ThinkTWENTY20

Most companies are now running apps in the cloud and many are engaging in technology uses like Internet of Things (IoT), which calls for the installation of many computing services on the edge of the organization. The spreading out of computing services means that the IT department has less control and sometimes no control over the widespread resources in the organization. 

Traditionally, IT has had responsibility for disaster recovery and it used to conduct tests and organize the responses in the event of a shutdown or protracted outage of IT services. They still generally have that responsibility, but now, with cloud and edge computing, their task is a lot more difficult. With other people in the organization responsible for those spread-out resources, it can be a lot like herding cats.

IT's role becomes one of coordination and oversight. System and Disaster planning documentation must be standardized and distribute in ways that will survive outages. Testing must be carried out on a coordinated basis, perhaps rotated around the organization and certainly reviewed and supervised by IT.

IoT often means that devices are being brought into the system on the edge regularly. The data from such systems, can enter into the main system databanks quickly and used for analysis. Therefore it must be accurate and secure. Routines for adding in new data sources must be part of the oversight done by IT and easily adapted to the parts of the organization adopting IoT Systems. 

Living on the edge is risky and calls for extended controls to manage that risk.