What really is digital transformation?
It is not a thing. If you take the word ” digital” out of the title, it is ultimately about transforming your business.
Put simply, digital transformation is a complete rethinking about the way your business uses YOUR PEOPLE (first and foremost), the processes you have in place, the initiatives you undertake, the strategies you employ, and the technology you use in order to manage or even completely rethink the business model and go-to-market that defines you. In other words, digital transformation is a big deal.
I feel that the COVID-19 pandemic did not cause any of this, but you would be very mistaken if you didn’t assume that it accelerated everything. In fact, based on surveys and studies by Mackenzie, IDC, Gartner and others, the global pandemic has accelerated the need for business transformation by up to seven years. The sense of urgency is incredible, and so is the need to understand the impact of digitally transforming your company.
It doesn’t really matter what your company does, digital transformation is probably required. Major retailers had to retool their strategies to allow for “curbside pickup”. Many distributors found that they had to sell directly to the consumer (eCommerce), and they had to manage just-in-time inventory or even direct from manufacturer to consumer. Manufacturers were hit hard because unless they were deemed essential, many had to shut down facilities or work with skeleton crews. And everyone is finding it almost impossible to find new employees to replace those that are not coming back. The list goes on and on.
Digital transformation is not one product or solution. It is not one event. It is not one strategy. It is an on-going process that will, for all intents and purposes, become part of your on-going strategy and investments forever. A real digital transformation is part-and-parcel of the business; it doesn’t stop with setting the business and its processes on top of the software and moving up a level. It’s being able to grab opportunities as they present themselves because of digital resiliency and business agility. And this resiliency and agility continue to manifest throughout the digital transformation journey.
Designing a digital transformation strategy
We have talked about what digital transformation is and what it represents. Now the question is, How do you come up with a digital transformation strategy?
First, you need to find yourself a true partner or a trusted business advisor. This is someone that can look at your business in its entirety. Not just an software publisher but a true value-added partner. Someone that can work with your solution, your infrastructure, your integration needs, and your key strategic partnerships. In short, you need someone that can focus on the entire journey, not just one aspect or component of it.
Secondly, you need a partner that represents a truly open solution, one that is built from the start to be delivered in the cloud. Your goals are really pretty simple here:
- You need to become a truly connected business. Your people, customers, and key partners need access to the information that allows them to make decisions in your favor immediately. The information must be available, accurate, and constantly updated.
- You need to be able to rapidly integrate to the world. Your business probably has the need to communicate with other systems, equipment, resources, software, etc., which means your trusted advisor will need to ensure your cloud environment is not only connected, but it must also be integrated.
- Your cloud-based solution MUST allow for remote collaboration. One of the things that the COVID-19 pandemic clearly demonstrated was that we could go from working in an office to working from home in a matter of hours—not months or even days. In addition to working remotely, we also need to be able to work from a mobile device.
- As mentioned above, you also need to become digitally resilient. Does your cloud software allow you to quickly, effectively, and profitably change your model? Can you find ways to prosper when others fail? And if you were a company that thrived in the pandemic, can your system manage hyper-growth?
Digital transformation is here to stay
Digital transformation is real. It is here. We are in the midst of dealing with it. And more importantly, the need for digital transformation is a part of our business reality. It is not going away based on “herd immunity”. It is now part of the requirements for building a successful business.
In the meantime, reconcile yourself to—and get excited about—the fact that digital transformation is here to stay. The team at Opus Management is ready to help. Contact our team today with questions and/or to request a demonstration.
