Unifying IT and OT to Enable Secure, Scalable Manufacturing Operations
A Disconnected IT and OT Landscape Without Unified Control
A global manufacturer operated fragmented IT and OT environments across plants, regions, and corporate teams—creating operational risk, inconsistent security, and misaligned decision-making. To address this, a unified governance framework, standardized processes, and a federated operating model were introduced—enabling secure collaboration, improved visibility, and scalable digital modernization.
Challenges
A Fragmented IT/OT Environment Creating Risk and Misalignment...
Lack of governance, inconsistent standards, and cultural divides between IT and OT limited visibility, increased risk, and slowed enterprise transformation.
No defined framework existed for how IT and OT should collaborate across the enterprise.
Processes and standards varied widely across plants, regions, and corporate functions.
Lack of visibility into OT systems, lifecycle status, and associated risks.
Unclear roles and responsibilities led to inconsistent and uncoordinated decisions.
Increased IT/OT connectivity created growing security risks and vulnerabilities.
Differences between IT and OT teams created friction and slowed progress.
Triplett Services Founder Role
Establishing a Unified IT/OT Governance Model
Clif Triplett was engaged to rapidly construct a governance model that aligned corporate IT, regional leadership, and plant operations. His role focused on creating the processes, standards, and operating structures necessary to manage IT and OT collaboratively, while ensuring the model was practical, scalable, and accepted across the organization.
His mandate included:
From fragmentation to integrated it/ot collaboration, the engagement delivered a unified, scalable governance model that transformed how it and ot collaborated:
- A comprehensive IT/OT governance framework was established, providing clarity, structure, and shared operating principles
- More than 20 foundational processes and standards were created, enabling consistent execution across plants and regions
- A strong collaborative working relationship emerged between IT and OT, replacing prior friction with shared ownership
- Cybersecurity posture improved, supported by standardized architecture, access control, and risk mitigation practices
- The governance model was adopted enterprise wide, with the primary leader of the initiative promoted to oversee IT/OT convergence across all divisions
- The organization gained a sustainable foundation for digital modernization, operational resilience, and long term technology alignment