by Nkemdilim Uwaje Begho
In a recent study by Forbes, 52% of Fortune 500 companies went bankrupt, were acquired, ceased to exist, or dropped off the list due to digital disruption since the millennium. In the 21st century an organization’s survival is almost wholly dependent on its ability to strategically use digital initiatives to achieve business goals. Digital is no longer an option, but a necessity to succeed in the world of business.
It is easy to acknowledge the huge impact of Digital, but knowing how to drive it is a key challenge along with finding the right people to achieve success. Many businesses are starting to perceive the tremendous potential of Digital to engage customers externally as well as to streamline internal processes.
Digital Transformation is more than just ‘doing’ Digital; it’s about remodelling your business’ strategies, organizational activities, processes, competencies, and models; leveraging the changes and opportunities of a mix of digital technologies to be customer-centric, agile and innovative at their core.
Digitization is at the frontline of inevitable change! It creates a huge impact on your business by disrupting the existing business model and making your organization ready for the continuously changing internal factors, external competitors, industry trends and new technologies.
Most forward thinking organizations are now forging a path with innovative, creative as well as original ideas as well as adopting digital transformation to evolve and capture opportunities in the digital era. Are you one of them?
To be ready for the next industrial revolution, enterprises must transform digitally to overcome the complexities and unlock new potentials. It is now expedient that enterprises intensify efforts in rebuilding their technology to make their vision come alive and succeed in the connected future.
Here are 7 reasons why Digital Transformation is essential to your organization:
1. CX: The user experience of the customer is at the heart of the universe
The world’s obsession with the latest technology, social media and the ever-rising number of mobile apps revolves around a desire for an easier life.
Customer Experience (CX) is at the heart of Digital. As a result, the primary focus of Digital Transformation is to use cutting-edge technology to improve the customer experience — to design and digitize customer journeys, increase speed and agility in insights, achieve customer adoption of digital customer journeys and develop agility in delivering journey transformations.
Digital Transformation involves actively and consistently placing the customer at the centre of the business, and yes, this involves a lot of hard work and responsibility, but it also offers significant advantages like being able to easily measure customer sentiment and tap into your customer’s opinions on new products etc. The constant need for improving the customer experience will cost effort and economic investment, but an optimized customer experience is sure to increase sales, customer loyalty, brand equity and market share.
2. On-Demand Services: Everyone expects on-demand attention wherever & whenever
Have you noticed how impatient everyone has become? Today’s customers, whether internal or external, expect the same kind of experience they have with technology in their personal lives. People want valuable solutions to their problems. More importantly, they want them fast.
As a business, this is not just challenging, but daunting to achieve. Businesses now require more agile hybrid IT services and networking capabilities in order to deliver high levels of automation that shape the user experience and ensure the delivery of on-demand services.
3. Efficiency: To make employees more effective affects your bottom line
Employers like myself are constantly seeking new ways to create productivity improvements, with technology playing an integral role in helping employees become more effective in their roles and job functions.
Having the technology in place without fostering a digital culture is not enough. If a business is to succeed in the future, the organization must adopt and apply a company culture that embraces the constant change that comes with Digital Transformation.
4. IT Security: Data & Information security
IT Security is becoming an increasingly complicated task, which requires strict enforcement around access, data compliance and shielding from possible attacks. However the most stringent security measures are useless if an underperforming network forces staff to go elsewhere for flexibility or faster speed. For Digital Transformation to be effective, it is essential that progressive businesses implement a consistent security strategy across all networks, applications and data, regardless of services or service providers being used.
5. Data Driven Insights: Better decision-making through data-driven insights
One of the greater benefits of going digital is the ability to track metrics and analyze the data that is generated, allowing businesses to use these insights to optimize their strategies and processes for even better results.
Using data-driven insights to understand customers enables hyper-personalization, relevancy, real-time feedback and agility. A business is able to make use of both structured (like personal customer information) and unstructured data (like social media metrics) pulling together data from many sides of the business to help drive the transformation journey. By integrating data based insights into your strategy it becomes possible to improve your cost to revenue ratios
6. Collaboration: Encourages collaboration across departments
The foundation for a successful Digital Transformation is built upon Digital congruence. When all departments are aligned, a strong company culture forms, allowing a smooth and confident transmission of data, ideas and innovation. The idea of the entire organization making a massive Digital Transformation can be a daunting prospect for a workforce from leadership to entry-level employees, as unfortunately many people prefer to stay away from change.
To succeed, all processes and strategies, down to the core structure and company culture need to be addressed. To maximize the chances of a successful switch, there needs to be strong communication from management, encouragement and incentivisation that creates an environment where employees can bridge age gaps and social divides by collaborating and learning together. Strong leadership that is committed to the transformation is key to improving the digital intelligence of the workforce.
7. Agility: Increases innovation & agility
In business, agility is the ability to continuously improve and develop quickly, especially regarding digital processes. The rapid development and constant switching up of the digital landscape leaves no time for companies to rest on their laurels.
Even those who have adopted early must be ready to adapt and innovate. Digital Transformation is never over; there is always more to do! There will always be new competition, new tools, and new trends. And with each change, the customer will demand more, wanting to be served faster and better than before. Staying ready is a necessity. Any organization that fails to read and understand this new scenario, won’t see a difference, regardless of all the money spent on the best technology and applications.
A successful business Digital Transformation must be based on these three pillars: People, Automated Information Management & Intelligent Digital Communication. To allow the effects of Digital Transformation to be truly transformative, management should surround themselves with both business and technology partners that understand the broader business objectives and can operate honestly and transparently to achieve these goals.
In conclusion, a lot of people are convinced the term Digital Transformation is interchangeable with digital technology solutions that affect all areas of a business…. In as much Digital Transformation includes digital technology solutions, it is important to remember that Digital Transformation is just as much about leadership as it is about digital technologies. How to start? A good starting point is to carry out a thorough technology audit that focuses on the development of a Digital Transformation strategy that is aligned with your business goals, culture and leadership strategy and outlines your Digital Transformation journey.
Nkemdilim Uwaje Begho is a seasoned Information Technology professional with over 15 years of industry experience in Africa’s largest emerging economy with a deep purpose and focus on bridging the digital divide and transforming Africa by harnessing the benefits of digital. At home in technology from childhood, Nkemdilim is walking in her fathers’ footsteps as a second-generation Nigerian Information Technology expert. Currently CEO of Future Software Resources Ltd. (Futuresoft), one of Nigeria’s leading digital & technology solutions companies, providing a broad range of solutions for the scaling African enterprise, to consistently attract and retain its target audience, optimize its processes and increase its bottom line.
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