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IT leader Daniel Millbank raises IT from firefighting mode to strategic business partner

Based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Xpress Global Systems (XGS) offers supply chain solutions for flooring manufacturers, importers, and retailers, with the largest independent network of flooring distribution centers in the United States.

Daniel Millbank leads IT at XGS and, though a relative newcomer to the logistics industry, he is no stranger to innovation in technology. Millbank oversaw the implementation of one of the first school laptop programs in the country during an 18-year career in private education. When he joined XGS a couple of years ago, Millbank moved quickly to tackle an underperforming IT organization. He explained, 鈥淭he IT department was strained, and the team was demotivated 鈥� we were in firefighting mode. Slowly, we started to turn things around, and the morale among the team improved considerably. We eventually reached a level where everything was functioning and stable.鈥�

Partnering with Info-Tech to build IT strategy

As Millbank sought to raise the department to the next level 鈥� IT as a strategic business partner 鈥� he looked for external guidance. 鈥淔or that strategic level of IT maturity, I recognized that鈥檚 not something I should do by myself. I looked at a number of options, including a large, well-known advisory firm. But, with them, it鈥檚 like you get the keys to the Library of Congress, and then you鈥檙e on your own trying to find what you need,鈥� said Millbank. 鈥淚 had seen Info-Tech before when I鈥檇 done my own research. It seemed like a great fit.鈥�

Since then, Millbank has taken advantage of Info-Tech鈥檚 best-practice research, diagnostic tools, and analyst services. One of his first engagements was the CIO Business Vision survey to measure the organization鈥檚 satisfaction with IT and identify opportunities for improvement. Millbank explained, 鈥淲e wanted to focus on initiatives that are best for the business, not just best for IT. The CIO Business Vision feedback gave us the data we needed to start the conversation with the leadership team. It helped build the initial stages of our IT strategy and allowed us to base our decisions on concrete data.鈥�



鈥淲e wanted to focus on initiatives that are best for the business, not just best for IT. The CIO Business Vision feedback gave us the data we needed to start the conversation with the leadership team. It helped build the initial stages of our IT strategy and allowed us to base our decisions on concrete data.鈥�

鈥� Daniel Millbank, Director of IT, Xpress Global Systems

Aligning resources to enable a new and improved IT

To ensure that the departmental structure would support strategic IT initiatives, Millbank leveraged an Info-Tech Guided Implementation, Redesign Your IT Organizational Structure, which provided access to Info-Tech analysts in a four-phase advisory process. He remarked on the unexpected value of the endeavor: 鈥淭hat engagement threw me completely for a loop. Even if I had Googled it for weeks, I would never have come up with the thought process and the approach that the Info-Tech analyst took to thinking about my team, how it needs to be structured, how it supports the IT strategy as a whole, and how it scales with the company.鈥� He added, 鈥淲hen done right, the professional growth opportunities gained from these guided engagements get the attention of the executive team and inevitably act as a catalyst to give IT a seat at the table.鈥�

In addition, Millbank leveraged Info-Tech鈥檚 IT Staffing Assessment diagnostic tool. The survey-based initiative benchmarks key staffing metrics, measures staffing levels against business priorities, evaluates where time is spent, and gathers staff feedback. Millbank noted, 鈥淲e鈥檝e already improved tremendously as an IT department. But I wanted to create a pipeline for my team to tell me what they鈥檙e working on, where the pain points are from their perspective, and have them understand that they are heard. It was important to be able to go over the IT Staffing survey report with them to build a plan to improve internally.鈥�

"The Info-Tech Guided Implementation on redesigning our IT organizational structure completely threw me for a loop. Even if I had Googled it for weeks, I would never have come up with the thought process and the approach that the Info-Tech analyst took to thinking about my team, how it needs to be structured, how it supports the IT strategy as a whole, and how it scales with the company.鈥�

鈥� Daniel Millbank, Director of IT, Xpress Global Systems

Managing the cost of IT risk with expert guidance

As Millbank reviewed core IT processes at XGS, disaster recovery planning (DRP) was a key topic. To prepare for discussions with the business on the impact of downtime, Millbank and his team participated in an Info-Tech Guided Implementation, DRP 鈥� Business Impact Analysis. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very easy conversation to have when you鈥檝e done your homework and have a business impact analysis in front of you. The numbers speak for themselves. For 100% uptime 鈥� there鈥檚 a cost. It鈥檚 an important conversation about what鈥檚 realistic, what鈥檚 not feasible, and what the business鈥� actual tolerance is for downtime.鈥� He added, 鈥淚 no longer have to spend considerable effort to present convincing and sound research. The professional templates I have at my disposal today afford me a new level of credibility 鈥� such as this business impact analysis from Info-Tech, which is backed by best practices.鈥�

Mitigating business risk was also on the agenda when it came time to renew the company鈥檚 cyberinsurance. Facing the possibility of a 100% increase on already-high premiums, Millbank turned to a Guided Implementation from Info-Tech, Assess Your Cybersecurity Insurance Policy, to ensure that XGS had appropriate coverage for a reasonable rate. 鈥淢y engagement with Info-Tech on cybersecurity insurance turned the table on the situation, where instead of the insurance company requiring us to meet certain conditions, we started giving them requirements. Making sure that I had all my ducks in a row prior to negotiations with the broker allowed us to get a much better rate,鈥� said Millbank.

In fact, negotiating the best rate is now Millbank鈥檚 strong suit. For all new vendor contracts or renewals, he uses Info-Tech鈥檚 Contract Review services to ensure favorable terms and conditions at the best price: 鈥淚t makes me look like a superstar. By default, we send every contract to our lawyers for review, but at the same time, I also send it for an Info-Tech contract review. The review is in depth, and they look at absolutely every single item. That information allows me to speak intelligently to items that I couldn鈥檛 before. Vendors have had to increase their standards around SLAs and guarantees because our expectations are so much higher.鈥�

鈥淢y engagement with Info-Tech on cybersecurity insurance turned the table on the situation, where instead of the insurance company requiring us to meet certain conditions, we started giving them requirements. Making sure that I had all my ducks in a row prior to negotiations with the broker allowed us to get a much better rate.鈥�

鈥� Daniel Millbank, Director of IT, Xpress Global Systems

91制片厂ing a reputation for excellence and value

Millbank鈥檚 hard work has not gone unnoticed, as he was recently presented with the company鈥檚 top Leadership Award out of 1,000 employees. He stated, 鈥淚 have Info-Tech to thank for that. There鈥檚 absolutely no question in my mind that if I didn鈥檛 have Info-Tech resources available to me, I would not have reached this level and been recognized for it.鈥�

Beyond awards and recognition, the department鈥檚 improved reputation has earned the confidence of the business: 鈥淭he great byproduct of all the Info-Tech engagements is that it鈥檚 building a reputation that IT knows what they are doing. We have earned the trust all the way up to the C-suite and board,鈥� said Millbank. That confidence has been called upon recently as XGS engages in mergers and acquisitions. IT audits and due diligence were initially outsourced but have now been entrusted to Millbank and his team: 鈥淴GS acquired three companies in the last eight months. The leadership team was very involved in those projects. It was a great opportunity for me to use Info-Tech. They鈥檝e got a whole different level of confidence, knowing the resource that I have at my disposal.鈥�

IT takes its seat at the business table

Elevating IT鈥檚 role at XGS has allowed Millbank and his team to take a strategic position at the company: 鈥淚 no longer solely talk about IT problems with my colleagues. I talk about business opportunities, and it鈥檚 a very different conversation. We focus on ways to increase revenue, reduce expenses, or create operational excellence.鈥� He added, 鈥淚t鈥檚 funny 鈥� when I was working from home a lot, my wife commented, 鈥業 thought you were in IT, but that is not at all what you talk about on your calls.鈥� These are the types of conversations that allow me to create meaningful change, which in turn will take me to the next level in my career.鈥�