{"id":470282,"date":"2024-12-05T05:50:51","date_gmt":"2024-12-05T13:50:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?post_type=wherenext&p=470282"},"modified":"2025-12-12T11:27:25","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T19:27:25","slug":"nexttech-on-it-mapping","status":"publish","type":"wherenext","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/nexttech-on-it-mapping","title":{"rendered":"NextTech: The Holy Grail of IT\u2014A Digital Twin of People, Process, Tech"},"author":501,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","castos_file_data":"","podmotor_file_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[432271,381312,474712],"tags":[476502,476492,483792],"department":[476792,476822,488812],"wherenext-category":[],"industry":[],"class_list":["post-470282","wherenext","type-wherenext","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-continuity","category-cxo-priorities","category-digital-twins","tag-cio","tag-it-management","tag-nexttech","department-cxo-priorities","department-data-and-ai","department-emerging-technologies"],"acf":{"short_description":"CIOs have a new cutting-edge tool for IT mapping: a digital twin that maps hardware and software to people and processes.","pdf":{"host_remotely":false,"file":"","file_url":""},"flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Editor\u2019s note: <\/em>WhereNext\u2019s <\/em>NextTech series<\/em> features videos of cutting-edge technology. Scroll down for a short demonstration of IT mapping. For a CIO's perspective on this innovative IT technique, tune into this interview<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em>\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nFortune 500 companies are accustomed to using geographic information system (GIS) technology to map and manage stores<\/a>, vehicle fleets, and commodities<\/a>. Now, a few trailblazing organizations are exploring a revolutionary use of location intelligence that tech professionals are calling the holy grail of IT."},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","layout":"standard","image_reference":null,"image_reference_figure":"","spotlight_image":null,"section_title":"","spotlight_name":"","position":"Left","content":"Article snapshot:<\/strong> Every Fortune 500 business runs on technology\u2014a complex phalanx of servers, services, integrations, apps, and users inside and outside the organization. Most CIOs have only a rudimentary view of how these IT puzzle pieces relate to one another, or which departments and people are affected when one malfunctions. Now a revolutionary IT mapping technique is changing that, and leading CIOs are taking notice.","snippet":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"This cutting-edge form<\/a> of IT mapping gives CIOs what they\u2019ve sought for years: operational awareness of their IT infrastructure, helping them visualize workflows and stakeholders downstream from tech-based disruptions. It\u2019s a digital twin that shows people, processes, and technology in a single view, and it\u2019s attracting interest from an elite set of businesses including major tech companies and investment banks.\r\n\r\nIn our volatile age of extreme weather events<\/a>, cybersecurity threats, and political unrest, CIOs who lack visibility into the relationships of their physical infrastructure and digital systems\u2014including data centers, servers, switches, and personal computers\u2014risk compromising business continuity. Not knowing which specific employees or customers are affected by a cyberattack or hardware or software outage can compound the effects of a crisis.\r\n\r\nFor instance, in the wake of flooding from Hurricane Ida this September, residents of Wilmington, Delaware found themselves unable to purchase prescriptions<\/a> from most Walgreens stores over Labor Day weekend. The reason, as the Delaware Division of Public Health announced, was that heavy rains had knocked out the vendor that ran servers, Internet, and phones for the pharmacy chain, cutting off customer access to essential medicines.\r\n

IT Mapping Puts CIOs in the Driver\u2019s Seat<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nThis new IT mapping technique can empower business leaders to make smarter decisions and react faster when disruptions occur. A digital twin<\/a> of technology assets and the network of people and processes that depend on them enables leaders to prioritize areas of need and craft targeted responses."},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","layout":"standard","image_reference":null,"image_reference_figure":"","spotlight_image":null,"section_title":"","spotlight_name":"","position":"Left","content":"Benefits of IT mapping: <\/strong>\r\n