August 2025
Navigating IT Operating Models: Finding a path through the digital city
In the bustling metropolis of your digital estate, your IT Operating Model is like the city plan that guides how everything runs - from the streets and buildings to parks and public services. It's the master blueprint decided by the city's architects, often the Chief Information Officer or Chief Digital Officer, who figure out the best ways to make the city livable, efficient, and ready for the future. This article discusses what an IT Operating Model is, some different types, and some concepts that might help you when thinking about what operating model makes sense for you.
Key takeaways
IT Operating Models are like a game plan for how your IT team helps your business succeed.
Making small, steady improvements to your IT setup is the best way to keep things running smoothly.
There are no right or wrong ‘models’, and most agencies will have combinations of various concepts in various states of evolution.
Mindset shifts can lead to big wins in making your IT teams more agile and better aligned with business goals.
What is an IT Operating Model?
An IT Operating Model is essentially a blueprint that shows how the IT department operates. It covers things like how IT teams work together, how technology is used to support business areas, and how IT projects are managed. Think of it as the playbook that defines how IT helps the business achieve its goals.
Understanding IT Operating Models can be tough because there's no one-size-fits-all definition, and it involves abstract ideas that span across technical, organisational, and strategic aspects. It’s complex because we need to understand how processes, technology, and people interlink and function cohesively to support business objectives. Depending who you ask, an IT Operating Model can cover everything from the small technical details to big strategic plans. In the next section we’ve tried to make this a bit clearer by explaining what we find are core components of an IT Operating Model.
Things that make up an IT Operating Model
We think of an IT Operating Model as a representation of how an IT shop is organised, how staff collaborate and how people behave. It articulates the people, process and management constructs that enable delivery of value. There is no agreed definition of what is or isn’t in an operating model. We’ve found however there are a few things that tend to be important when talking about IT Operating Models in government agencies.
Interactions
It's about making sure everyone in IT knows who does what, who they report to, and how they fit into the team. Keeping things clear helps everyone work better together.
Organisation Design
This is how we all get along, both within the IT team and with others in the company. A good setup means we can share ideas easily and work smoothly with everyone.
Delivery
We're talking about how we get things done, especially using agile and DevOps. These are ways of working that help us deliver faster and keep improving what we offer.
Performance
It’s important to check how we're doing. Using goals (like OKRs) and keeping an eye on our progress helps us stay on track and get better over time.
Funding
Money matters. We need to make sure IT projects and business as usual are well-funded and managed right, so we have what we need to do a great job.
Workforce
Having the right people on board is key. This means planning our team structure, hiring the right talent, and making sure everyone’s skills are up-to-date.
Sourcing
Sometimes we need help from outside the team. Deciding when to do things ourselves and when to get help, plus managing those outside relationships, is a big part of making IT work well.
Culture
What we stand for in IT affects everything we do. We want a culture where everyone is encouraged to share ideas, support each other, and work towards common goals.
Taking steps to improve these areas bit by bit can make a huge difference. It's not about big bang changes all at once, but making small adjustments that add up to a better way of working in IT.
IT Operating Model — Concepts and Principles
No matter which IT Operating Model you choose, it's driven by specific ideas and principles. Think of these as the big "why" behind your model – they shape why your IT works the way it does and what you hope to accomplish. In simple terms, if the model is your game plan, the concepts are your team's mission statement. They will illustrate your goals like better efficiency, more innovation, or improved customer service. Your unique goals or philosophy might draw you to mix and match elements from different models. It's all about aligning with your organisation's values and vision, using these guiding concepts to inform how you put your IT Operating Model into action.
Different IT Operating Models
Now, back to our city analogy. Let's take a stroll through the neighbourhoods of IT Operating Models and discover which part of the city suits the vibe of your organisation.
The Centralised Model: Downtown Core
The city has a downtown skyscraper where all the big decisions are made. It's where the council sits and manages everything from one place. It's great because everything's consistent and under control, but sometimes, it can be a bit slow in getting things done, especially in the far-off suburbs.
Pros: Uniformity and economies of scale make management a breeze.
Cons: Flexibility and speed take a back seat, and the skyscraper might not always listen to the folks on the ground.
Shines in: Organisations craving stability and control over their IT landscape.
The Decentralised Model: The Suburbs
Here, every neighbourhood has its own rules and manages its own affairs. It's fantastic for quick fixes and local flavour, but without a city-wide plan, you might end up with some messy overlaps, duplications, or gaps.
Pros: Agility and customisation in local neighbourhoods.
Cons: Risk of duplicating efforts, architectural mishaps, and rogue business areas creating cyber risks.
Shines in: Dynamic and mature environments where departments need to move quickly and innovate.
The Plan-Build-Run Model: City Development Phases
This is the traditional way cities grow - first, plan out the area, then build the infrastructure and buildings, and finally, keep the city running smoothly. It's straightforward but lacks agility, and misses the chance for quick wins once the city is up and running.
Pros: Easy to understand.
Cons: Slow and encourages waterfall approaches.
Shines in: Anywhere there is a need for tighter control, or where there is less agile and devops maturity.
The Broker-Integrator-Orchestrator Model: The City Market
Think of this as the bustling marketplace where goods from the outside and inside come together to be bought and sold. It's about making sure all these different stalls work well together to serve the citizens, though it takes a skilled market manager to keep things in order.
Pros: Flexibility and integration of different services.
Cons: Seems difficult for people to understand and implement. Inherent complexity in management and potential for service overlaps.
Shines in: Organisations leveraging a mix of external and internal services with good understanding of the concept.
The Bi-Modal / 2-Speed IT Model: The Dual-Zone CIty
Imagine a city that has two distinct zones: the Old Town and Innovation District. The Old Town operates on well established rules and routines, ensuring stability and reliability in essential services. It's the part of the city that keeps the lights on and the trains running on time, sticking to proven methods to maintain order. On the flip side, the Innovation District thrives on speed and creativity, rapidly developing new technologies and ideas to meet changing needs. This zone is all about experimenting and adapting quickly, without the constraints of the Old Town.
Pros: Can offer the best of both worlds - stability where it's needed, and agility to innovate and adapt.
Cons: Managing two different speeds can be challenging, requiring clear communication and coordination to avoid conflicts and people feeling left behind.
Shines in: Organisations that need a solid foundation for critical operations but also want to rapidly evolve and adopt new technologies in less critical areas.
The Platform Model: The Public Square
This is like the open spaces in the city where anyone can come to share ideas, build things together, and create something new for everyone's benefit. It encourages sharing and innovation but needs careful planning and upkeep to remain useful and inviting.
Pros: Promotes reuse, speed, and innovation through common foundations.
Cons: Requires commitment and product management thinking to maintain and evolve platforms.
Shines in: Organisations aiming to foster collaboration and rapid development across teams.
Value Streams: The City's Lifelines
Imagine the city's waterways and roads that deliver what's needed right to where it's most needed, without any unnecessary detours. It's about making sure everything flows smoothly to get value to the citizens efficiently.
Pros: Alignment with customer value, where IT staff are closer to the end user.
Cons: Getting business/policy and IT working together under aligned structures can be challenging in government agencies.
Shines in: Progressive and flexible environment with a strong customer focus.
Enterprise Agile: The Agile City
This city is always ready to adapt and change, with neighbourhoods quickly adjusting to meet the citizens' needs. It's built on teamwork, feedback, and the idea that the city can always improve to make life better for its people.
Pros: Business and IT working in agile harmony together.
Cons: Agile principles often get overshadowed by heavyweight scaled agile approaches that don’t deliver on the promise, and lead to waterfall in disguise.
Shines in: Organisations with executive ambition to embrace agile holistically.
Choosing Your Lifestyle
Every city (and IT Operating Model) has its unique charm and challenges. The reality is that most government organisations contain aspects of multiple operating models. This can be ok as a deliberate strategy, but often it's the result of organic and unplanned evolution. The trick is finding the right fit for your organisation's goals, culture, and the way you want to work. Whether you're drawn to the efficient control of the Downtown Core, the innovative spirit of the Public Square, or somewhere in between, your choice will shape how your organisation navigates the digital landscape.
A great and practical place to start is to make an evaluation of your existing operations. Is it aligned with where you want to be? Does it align with your technology philosophy? As you are thinking about what models and concepts might apply to you, consider:
Alignment with business goals: Your model should support the organisation's strategic objectives.
Flexibility and scalability: Consider how well the model can adapt to future changes.
Efficiency vs. innovation: Balance the need for operational efficiency with the desire for innovation.
Cultural fit: Ensure the model aligns with your organisation's culture and values.
In the end, the goal is to build a digital city where your organisation can thrive, innovate, and deliver value to its citizens, no matter which neighbourhood you choose to call home.
