A successful Digital Transformation (DT) journey is impossible without a clear understanding of the problem, opportunity, or goal faced by the business. Business transformation is not just about adding a particular technology. Technologies constantly evolve, so simply changing the current toolset is not enough. The real change occurs when a company aligns its digital capabilities with the business strategy.
Definition: It's the deployment and integration of the “right” set of digital technologies into all areas of a business - streamlining operational processes by automating manual tasks and integrating data - resulting in fundamental changes to how businesses operate and how they deliver value to customers.
DT should be applied to any kind of business for it to remain competitive.
Discover 8 Strategies to Ensure Digital Transformation Success:
- Secure Executive Buy-in - digital transformation requires decisions that can only be made and executed at the executive level. Changing business models or reimagining business processes have far reaching implications - driving systemic change and inspiring cross-functional collaboration
- The formation of an executive steering committee is critical to develop the company vision. Re-envision the customer experience, set & prioritize realistic goals, set funding envelopes, soothe skepticism, maintain ongoing communication and drive the ongoing governance of the digital transformation efforts
- Minimize Employee Resistance - listen to concerns employees have. Find compromises, secure insights as to what is most critical and treat employees as important allies. When employees are engaged in a shared vision - they help to make it a reality. Maintain regular communication with stakeholders through collaboration sessions, emails, in person townhalls, videos, etc.
- Ensure Clear Strategic Direction - one of the most critical steps of Digital Transformation includes defining clear roadmaps, setting realistic goals & priorities
- Conduct a business requirements analysis to understand what the transformation should achieve
- Build a project charter with a clear view as to what is in and out of scope
- Break the strategic plan into smaller projects and allow time to secure feedback and evaluate the results
- Define resource requirements, roles & responsibilities, talent requirements, leadership participation and be sure to put the right governance into place
- Ensure the strategy is centered around customer needs & invest appropriately to ensure success
- Determine the Return on Investment (ROI) Timeline - digital transformation costs money - so conduct a business analysis and get a realistic picture of what it will cost and when the ROI benefits will be realized. Many companies go over budget and over schedule due to scope creep. Utilize the project charter to keep the project on track. Be sure to build in contingency costs to address the unexpected
- Drive adoption of new tools & processes - demonstrate how new tools, processes and procedures are necessary. Employees may feel uncomfortable with the changes - so have regular meetings with them to ask questions and make suggestions, so that they see they are being heard. Provide onboarding training to help employees become productive and proficient with tools
- Celebrate successes & recognize employees who have embraced the new tools and processes, to encourage continued adoption and engagement
- Consider Outsourcing your Digital Transformation Implementation - internal company teams are already busy with existing responsibilities and may not have the right skills or time to implement new systems, software or integrations. Instead, outsourcing can greatly improve the scale and speed of implementation. Seek out IT partners that share your vision and give you the ability to control costs by scaling the size of your digital transformation team up and down according to business demand
- Mitigate Security Concerns - many organizations are in data-sensitive industries where privacy and cybersecurity are a concern. Bring in cybersecurity experts to help identify weaknesses in your network. Online attacks can target system vulnerabilities and unsuspecting users
- Maintain an Ongoing Digital Transformation Mindset - maintaining an executive steering committee is key to ensuring the teams are in place to get the ongoing support and funding needed to maintain digital transformation as an ongoing cycle of continuous evolution
- Continuously evaluate & update technology - keep abreast of new technologies and trends that could impact your business, and regularly evaluate your existing technology stack to ensure it remains relevant and effective
- Foster a culture of innovation - encourage employees to think creatively and explore new ideas, and provide opportunities for experimentation and prototyping
- Embrace agility - adopt an agile approach to technology and process implementation, allowing for rapid iteration and adaptation based on feedback and changing business needs
- Focus on customer experience - continue to keep the customer at the center of your digital transformation efforts, ensuring that any new technologies or processes are designed to improve their experience
- Invest in data & analytics - maintain using data & analytics to inform your digital transformation efforts, and invest in the technology and talent necessary to effectively collect, analyze, and act on data insights
- Foster collaboration & partnerships - partner with other businesses and technology providers to drive innovation & keep up with industry trends
- Invest in talent - hire & develop talent with the necessary digital skills and expertise to drive your digital transformation efforts forward
Digital Transformation can yield significant benefits to a business - but it requires discipline & commitment to see it through
Not sure where to start - no problem - Poeta Digital has helped many companies achieve their digital transformation objectives - give us a shout - it will be the best thing you have done today.
