Instead, you will actively involve your diverse workforce early in the process. Picture the insights you'll gain as you examine current practices and plan for modernization together. This is the key to adoption and sustainable change.
• Set up strong, inclusive project governance. To turn your modernization vision into a reality, you need to clearly define your expected business outcomes, project objectives, and guiding principles. This means setting up structures and collaboration frameworks that are inclusive, clearly defining roles and responsibilities, and establishing a decision-making process that your teams consistently use throughout the project. In part two here, we cover the benefits of having strong project governance and what that looks like in practice. 
• Allocate resources and assemble experts. As you think deeply about your system modernization efforts, consider the knowledge and skills you will need around you to effectively plan and execute. Beyond filling the typical roles needed for these projects, consider bringing in a Managed Services partner that understands your vision and unique needs, and can seamlessly adapt with you as they evolve. 
• Develop a strong data conversion strategy. Early in your planning, take time to assess the health of your agency’s legacy data and initiate clean-up and remediation efforts as needed. We help you determine how best to handle historical data and develop a conversion strategy in alignment with your modernization goals. Consider how Strategic Portfolio Management(SPM) could help you turn your data strategy into reality, ensuring a smooth transition to your new system. SPM can be particularly helpful in addressing common pain points for government agencies, such as scattered data sources, inconsistent data collection practices, duplicate records, outdated data retention policies, and inadequate data recovery and governance procedures. By leveraging SPM to clean up your data, remediate issues, and develop a comprehensive data conversion and migration strategy, you can significantly streamline the transition from legacy systems to your new solution.
• Make time your friend. As you develop your procurement plans and project timelines, you need sufficient time for critical activities. We help you think about the time you'll need for current-state analysis, procurement evaluations, contract negotiations, project initiation and planning, early outreach to relevant groups, and more. This helps you anticipate time-related constraints and risks, develop mitigation strategies, and build contingency plans as needed throughout the procurement and execution stages.  
• Proactively monitor and guide with feedback. Throughout this transformation, make it a priority to provide regular, clear, and actionable feedback. Remember to keep people at the heart by celebrating successes often – it's crucial for morale. As you track progress, you consistently put yourself in a position to make data-driven decisions. Be proactive in initiating conversations and implementing measures to keep your modernization efforts on track. Your active involvement can make a significant difference in your modernization’s success.
  
  

Final considerations: Mastering your systems modernization efforts

To wrap up, remember that you can master your systems modernization, no matter how complex or how quickly technology and the constant stream of urgent and emergent needs move. Your first steps are to:

• Complete a comprehensive current-state analysis prior to system procurement and center your systems modernization planning around your people and processes. 
• Engage early and regularly with relevant groups to collect diverse perspectives and input throughout your modernization efforts. 
• Anticipate risks, develop mitigation strategies, and plan for contingencies.  
• Measure progress and make data-driven decisions. 
• Balance your two timelines – immediate needs and future needs. Think about what capabilities you need from new technology to evolve with your workforce and organizational needs over time and look for solutions that are adaptable.

But what comes after planning? Check out Part Two of this series to learn how governance can make or break a systems modernization project, and the tried-and-true building blocks for a governance approach tailor-built for success. Then, discover more about North Highland’s Transformation Services and proven approaches to data and systems modernization here .