The challenge

A diversified mining services company, had an IT function stretched between cost control and service delivery. With business units operating autonomously across Australia and Southeast Asia, IT often found itself caught in the middle – absorbing costs without clear recovery mechanisms, struggling to demonstrate value, and facing growing demand for better systems and governance.

Leadership wanted an independent review that could move past ad-hoc fixes to a broader assessment: how effective was IT in supporting business performance, where were costs and risks hidden, and what roadmap was needed to get IT working as a partner to operations rather than a constraint.

The challenge was to create a clear strategy and roadmap for EAM that would:

• Strengthen reliability and performance of critical generation assets.
• Ensure governance and compliance obligations were consistently met.
• Align systems and processes to provide better asset insights and support future investment decisions.

Our solution

Rennie Advisory applied its IT Effectiveness methodology to give the client both a diagnostic and a path forward:

• Independent benchmarking – Compared IT cost and service delivery against industry peers, highlighting where spend was above or below benchmarks and how efficiency could be improved.
• Current state review – Analysed governance, processes, systems and service delivery, creating a fact-based view of IT’s maturity and alignment with business needs.
• Stakeholder engagement – Conducted interviews and workshops across business units and leadership, surfacing frustrations with service quality, cost transparency and responsiveness.
• Future-state design – Shaped a fit-for-purpose operating model, balancing centralised control with the flexibility business units needed.
• Roadmap development – Defined a sequenced improvement plan, from quick wins (reporting and cost allocation) to deeper reforms in governance, cost recovery and service management.

Our impact

Created a transparent, evidence-based roadmap that lifted IT from a cost centre to a trusted enabler of the client’s decentralised operations.

By applying Rennie’s structured approach, the client moved from vague dissatisfaction with IT to a shared understanding of what needed to change. The roadmap provided a clear direction for IT to be a trusted enabler of operations while creating transparency and accountability for spend.

The engagement delivered:

• Clarity on IT value and cost – Benchmarking and the introduction of a cost-per-user model gave executives a transparent view of IT spend and recovery.
• Fit-for-purpose future state – A redesigned IT operating model aligned service levels and accountabilities to the realities of a decentralised business.
• Sequenced improvement roadmap – Staged initiatives balanced urgent improvements with longer-term transformation, maintaining leadership support.
• Actionable charters – Defined initiative charters created ready-to-implement plans for governance, cost recovery and service management reforms.

Key insights

• Transparency is transformative – Shifting IT cost recovery to a transparent, evidence-based model fundamentally changed how the function was perceived. What was once seen as a black box became a fair, predictable, and explainable service. This improved trust and created a platform for more constructive conversations about value.
• Match operating model to business structure – A decentralised contractor cannot be served effectively by a rigid, centralised IT model. Aligning the IT function to mirror the business structure ensured responsiveness and relevance. This alignment reduced friction and enabled IT to be seen as a partner rather than a constraint.
• Roadmaps must balance today and tomorrow – The strategy deliberately addressed urgent stabilisation needs alongside long-term reforms. This balance gave the business confidence that short-term issues would not derail the overall plan. It created a dual track of momentum and sustainability.
• Actionability matters – Each initiative was clearly defined, with charters and accountabilities attached. This meant leadership could move directly into execution without endless further scoping. The ability to “pick up and run” reduced the risk of stalling and signalled that IT was serious about delivery.