Johannesburg, 26 Aug 2021
Digital transformation has become a buzzword globally, in the same way that cloud was a few years ago, particularly under the current environment in which businesses operate. In a study from Microsoft and the Economist Intelligence Unit, titled: “The transformation imperative: Digital drivers in the COVID-19 pandemic,” 72% of enterprises reported that their pace of transformation had sped up significantly, thanks to the pandemic.
With organisations under intensifying pressure to improve efficiencies and flexibilities and employee engagement and culture, it is critical to understand that implementing technology in any organisation does not necessarily equate to digitisation and that true digital transformation requires a holistic approach, one that involves all areas of the business through the application of multiple modern technologies – to change how a business operates and to analyse how best to deliver the best value to customers.
Adding value to customers and employees through the ability to adapt to the current working environment has never been more important than it is today. While the COVID-19 pandemic may have spurred widespread interruptions, it has also provided an opportunity for organisations to re-envision and reconsider digital transformation as an integrated part of the business strategy that is required for future business sustainability.
Digital savvy leaders
As businesses prepare to remain future fit, it will become increasingly apparent that digital transformation is a continuous journey and not a destination. This need for continuous innovation and rapid response to change and to challenges and opportunities that arise will require digitally savvy leaders who understand the underlying principle that data drives accurate business decision-making and therefore leads to higher business productivity and cost-saving efficiencies.
Undeniably so, talent is among the most significant contributors to business success or failure and a high-performance culture is the only kind to shift the needle, especially in the challenging times we find ourselves. Companies that constantly look at ways to improve their internal processes and efficiencies through digital transformation will be far ahead of their competitors due to the analytics helping them streamline operation intensive information and to identify consumer trends and behaviours in the business world.
Equally important as a business leader is to understand that digitalisation is not a journey made to measure, as each sector has its own particularities. An example is the transport sector, where digitisation has given rise to new models: Uber, Bolt, etc. These models propose to car manufacturers that the digital component be expanded to new automated functions such as insurance, service requests and others.
Taking the complexity out of technology
Technology is destined to run constantly between complexity and simplicity. Historically, only large-scale organisations used to be able to drive insights through data-driven analytics because of the expensive infrastructure needed to achieve this. However, all of that has completely shifted due to broadband internet access that has made cloud computing a viable option for small businesses everywhere to be used in a consumption-based manner.
Critical to big organisations, preventing an overlap in technology to drive business objectives and outcomes seamlessly should remain a number one priority, as redundant systems can slow innovation and hinder businesses from identifying new business opportunities. I also believe that the technologies that enable operational activity and productivity internally should be as easy for the people to consume as social media platforms like Facebook or LinkedIn.
No business is an island
Depending on the size of an organisation, it is very expensive to have all the skills required to support and sustain a diversified digital ecosystem. Accepting that your business can’t go at it alone is not conceding defeat – it is a crucial step towards progress. The more cost-effective and efficient route would be to secure services from an expert shared services provider that understands how to operate and maintain diversified environments that require multiple skill sets.
While for many distressed businesses, the natural reaction tends to be cutting costs, it is equally important to enhance productivity and profitability in sustainable ways. An operational mindset of continuous improvement and architectural change should be the cornerstone of every organisation’s thinking. Cliché as it seems, you are only as strong as your weakest link.
There are a number of considerations that – if properly applied – could solidify the path of business sustainability through digital transformation. Being more agile and flexible as a business, employing digitally savvy leaders, making systems as easy as possible for the people using them and partnering with an IT service solutions provider that understands your business complexities will help organisations increase scale of opportunities and optimise their potential and ability to thrive in a competitive environment – to drive successful business outcomes.
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