Digital transformation isn’t a matter of luck. Instead, it demands audacious and large-scale commitments during uncertain times to completely reimagine the business, not merely enhance it.
Unless the transformation encompasses the very essence of the business—the underlying value, the workforce, operational procedures, and technological infrastructure—it is likely to be merely a temporary solution. The conventional organization will inexorably pull back to old practices. The true reimagining of a business requires a considered and brave approach.
Digital recreation often necessitates making difficult choices involving tough compromises that might be tempting to disregard, postpone, or hastily jump into. Nevertheless, recognizing which decisions are paramount and how to execute them can mark the difference between a successful metamorphosis and an unfinished evolution.
Take a Step Back and Assess Your Business’ Digital Future
The decision regarding the direction of the business is one of the most significant. Though this almost existential choice may appear daunting, most firms find themselves without an option, confronted with disruptions that may jeopardize their ongoing sustainability.
Utilizing data and thorough analysis, along with a structured approach to evaluating alternatives, aids in the decision-making process. We advocate an insightful examination of the market and business considering fundamental principles of economic analysis like supply and demand. This analysis must be adaptable and anticipatory, based on insights into how digital advancements might shape the future.
Nearly every remarkable digital breakthrough observed has relied on employing connectivity and information to revolutionize the customer journey or reconfigure products and services, enabling novel customer interactions.
This serves as a sound foundation for exploring various opportunities.
Create a Recipe for Digital Transformation Which Starts At the Top
Since digital transformation affects virtually all facets of the business and demands an extraordinary degree of unity across the entire organization, the initial step involves creating a leadership team comprising members from various functions.
Besides needing individuals who are visionary and motivating, the team should also include esteemed executives with profound knowledge of business mechanics and experience in managing change. Furthermore, it’s essential to choose leaders who represent and promote the essential aspects of digital culture: customer focus, collaboration, and risk tolerance.
It’s vital to note that the leadership group doesn’t have to be extensive; it may be quite small, provided that its members, along with those collaborating with them, possess the necessary expertise.
For instance, Starbucks employed its CIO and CDO to steer a ten-year digitalization journey that enabled the extensive utilization of mobile payments across North American outlets, tightly linked with the brand’s customer loyalty scheme.
Position The Firm Within The Digital Ecosystem
Your organization must identify the capabilities, competencies, and technologies within the ecosystem that supplement and foster the strategic goals of the business. Decisions on how much to depend on these relationships and how to frame them are equally vital. These require a lucid understanding of how to safeguard the company’s precious assets, such as customer relationships or data.
A well-designed dashboard to monitor the progress of essential initiatives reflecting the transformation’s aspirations is a necessity. Since digital transformation is a prolonged endeavor, short-term indicators, such as ROI, may deceive.
More unconventional measurements, such as new sign-ups on digital platforms or levels of digital engagement, provide a more accurate reflection of a digital transformation’s advancement.
Your business should also have unambiguous criteria to assess various components of the transformation project. These need to encompass a pragmatic evaluation of anticipated benefits, the time required to realize them, dependencies, needed investments, and the impact on the comprehensive transformation journey.
Digital transformation stands as the quintessential challenge for the current generation of businesses. The choices they make will dictate whether and how their companies progress in the times ahead.