IT, ICT or ICHT?

In our work, we observe that the classic understanding of IT professions and roles and the terms associated with them are beginning to falter. This means an increase in uncertainty for many people - not only those working in IT. What can one still rely on in an incredibly rapidly developing technology? Which technology of the future is appropriate and effective for a system, an organization and the corresponding management? Which channels and carriers will be used for information and communication, which is essential for all people and organisations? How can new dynamic structures and technologies be used to ensure efficient cooperation geared to organizational goals? How can we reduce duplication of effort through better information flow and congruent process mapping with fewer media discontinuities? How do organizations, people and teams fundamentally connect and network with each other?

Many unanswered questions. Let's start with clarification of terms.

IT and ICT
Often used and often applied differently are the terms IT and ICT.

IT - a well-known and familiar abbreviation for "information technology" - has had a C elegantly added to it in recent years. This leads to the harmonious sounding triad ICT "Information and Communication Technology". Most people understand the functional aspect of technology (T) without reservation or need for explanation. The complementary terms information (I) and communication (C), on the other hand, are used synonymously by many people and, depending on the context, one is interchanged with the other. Communication is indispensable and its quality decisive for everything. For effective communication, information, data and facts are needed. For their efficient and effective implementation, we are helped today by algo rithms that have been intelligently integrated into technical communication media. These technical media - better known to us as smartphones, laptops, tablets, computers, etc. - have become indispensable companions for people and organizations. The omnipresent, rapid technological change does not only require a flexible and agile adaptation process on the technical side. Organizations, systems and, last but not least, users are also actively called upon to develop further.

Who's walking who?
If there is a lack of purposeful engagement with new technologies, digitality, automation, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, new technologies and more, the change steps taken do not succeed satisfactorily. Many people understand the need to constantly update or upgrade themselves, but it is not always easy to do so in practice. Far too often, organizations and people lag behind the long overdue change and development steps or notice too late how they have fallen into an entrenched, not easily changeable dependency through technology and the associated systems. Conscious perception and analysis of such situations, adaptability, flexible behaviour combined with constant learning seem to be important prerequisites for countering technical developments. Specific abilities such as skills are not only relevant on the systemic-technical side, but are also of great importance on the user side.

ICHT - a possible solution
The current situation is akin to the old familiar game of Tetris. We can use this puzzle-like computer game by the Russian programmer Alexei Paschitnow, who completed the first playable version in 1984 on an Elektronika 60 computer, as a representative of the above questions and topics. To what extent do information (I), communication (C) and technology (T) fit together? The balance is sober: Actually not at all. Only with conscious integration of the building element people (H = humans) can we achieve fit and create the desired change.

This cannot be achieved with familiar skills alone. Today's people need innovation, communication and technology skills. He is called upon to constantly analyze and reflect. Translated into our Tetris game, this means that the desired connection requires the player - in other words, the human being with his abilities and skills - to adaptively grasp new elements and in turn embed them intelligently into the already existing structure.

If you want to achieve effective coordination between system, technology and people in organizations and exploit all the advantages of digitization in order to use them in a targeted manner, the solution is obvious to us: ICT becomes ICHT. Information and communication through people and technology. The deliberate focus on people through targeted, empowering implementation support creates unity and generates significant added value. People and organisations gain security, form relationships with themselves and the environment in a more motivated way and experience self-efficacy, which in turn has a positive effect on their self-confidence. People and organizations can thereby reshape and experience their professional role and identity and experience an expansion of their competencies.

As visualized in the above-mentioned Tetris game, the conscious interplay of ICHT and the associated way of looking at things is therefore essential. If one lives this basic attitude, we can observe various promising effects.

"If you want to introduce ICHT into organizations, commitment from leaders is essential."

For example, organizational and working methods are changed sustainably and profoundly on a variety of levels and approached more effectively. Hierarchical structures are broken down, communication becomes more interactive and agile, knowledge is shared more, an integral holistic approach emerges.

If one wants to introduce ICHT in organizations, the commitment of leaders is essential, and the downstream, consciously phased introduction of ICHT is recommended. Experiencing the seamless, systematic connection of information, communication, people and technology leads - not only during the introduction, but ideally beyond it - to a new, holistic organizational quality.