FACT CHECKED
You can’t do your job the way you always have done. The rules are different now.
The evolution of the digital world has completely changed the rules of good business. What you thought you knew, doesn’t apply anymore.
Traditional enterprises must transform in order to stay relevant in the face of this new digital frontier. To be successful, they must follow a new set of guidelines: digital transformation golden rules.
Digital transformation golden rules
1. Develop the right skills in your people
It’s essential that organizations focus on developing good digital skills in their people. It’s no good rolling out expensive technology unless people know how to use them effectively, quickly.
Enterprises are expected to invest 1.3 trillion USD in digital transformation initiatives this year. We know from McKinsey that 70% of these are likely to fail.
This amounts to a whopping $900 billion in losses.
Manish Dudharejia, President and Founder of EM2 Solutions, suggests that enterprises consider implementing a digital adoption internship program. He points out that a young intern’s future value will be determined by how quickly (s)he can master digital tools.
It’s your responsibility as a leader within your organization to teach interns valuable skills they can carry with them the rest of their professional lives. By developing them as professionals, you’ll also be better equipping the business.
2. Use artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) increased by 60% last year and it seems it’s here to stay. We’re including AI in our digital transformation golden rules because of the profound effect it’s having on the efficiency and performance of businesses.
“Nowhere has AI had a greater impact in the early stages of the 21st century than in the office. Machine-learning technologies are driving increases in productivity never before seen.”
Wired
From digital adoption tools to trend prediction and even the purchase of advertising, AI is changing the way enterprises operate.
And it’s all fed by big data. AI can process massive amounts of data in an instant, an impossible skill for us mere mortals. So far, we’ve only scratched the surface of AI’s potential — there will be significant developments to come.
3. Focus on adoption
Investing in a digital adoption tool ensures that from a user perspective, your digital transformation initiatives will work.
Ensuring that the importance of adoption is understood and communicated throughout the organization is paramount.
Many industry commentators writing about digital transformation agree that companies can no longer treat user adoption as an afterthought. It is a priority if companies are going to thrive and compete in the changing digital world.
Digital technology is progressing at a torrid pace and if your enterprise doesn’t have a Digital Adoption Platform (DAP) in place, it’s not going to keep up. Find out more about the DAP here.
4. Get senior support for digital change
If the upper echelons of an enterprise don’t visibly support any type of digital change, the initiative is doomed. McKinsey’s research indicates this is a fundamental reason for failure in most change programs.
Management must communicate the importance and benefits of the digital change to the rest of the company. It’s their job to inspire followers with the vision of a better workplace.
By not showing interest in or personally promoting the digital change, lower levels of the business won’t consider it to be important.
The best thing team leaders and management can do is to actively participate in the change program. They must be visible and take a leading role in the promotion of the desired behavior or technology change.
Clear, engaging, and consistent communication is essential to getting everybody on board. And it must continue long after the change is implemented, to celebrate success and feedback on progress towards the shared vision.
5. Ensure technology is relevant
Last but not least in our list of digital transformation golden rules. It may sound obvious but whatever digital change is being planned must be relevant to the business and its users.
It’s far too easy for organizations to get caught up in the latest and shiniest system. What’s important is how it will get that business where it needs to go.
If the technology is relevant, the benefits to users will be clear. It’ll be much easier to communicate those benefits to users and inspire them to accept the change willingly.
The training process must be quick and simple. The faster the change is accepted and becomes part of “the way we do things”, the better users will feel about it and the easier digital transformation will be. Find out more about how the DAP helps with this here.
Conclusion
These digital transformation golden rules define the success of companies in the technology age. If companies don’t follow them, they risk losing millions of dollars in technology investment, not to mention poor employee productivity and lost revenues.
