New research from The Access Group finds that 35% of UK workers admit to using generative AI without telling their managers. As employee use of AI is on the upswing, many organizations are still developing their plans for how to govern its use. Shadow AI is quickly becoming a challenge for many IT teams.
Shadow IT isn’t a new concept. The rapid evolution of SaaS technology has created technology sprawl within organizations as employees turn to tech tools to support their day-to-day work. IT is often out of the loop on technology being used within their organizations, so what options do they have to govern new technology, including AI and the risks that come with it? The answer lies in making it easier for employees to bring new technology into the organization with IT’s involvement.
The root cause of shadow IT
There are numerous reasons why employees choose to bring unauthorized technology into their organizations. In the UK, hybrid working models, easy access to cloud services, and the evolution of AI have meant shadow IT has become a major concern for businesses. Some employees may also opt to bring in their own technology because they are too busy or are concerned that they will be bothering IT if they go through the proper channels. Regardless of the reason, the root cause of shadow IT adoption is tied to inefficient and perhaps, broken processes.
But the responsibility doesn’t solely rest with employees. For example, if an employee does follow the process to submit a technology request but it is delayed or goes unnoticed by the IT team, they’re also likely to turn to shadow IT. In this scenario, not only do organizations open themselves up to security concerns around unauthorized software, but it also strains IT teams and wastes time for employees’ working requests.
The key to improving IT processes
Far too often, inefficient processes exist because they are manual and disconnected. Businesses don’t know where the breakdown is because they have no visibility into the end-to-end process, data isn’t shared between the people and systems it should be, and the user experience is riddled with challenges. This is where process automation comes into play.
That statement may seem like a given, especially in the context of IT processes. But unfortunately, many companies struggle to automate their processes, including IT processes. The reasons vary, including manual processes being intricate and difficult to automate, legacy systems lacking the integrations needed to automate, and more.
Following a simple framework for automation can help most organizations overcome these challenges:
- Identify where automation can be helpful and applied
- Automate those processes with low-code tools
- Scale adoption of new processes through modern, easy-to-use user interfaces
By following this framework, organizations can speed up the fulfillment of new IT requests and curb shadow IT use. Here are a few examples: Map the IT fulfillment process – Get an end-to-end view of each step in the fulfillment process to visualize where bottlenecks and inefficiencies occur. Common bottlenecks occur around assigning requests and leaving reviews in the pending stage.
Enhance experience and scale engagement – It’s also important to look at the user experience to ensure it has low barriers to entry. How are employees submitting their requests to the modernized process? By leveraging low-code application development tools, you can create an intake form for employees that’s digital and intuitive to use.
Automate bottlenecks – Once you’ve identified where inefficiencies are in the process and modernized the user experience, apply automation to streamline the sticking points. For example, automation can help you avoid requests being stuck in the “assignment” stage by automatically assigning requests to the appropriate team or team member. It’s important to note that automated processes can succeed with a “set it and forget it” mindset. Continual monitoring and improvement are needed to ensure that the process functions properly.
The rapid evolution of technologies like AI will only exacerbate the shadow IT challenge. That’s why organizations must modernize their IT processes today to avoid further shadow IT creep and prevent future security risks. End-to-end process automation is key to understanding where IT processes are breaking down, applying automation, and scaling new processes for maximum engagement – all while reducing the need for employees to turn to shadow IT for their technology needs.
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