MINING edge of the company strategy and build a roadmap that allowed IT to help enable the key infrastructure required to realise our strategy . There was an appetite for significant efficiencies to be made using new technologies and improved data management ; it was a case of building the right IT structure , architecture and infrastructure ,” she reveals .
The biggest challenge for Kidson and her team was working through the company ’ s legacy systems , which represent nearly 100 years of activity with each part of the business also having different requirements and applications , many of which weren ’ t being utilised .
“ Not only was it a bit of a clean-up , but we also looked at how we could utilise these tools across multiple businesses ; not just one ,” she comments .
“ We are upgrading the legacy infrastructure to a level where it will able to provide significant performance improvements in meeting the needs of the new systems that are coming in . We integrated current technologies , including : AWS , Azure and Office 365 to ensure we have best practice systems in place to allow us to build for the future and enhance performance .
In order to implement changes to legacy systems , particularly within the insurance arm of its operations , Coal Services has , for
“ I needed to gain an intimate knowledge of the company strategy and build a roadmap that allowed IT to help enable the key infrastructure required to realise our strategy ”
— Gillian Kidson , Head of IT , Coal Services
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