- What is meant by digital transformation?
Digital transformation is a common buzzword these days, but what does it really mean? When technology has had an impact on every area of a business, that business has experienced a digital transformation. This process includes all of the following:
- Leadership and employees
- Business processes and operations
- Customers and their experience
- How effectively and efficiently the business runs
- Interactions with partners and vendors
At its essence, digital transformation occurs when a company is willing to review itself (or work with an outside partner to perform a review) and determine where it can most effectively use technology to improve the way it functions. When the business deploys that technology in a way that has a positive effect, it experiences a digital transformation.
- What are the four main areas of digital transformation?
Digital transformation involves four primary areas: people, processes, customers, and offerings.
First, a company’s people are at the heart of the business and also at the heart of that business’s digital transformation. Getting buy-in from all stakeholders is vital, from company leadership to front-line employees, so that everyone feels invested in the plan and its success. Technology should be thought about in a way that empowers all a company’s employees to have the information and tools they need to serve customers most effectively.
Second, optimizing processes is a huge part of digital transformation because optimization supports a business’s people, allowing them to work smarter and focus their time and talents on high-value tasks. Technology that can automate and alleviate repetitive tasks reduces the chance of error and allows employees to shine.
Third, engaging, delighting, and surprising customers should be a business’s primary focus, and a successful digital transformation will allow that to happen more easily. With the right technology in place, a company can deploy targeted campaigns, test personalized messaging and offers, track results, and optimize future campaigns, constantly improving the customer experience.
Fourth, a business should continually look at its product or service offerings through the lens of digital transformation. Technology improves rapidly, and innovation happens quickly. So what improvements can a company make to its offerings? To determine this, businesses can be proactive in assessing their offerings, anticipating their customers’ needs and wants, and harnessing the available technology to improve their products or services
- Is artificial intelligence (AI) part of digital transformation?
In many situations, artificial intelligence (AI) should be a part of digital transformation. Why? Two words: big data.
Every day, businesses collect a staggering amount of data—personal data, transaction data, demographic data, behavioral data, and so on. Multiply those bits of data for each person who browses and each person who buys, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and one can easily see how the amount of data produced can quickly become overwhelming. Looking at this customer data as a whole and discerning any kind of meaningful pattern or trend is nearly impossible.
This is where AI comes in. AI is perfectly suited for analyzing massive amounts of data and identifying patterns and trends within it. Although it might not be able to reveal the why behind a specific pattern—for that, the trusty human brain is needed to draw conclusions—it can pinpoint, for example, the segment of a business’s customer base that is most opportune for growth
- What are the top three trends of digital transformation?
Numerous trends have emerged in the realm of digital transformation, from AI and machine learning to multi-cloud architecture. However, we see the following as three of the top trends for the year ahead:
- The continued democratization of technology: The more people within an organization who can use technology to accomplish their goals—without IT intervention—the more effective and efficient that organization can be. As vendors continue to focus on delivering innovative solutions that enable non-technical users to take advantage of highly complex technology through intuitive, user-friendly, self-service interfaces, employees will be empowered to autonomously make smarter decisions.
- An upswing in customer data platforms (CDPs): Businesses today collect an incredible amount of data about their customers at a variety of touchpoints—in stores, via call centers, through email, online, and so on—but aggregating all this data into a 360-degree view of the customer has been difficult. This is where CDPs can help. CDPs provide a single source of customer information, allowing business units across an enterprise—from customer service to marketing and sales—to have a holistic, comprehensive view of a specific customer’s every interaction with the company at their fingertips. We expect investments in these platforms to continue to grow.
- Automation: Savvy businesses are always looking for opportunities to use technology to optimize processes—not only can it help streamline operations, but after the initial investment, it can also reduce costs and enhance productivity. We anticipate that companies will continue implementing technology to automate parts of their operations that will allow employees to focus on higher-value, more important tasks.
- How is digital transformation changing project management?
Digital transformation benefits project management in two primary ways. First, the tools being used on a project are continuously updated to be their most efficient and effective. Cloud Computing and online communication mean that location and distance are no longer obstacles for effective remote collaboration, and Big Data allows companies to adjust to their projected needs. Additionally, the application of digital tools and products provides wide-ranging flexibility for dealing with any unexpected roadblocks encountered in development.
Second, digital transformation reduces, and in some cases, can completely eliminates the risk of project outcomes becoming obsolete in the future. Because the framework is continuously updating, the project can remain consistently at the cutting edge of technology long after it has been launched.
- How is digital transformation rewriting business models?
What digital transformation contributes to business models is the capacity for continuous change. Many executives know that they must adapt to new business environments, and adaptation is a core feature of digital transformation. Because a business model that incorporates digital transformation will subsequently be digital “down to the bone,” the company will be able to function much more quickly and efficiently, and improve continuously over time.
Prior digital changes to a business could involve, for example, updating the company’s software, purchasing new design tools, and improving logistics strategies. Once digital transformation has been implemented, such tasks are performed continuously and automated where possible. The concept is similar to the difference between an encyclopedia and Wikipedia. With an encyclopedia, you have to buy a new edition whenever the previous one becomes outdated, whereas the pages of Wikipedia are continuously, and often instantly, updated as new information becomes available.
- How is progress measured for digital transformation?
A business’s digital transformation often involves every level of management and requires the commitment of those in leadership positions from the top down. Typically, a head technology officer such as a CTO or similar will oversee the project and integrate the efforts of all departments as the new way of doing things is implemented. This oversight is necessary because when digital transformation fails, the primary reason is most often uneven implementation or an unwillingness on the part of certain departments to participate.
Digital transformation is often achieved through the creation of a long-term, multistage plan, with each stage involving tracked goals and benchmarks. Changes to such elements as digital tools, payroll and invoicing systems, network structures, and the like are implemented and tested, and all the departments involved are kept in continuous contact with the internal and/or external people who are enacting the changes. That way, any factor that slows progress can be quickly addressed and problems solved immediately.
- Why is digital transformation important for the business industry?
Like the internet was before it, digital transformation is the future. Many businesses, especially those in the technology sector, either have already adopted this business model or were created with it from day one. As a result, companies that ignore or fail to implement digital transformations are putting themselves at risk.
For the business industry as a whole, digital transformation presents an incredible opportunity to improve efficiency, automate tedious and wasteful processes, and be stronger competitors in their sector. Additionally, digital transformation allows companies to be more agile, capable of adapting to changing business conditions with relative ease.
- How can digital transformation affect the growth of my business?
Digital transformation can greatly improve a business’s efficiency, from its hiring practices to logistics and customer service. Integrating Artificial Intelligence and Big Data provides businesses with insights into their customers’ needs and interests. Most importantly, the flexibility that comes with being “digital first” allows any company to quickly and skillfully transition into new functions that cater to what their customers want. This in turn creates spectacular growth opportunities for agile companies.
Additionally, a digitally transformed business can integrate automation into such departments as billing, payroll, and customer service, meaning that employees can be reassigned to more useful, complex duties that make better use of their talents. Employee satisfaction and productivity rise, while the tedium of certain repetitive tasks is eliminated.
- How does a business develop a digital transformation strategy?
A business can develop a digital transformation strategy in-house or using outside expertise. Doing so in-house can give a company greater control over the process. After all, the business knows best what it wants. But recruiting the necessary expertise and training current employees in the digital transformation process can be difficult, which tends to slow down the transformation process.
For most businesses, hiring an outside consultant is often the best choice and offers the greatest value. An outside consultant is able to more objectively analyze a company’s digital transformation needs, develop an overall strategy for the transformation, and implement the necessary changes, step by step. Additionally, a consultancy that specializes in digital transformation will have the deep expertise needed to ensure that the process is executed correctly the first time.
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Digital is the Future, and Digital Transformation is How You Get There
The future of business is digital, that much is undeniable. To compete in a market that is changing faster than ever before and moving online in ways no one could have predicted, your business must also change. And, to be blunt, if you aren’t already making plans to digitally transform your company, you’re falling behind.
Undertaking the digital transformation of your business can be daunting. Doing so involves much more than simply adding a few new online elements, automating a couple of processes, or adding an initial “e” to your products’ names. To prepare for the future, you must change and adapt your business from the top down, with buy-in from leadership and employees at every level and sufficient time and resources to do it right.
Truly digitally transforming your company is not a one-and-done process with an easily and cleanly defined endpoint. For the transition to be effective, it must be understood as a fundamental change to and improvement in the way you do business, one that will give you a competitive advantage in a marketplace increasingly focused on speed, innovation, and revolution. The key is to enlist business consultants who can guide you through the digital transformation process and connect you with the specific partners you need to move your business ahead of the competition.
Experienced, forward-thinking consultants such as those at Blue Ocean Global Technology can help. Their commitment to understanding the world of digital transformation means that your business is spared the costly time and effort that would otherwise be needed to research and test your next move. Blue Ocean Global Technology can help you develop the fundamental digital strategy that will transform your business for the better and prepare it for the future.
Ask Yourself the Right Questions – Then Commit
You must first ask yourself these fundamental, base-level questions about your business and your digital transformation goals:
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For example, the business world has seen the relatively speedy rise of tech companies such as Google and Facebook, who have grown to compete with some of the oldest and most venerated companies in the world and done so amazingly quickly. But we have also seen companies such as WeWork crumble in the face of a depleted business model and hubristic growth. Although moving fast can be highly rewarding, it can also be very risky.
For example, the business world has seen the relatively speedy rise of tech companies such as Google and Facebook, who have grown to compete with some of the oldest and most venerated companies in the world and done so amazingly quickly. But we have also seen companies such as WeWork crumble in the face of a depleted business model and hubristic growth. Although moving fast can be highly rewarding, it can also be very risky.
Start at the Top
Digital transformation is a top-to-bottom process and introduces new challenges to every aspect of the way a company operates. For your digital transformation to be successful, all the decision-makers at your company must be on board and must ensure equal commitment from the people they supervise. All the technology in the world will not help you serve your customers better if your employees don’t believe in it. Employees will need to learn to use new technologies, to shift previously analog tasks and processes to the digital realm, and to perform faster than ever before. Therefore, providing the training and knowledge needed to empower them—so they can better serve your clients and customers—is imperative.
Your clients need to be able to access and interact with your business digitally at all points of contact and to move from one to another seamlessly. This is only possible when all the departments within your company participate simultaneously in the transformation process. Having your digital transformation strategy siloed, so that one department is moving forward while another lags behind (or outright refuses to change), can greatly hinder your business. Digital transformations are most effective when they are company-wide, with everyone at every level following the strategy and adopting the new tools and processes. This may necessitate adding a new member to your company’s C-suite, such as a Chief Digital Officer, a Chief Data Officer, or some combination thereof.
And executives responsible for planning and executing major changes to a business need expertise on their side. Blue Ocean Global Technology can help you design your company’s transformation strategy according to your resources and identify which parts of your business need only minimal changes, and which require a complete overhaul. Blue Ocean Global Technology can ensure that you continue your expansion and growth while still serving your customers, maintain the consistency of your brand as you update your tools and platforms, and connect with the right people and businesses to facilitate these changes.
Use the Right Technologies
Companies that provide excellent customer experiences widely outperform the market. Customers today are more empowered, and more demanding, than ever before. In our increasingly digital world, they can change their preferences and loyalties almost instantaneously and will often do so based on a single bad experience with a company’s customer service.
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This is why rebuilding your company from a customer-first perspective is your best strategy when undertaking a digital transformation. Even adopting the most advanced techniques and tools will not be additive to your business if your customers experience—or continue to experience—frustrating roadblocks to making a purchase or contacting customer service. Companies must adopt new digital technologies that will help customers help themselves, find the information or products they want, and address any issues that would prevent them from being happy and satisfied. Doing your digital transition right can create customer loyalty and improve your business’s reputation.
Luckily, a plethora of new technologies are available that can help businesses make their practices more consistent, their customer profiles more insightful, and their customer service more efficient.
For example, cloud computing is the most obvious technology a company can adopt, and many already have. This diffused, easily accessible system allows your customers and employees to access the data they need whenever they need it and from wherever they are, without the downtime that comes with disconnected servers and other technological problems. Companies such as Amazon use algorithms and process automation to deal with large volumes of customer inquiries and issues, helping the company find a balance between efficiency and necessary human touch. The Internet of Things, or IoT, promises to provide companies with oceans of new data about their customers and how their products are used. And while Big Data is a popular topic these days, AI and advanced analytics are necessary to transform that information into inputs a business can actually use.
All these tools can fundamentally change the way your business views and understands its customers, providing new and deeper insights into exactly who uses your services and how your company can better serve them. Blue Ocean Global Technology’s extensive experience with these technologies, along with digital marketing strategy, digital reputation management, and all aspects of digital transformation, can help you ensure that your customers are informed, happy, and loyal.
Talk to an Expert Today for your Digital Transformation.
… and Prepare for the Future
Part of what makes digital transformation so powerful is that it cannot only revolutionize the way a company works but also, and perhaps more importantly, prepare the company for future revolutions. The technologies adopted during a digital transformation are much more flexible and malleable than, say, a brick-and-mortar storefront. They can be updated or exchanged as needed, or as the market demands. The importance of this adaptability cannot be underestimated.
A company with a properly implemented strategy for digital transformation will be able to more easily incorporate advanced innovations into its business model, such as using algorithmic processes and AI to automate tasks that don’t require human oversight, integrating autonomous vehicles into future transportation design, or using 3-D printing to create needed tools on demand. Digitally “mature” companies—meaning those that have digitally transformed successfully—will be positioned to quickly and effectively react to, and apply, new technology without any wasted time or effort.
Achieve Digital Transformation
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced businesses to embrace the digital transformation that many had, in some cases for years, been reluctant to implement. Although the future remains uncertain, the efficiencies and innovations that have emerged recently are not likely to disappear when the crisis finally passes. But a crisis shouldn’t be needed to inspire employees to embrace new digital tools or a company to plan for the future.
For a company’s digital transformation to work—for the business to achieve true digital maturity—the conversion must be whole. This is not short-term problem solving, but long-term, full-fledged reinvention. The temptation for companies is to think too small, to treat digital transformation as a way of addressing current, minor issues, but a real digital strategy will extend much further and encompass all facets of your business.
A full-fledged digital transformation is also a way of future-proofing your business to an extent. By making your business processes more flexible and efficient, digital transformation will also make your company as a whole much more adaptable to change, both internally and in response to outside forces. If a digitally mature business encounters a drastic market change, like the one we are seeing right now, it will be able to implement the necessary innovations and updates almost instantly.
Blue Ocean Global Technology can provide your company with an individualized digital transformation plan designed to simultaneously reorient your business, address digital marketing innovation, and safeguard your brand’s reputation. With the pace of business becoming faster and faster, you need a consultancy partner that can both watch your back and ensure that you are never left behind.
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