The technology is converging -- do I need to converge my departmental structure as well?

The technology is converging -- do I need to converge my departmental structure as well?

The technology is converging -- do I need to converge my departmental structure as well? It seems inefficient to not have these skill sets under the same umbrella. What might a combined organization look like?

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That is certainly a company decision, however, more and more companies are doing just that. The largest reason for a converged department is to assure a better working relationship between facilities and systems both from a personnel standpoint as well as a budgetary standpoint. Companies are realizing that with separate budgets, often one budget is sacrificed for the sake of another. For instance, facilities may put in marginal or minimal power, cooling and cabling not completely understanding the technical direction, but trying to stay within budget. The electronics needed will, obviously, alter these needs. Some electronics are designed to run over older facilities, but at a much higher price. If they must live with existing facilities, the equipment may be significantly higher, which means in turn, maintenance and day two costs are much higher.

A converged department would still look roughly the same on paper, but the top reports may change. Your facilities group may not be used to reporting into a CIO, but in a converged organization, that is what they will look like. One mistake that some companies make is doing away with the facilities group entirely after convergence and outsourcing that department. In this scenario, it is imperative to select a business partner to perform the services through a multi-year bid contract instead of on a project basis so that it is easier to retain control of project related work and moves, adds and changes. It is much easier to move a VoIP phone than an old extension that would require a physical punch down change, so there will be some less work. However, newer electronics change heating, cooling and power needs and someone needs to be able to address these needs with networking BEFORE the projects start to assure the best combination of performance and price from date of purchase through retirement. Whichever way you chose to go, technically or logically converging the departments will be in the best interest of the company. The advantage of the actually converging them provides for a final "go to" person that can have the final say in the company's best interest, not just a department's best interest regarding budget.

This was first published in December 2005