Charlie discovered ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructural Library) and thought he had found the answer to why so many IT projects failed. The process framework seemed to be “The Solution“. Charlie changed the focus of CastlePointe to be a process improvement company specializing in ITIL. Charlie became deeply involved with itSMF USA, eventually being elected to President and serving on the Board.

In 2008, Charlie met John on an ITIL assessment and they immediately hit it off (think fire and gasoline). What made this ITIL assessment so unusual, was the importance the client placed on culture. After much discussion (i.e. screaming and shouting), a section on culture was included in the ITIL assessment. After the assessment was delivered, Charlie and John (happily) went their separate ways. But that was not the end.

A few months after the assessment was delivered, the client wanted to implement recommendations from the ITL assessment and insisted that both Charlie and John first plan and then lead the implementation. After working together for a while, they both came to understand that although their approach was different, they were both heading toward the same objective. They also realized that Process was not the ultimate solution, but instead people and culture were the “magic” key. They developed “DeepRoots” methodology focused on changing IT Organizations. It had all the things an IT Organizations loved (templates, reviews, approval process, project management, time-frames, etc.). But after the client started using it, they realized “DeepRoots” was not about changing the technology, it was about changing people’s attitudes and behaviors. A testimonial from Senior VP said “You have no idea how much you’ve changed my organization.“

After working together for 2 years transforming that client, Charlie and John became partners. In 2011 they formed the IT Transformation Institute, whose focus was to use “DeepRoots” methodology to quickly and successfully implement change in IT Organizations. In addition to working with dozens of Fortune 500 companies, Charlie found time to write his first book “”The Quantum Age of IT: Why Everything You Know About IT is About to Change“. (The first line is epic. “IT as we know it is dead.“) and serve as host for the Intel sponsored show “TransformIT Show“. And dozens of organizations around the world engaged Charlie as a speaker.

In 2015, Charlie and John had a couple of “Ah Ha” moments. First that IT was no longer the center of the Universe and second to really change the business world, they could not do it company by company as consultants. And the Institute for Digital Transformation was born. We started 2016 with a radical change in focus, we would not longer be consultants, instead we became advisors with a focus on producing media and content that would spread our message. But we could not do it alone.

We enlisted created the Institute Fellows program and enlisted Industry Leaders to share their insights, opinions, research and real life experiences about the transition to the Digital Era. They each have a unique set of experiences and perspectives and offer their unique voice to help you understand the world that is shifting around you and what you must do to survive the transition.

We were also joined by Dr. Frank Granito who created the Readiness Framework and provide a focus on the development of tools and services that could be used by partners, consultants and service providers.

We are once again evolving. Stay Tuned…..