Building a Structured Path to Success

Neeraj Vijay is a growth-focused Chief Information Officer, a digital innovator, and a lean startup coach with more than two decades of experience in IT. With hisvisionary and collaborative leadership approach tolead large-scale transformations from legacy to modern technologies, Neeraj has beenenabling business growth in the industrial manufacturing and energy sectors. He currently serves as Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer at onsemi.

Please share with our readers your career journey and current roles and responsibilities.

I got a lot of firsthandcross functional learning during my early consulting and functional rolesandreceived fantastic leadership mentoring during my 8-year tenure at GE. I joined onsemi about two years ago andcurrently manage all aspects of IT and Operational Technology to keep the business running smoothly and support the rapid growth of the company. onsemi’s primary focus is on intelligent power and sensing technologies forthe automotive and industrial sectors.In automotivefor example, we manufacture power management chips forelectric vehicles and sensing technology to enableadvanced safety and autonomous driving capabilities.

What makes our business unique is the distinct blend of legacy productsand rapidly growing segments of cutting-edge technologies. To support this business strategy,we needed a robust digital platform that not only efficiently runs our current operations but also enables innovation to accelerate the growth of the company.

What are some of the best practices you employ to build and expand the company?

We are challenging our traditional way of doing things in order to enable business growth for the company. For example, our IT organization is structured around the concept of the Digital Thread, in which there are a set of teams aligned to specific end-to-end business processes such as lead-to-cash or idea to market. Each team have aDigital Thread leader responsible for aligning people, process, technology, and data to help respective business / functional leaders achieve their respective goals.This ensures a cohesive approach of utilizing technology to drive outcomes for the functions that align with broader company and IT goals.

To improve productivity and efficiency, the Digital Thread concept is supported by a common framework that encompasses the four pillars of people, processes, technology, and data, allowing us to unify diverse aspects such as engineering, operations, or customer service.

The Digital Thread framework requires hiring, upskilling, and managing talent differently and redefining ITleadership growth beyond the traditional hierarchical structures. Instead of adhering to the conventional managertosenior manager to director progression, we have shifted to leadership roles based on span and ability to create impact across the organization.

What are some of the changes you noticed after adopting Digital Thread

Let me provide you with two stark examples, starting with the fundamental process of employee onboarding. When a new team member joins the company, they should have access to relevant HR employee benefits information, IT tools and systems, and ability to get a clear understanding of the policies, essential for their success in the initial 30 days. This seemingly straight forward process involves the coordination among seven distinct teams, multiple disparate systems and fragmented data elements makingthe original onboarding experience less than ideal.

To address this, we are developing a Digital Thread for “onboarding” by aligning people, process, technology and data under a common framework.

After more than two decades of IT leadership atrenowned Fortune 500 companies like GE and nimble consulting firms, it is evident that alignment among functions and the dismantling silos cannot be achieved withtechnology alone.Hence, Ifollow a structured approach of Digital Thread framework can ensuresuccessful outcomes.This structured framework must transform all 4 aspects of people, process, technology, and data in synchrony.

We are implementing the digital thread across all the processes, from lead generation to cash acquisition. It covers registering a lead from a trade show, converting itinto an order, progressing through fulfillment planning systems, and culminating in securing payment from the customer. By implementing a holistic approach, we are aligning the operating model (people) on a streamline end to end process linked across various IT systems with digital thread framework.

What is your piece of advice to your fellow peers?

My journey towards embracing the concept of the Digital Thread wasn't overnight. I realized on multiple occasions; technology investments were failing to deliver expected outcomes.

After more than two decades of IT leadership at renowned Fortune 500 companies like GE and nimble consulting firms, it is evident that alignment among functions and the dismantling silos cannot be achieved with technology alone. Hence, I follow a structured approach of Digital Thread framework can ensure successful outcomes. This structured framework must transform all 4 aspects of people, process, technology, and data in synchrony.

I would recommend to my peers to explore creating a framework which compels an organization to prioritize and align 4 key aspects (people, process, technology and data) in tandem and this will significantly enhance the probability of achieving the expected business outcomes at rapid pace.