Aviation Infrastructure Corporation - IT Operating Model

The corporation has had a well-recognized position in the market for providing aviation infrastructure for many years. Due to the nature of the business, IT plays an essential role. It encompasses highly specialized IT and OT elements, as well as common corporate IT elements that are utilized in companies across other industries as well.

The CIO has started an IT operating model project to position the comprehensive IT function for the future. Competence centers should be established, economies of scale should be applied where possible, and potentials for efficiency should be identified.

These are all critical levers for the organization, as significant challenges and opportunities are waiting ahead: centralizing and renewing IT infrastructure, modernizing IT processes, introducing an up-to-date IT service management, keeping track of ever-increasing IT-security requirements, up to increasing skills and available resources to work with the business on innovation and business excellence initiatives.

The goal of the project was to develop a new target IT operating model to align with corporate strategy, realize efficiencies, and follow modern paradigms, considering the following key points in particular:

• Align with the updated corporate strategy and economic situation
• Reflect the needs and priorities of the business functions
• Understand the strengths and weaknesses of the current IT landscape, the IT operating model as well as the context of architecture, IT sourcing, the project portfolio, and business / IT alignment
• Review and discuss already collected information and ideas on the target IT operating model
• Consider the identified challenges and opportunities in centralizing and renewing IT infrastructure, modernizing IT processes, introducing IT service management, keeping track of ever-increasing IT-security requirements, up to increasing skills and available resources to work with the business on innovation and business excellence initiatives

The following approach has been taken to develop a new target IT operating model to align with corporate strategy, realize efficiencies, and follow modern paradigms:

• Settings session(s) with the CIO and the core team
• Analysis of the existing target IT operating model  draft and related key documents, as well as a briefing workshop series with the IT executives
• Development of a vision and guiding principles for the target IT operating model
• Development of an updated capabilities map and cornerstones for the IT operating model
• Workshop series on different aspects and functions of the envisioned target IT operating model with the nominated core team until consensus has been reached
• Development of an according IT governance model and a roadmap to implement the target IT operating model
• Finalization of the envisioned IT operating model with the board and relevant stakeholders

The project length for developing a new target IT operating model was approximately 6 months.