Optimization Levels

The IO Model is a continuum of four levels or phases of progressively higher technological maturity: Basic, Standardized, Rationalized and Dynamic. These phases can be broadly defined as follows:

Basic

A typical company in the Basic phase has manual, localized processes, minimal central control, and limited or un enforced IT policies.

Examples include:
The Basic IT infrastructure comes at a high cost and is characterized by chaotic, ad hoc, reactive, manual operations. Service levels are low and business drivers are not used to set IT priorities.

There is a general lack of knowledge regarding the details of the infrastructure that is currently in place or how to improve it. The overall health of applications and services is unknown, due to a lack of tools and resources.

Infrastructure costs are high, largely due to high-touch and time-consuming software deployments and updates. Responding to security threats is a reactive process because there are no consistent security policies or management features.

Standardized

A company in the Standardized phase can be characterized as having a managed infrastructure that introduces operational controls through standards, policies, servers and resources.

Examples include:
The Standardized infrastructure is centrally managed with some automation. IT operations remain primarily reactive, with some proactive processes to reduce short-term costs.

Service levels are better than Basic but not optimal. IT makes decisions on behalf of the business based on its perception of business needs.

Meeting regulatory requirements is difficult and costly for the IT department, because it is responding to and solving unforeseen technology incidents. There is no formalized process for the standardization and testing of applications, and identity management is not fully centralized.

End users feel that the introduction of IT governance, standards, and procedures impose restrictions on their business flexibility and productivity.

Compared to the Basic phase, there is more thorough support for rich collaboration tools, improved network uptime, and more continual access to mission-critical data meaning that the organization will experience an increase in productivity among employees and IT professionals.