Digital business transformation is nothing new and has been happening on a global level. To support this with statistics, two-third CEOs believe that in response to the ever-changing digital technologies, they expect their companies to significantly change their business models in sync. The problem, however, lies in the painfully slow pace at which that change is occurring. More than 70% of executives say despite all the business transformation efforts for over two years, their company is less than halfway through business model change. Lastly, nearly 75% of executives feel dissatisfied with their business' existing digital transformation framework.
Some common reasons for poor digital business transformation include improperly understood technologies, changing market dynamics and blurring industry boundaries. But despite these difficulties, some companies have been able to leverage digital transformation without jeopardizing their existing business. How did they achieve this seemingly unachievable feat?
In this article, we look at how companies can effectively speed up their digital business transformation, respond to fast-moving digital trends and find the best path to future success.
- The Role of Senior Leaders
Communication is a key aspect when you are considering digital transformation for your business. It needs to be handled in a way that every member in the company feels involved and there is no ‘me v/s them’ scenario. There needs to be a common purpose for which everyone can get on board, otherwise, it can get restricted to just being 'the digital team's responsibility'. Once there is a collective agreement, seniors can empower the employees to make things happen.
When you involve the top management at the initial level, it also helps you avoid any bottlenecks while seeking permissions from them to take decisions.
- Don’t Follow the Herd Mentality
Quite often, in the race to get ahead of their competitors, many companies look for quicker ways to accelerate their growth by buying ‘off the shelf’ solutions. Unfortunately, they end up investing a lot of time to make said solutions work for their business. One needs to understand, every business is as unique as it can get. There can’t be a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to apply which can work for every business. Digital business transformation requires tailor-made solutions that address the specific issues of each business.
Start by understanding the problems your business is facing and then look for the technological solution that can work best to fix it. Don't race to use cutting-edge technology and then try to analyse how to use it.
- Work Towards the Paradigm Shift
In a traditional approach, companies explore change from the perspective of their existing business and based on that determine the transformation process for the future. In the new paradigm, executives define the future state first and then link it with the existing business scenario. This approach is also called ‘discontinuous learning’ which involves a fundamentally different way of identifying, understanding and sharing knowledge. During transformative initiatives, you can learn what will work and what won’t to achieve change objectives.
- Make Smarter Investments
Many companies take up too much on their platter and then struggle to cope i.e. take too long to develop. Often, the knowledge gained at the beginning of a project becomes outdated which renders the project irrelevant. If you want to gain a better outcome faster, consider early prototyping and iteration so you can keep testing the relevance at each stage. Prototypes also serve as a checkpoint of what’s working and what’s not. Plus, they help to quantify the scope of the project.
- Don’t Be Afraid To Externalize
Many digital business transformation projects fail before they can even get off the ground because they are given to internal teams with no prior experience. It makes sense to not shy away from asking for professional expertise as that can up skill your in-house team. By working in close collaboration with your internal team, you can collectively work towards the same goal and tackle future projects.
Conclusion
Digital business transformation is an enterprise activity that involves a serious amount of dedicated coordination right from the functional managers to the senior leaders. You cannot transform the organisation by testing new business models in isolation or building on the existing one via an off-the-shelf solution. You need to be bold and ready to challenge long-held assumptions to validate your creative assumptions and choices.
Looking to digitally transform your business to get ahead of the competition? We at illuminz can become your partners to success. We understand the complexity of business changes and the commitment it requires to implement a digital strategy that puts you in the spotlight. We will be honest, this isn’t something that can be achieved overnight. And so, we are ready for the long haul and won’t settle until your business is where you want it to be.
Give us a call today to discuss your business ideas. We would be happy to serve you!
FAQ
Ques -1 How can we speed up the process of Digital Transformation?
Ans -1) By using a few strategies, businesses may successfully speed up their digital transformation.
- Make smart investments
- Ask for professional expertise
- Don’t Follow the Herd Mentality
Ques -2 What are the causes of the digital transformation's failure?
Ans -2) Poor understanding of technology, shifting market dynamics, and blurred industry boundaries are some of the causes of the failure of digital business transformation.