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Keystone helps create an IT strategy with a difference
Keystone IT consultant Pete Doyle has recently completed a project to help create an IT Policy and Strategy for Intercare Distribution Services Limited. Based in Crewe, Intercare have for over 18 years provided a range of specialist transport services primarily to the NHS and the wider healthcare sector. In this time their use of IT to support their business objectives has grown, but in an ad-hoc manner, not uncommon in many SMEs. Nigel Parry, Intercare’s Founder and Managing Director, explains: "Our Information Technology has become core to our business and whilst we have some excellent IT service providers, I’ve always struggled to find the best way to document what we already have and to then ensure our IT can support our future aims and challenges."
Keystone were commissioned to define the broad content of an IT strategy but more importantly also a process for Intercare to follow to ensure the document will be kept up to date and hence moves forward with the business. "Too many strategic plans are merely a snapshot taken at a high level and then gather dust on the boardroom shelf," says Pete Doyle of Keystone. "I believe the real value comes in the planning of the IT strategy rather than in the plan itself."
To this end Keystone worked closely with Intercare and their existing service providers to firstly understand what IT was already in use by means of reviewing asset registers and existing documentation. Keystone then designed a short assessment questionnaire which Intercare senior managers completed internally with each key member of staff who used IT in any way. Typically areas for discussion and feedback included security, communication and data and reporting. This then provided a good view of what was working and what wasn’t and also where the users felt they might need further systems or solutions in the near future. The final strategy document was then completed, but with clear, regular, scheduled action plans for a range of staff to implement in order to create a process of continuous improvement for IT within Intercare.
"I’m much more confident now that our IT will support our business growth and we will not have any surprises going forward. I can budget much better for IT investment and the strategy document is also an ideal way to communicate our intentions to the whole team. I’m really delighted with Keystone’s help and certainly couldn’t have made such swift progress without them."
Pete Doyle adds: "A good example of an area which had been overlooked previously was that of Business Continuity. Intercare are now much clearer on the critical areas of business that rely on 100% availability of IT and have introduced some fault tolerance and disaster recovery procedures to ensure their high levels of customer service are maintained."