What is Driving Digital Transformation Success? – People or Technology?
The digital transformation of enterprises should not be seen as a technological revolution. If you fall into this trap for your transformation project, it would probably be a resounding failure. The digital transformation is above all a change of vision, culture in companies and relations with customers. Technologies are only the vectors of this transformation.
1. Organization
The end of IT isolation
Traditional IT departments centralize the entire infrastructure management, software and applications required throughout the company. With the democratization of smart phones and tablets in the late 2000s, applications have multiplied. Since then, each service manager has access to tools already developed and ready for use.
As a consequence, the digital transformation of companies is seen through the allocation of information technology budgets: they are no longer entirely consumed by the department of the same name, but distributed throughout all business lines of the company. By 2020, Gartner expects that marketing departments will spend more on technology than IT.
Information technology must become a key competence
With leaders who need technology in all services to create value, information technology skills are becoming even more critical.
It is no longer a matter of having a small handful of people in the IT department who support the needs of other departments but of having in each line of business at least one person who combines IT skills with a business vision.
Change of culture
As mentioned above, the shift from a traditional IT department model to a digital enterprise involves the redistribution of skills. A profound change needs to be made: moving from the vision of an IT department that has a support function to that of a growth engine fully integrated with the rest of the company.
2. Customer relations
IoT (Internet of Things) and mobility
Companies are connected, individuals are connected, and now the objects are more and more connected. The Internet of Things and mobility are the two main tools to improve the customer experience today in a multitude of sectors: retail, general and personal services, hospitality, health…
The most important engine of digital transformation is undoubtedly the improvement of the relationship and the customer experience.
Big Data and analytics
Companies that are more mature in their digital transformation already exploit the data they collect through their different systems. The digital transformation is anchored in the value of structured and unstructured data, which is why it is essential to exploit these to:
- Understand clients accurately
- Identify growth drivers
- Develop new products or services
3. Technologies
Your digital transformation can only be achieved by adopting the technologies that support your strategies.
However, IT budgets are not scalable and we need to be ready to reallocate resources to achieve your goals. In this sense, part of the budget, which is traditionally devoted to the operation and maintenance of IT infrastructure, should be reallocated to innovation and growth-enhancing projects.
In this area, the most mature enterprises in their transformation have virtualized their infrastructure and consume their applications as services in their private or hybrid cloud. For the physical elements of the infrastructure, the solution favoured by these companies is the use of managed services, that is, having a partner who has the responsibility to keep your systems in operation while your employees look after create value for your business.
Digital transformation cannot be a “project” carried out in isolation by one or two departments, it is everyone’s business. When it comes to such a large-scale transformation, which happens on an ongoing basis, there must be a solid foundation for success. It is always difficult to know where to start, especially when you live in the environment on a daily basis.
