Social distancing and the Covid-19 pandemic will have a profound, long-lasting effect on the way we live and the way we work. A digital business transformation is more important today than ever in the past because it allows companies to remain operational, regardless of the circumstances.
So, what does it take to carry out a successful digital business transformation and why should you do it?
There are several reasons why going digital is the only way to ensure the lasting success of your business.
Statistics show that digitally mature companies are 23 percent more profitable than their competitors. Digital-first companies are also 64 percent more likely to achieve their goals than others.
As you can see, a digital business transformation is definitely worth it. And while there isn’t a single, standard way for implementing one, you can rely on some best practices bound to speed up the process and give you optimal results.
Start with a Tailored Digital Business Transformation Strategy
You need a digital transformation strategy that takes into account business specifics, your goals and the anticipated outcome in the aftermath of the transition.
A few of the steps required to put together such a strategic plan include:
• Determine what your vision for implementing the digital transformation is
• Do market analysis
• Know what kind of digital experience you’ll be opting for
• Assess the current processes and performance of the company
• Assess your current infrastructure
• Make infrastructure changes based on this analysis
Understand the Current Market and Find a Reliable Partner
Digital business transformations evolve all the time. The solutions that were considered revolutionary five years ago have mostly become obsolete. These have been replaced by more tailored, more effective and more scalable corporate solutions.
You need to research what the current market has to offer and you also need a partner who’s familiar with such technologies and capable of implementing.
Spending money on technologies that will become irrelevant in a few years isn’t just wasteful, it will also fail contributing to the change in productivity and process optimization you’re hoping for.
A digital transformation should not be rushed. With such an extensive scope of market possibilities, you really need to zero in on the ones that are suited to your specific goal.
Implement a Framework of Innovation
Related to the previous consideration, making your digital business transformation strategy receptive of further innovation will be a very important goal.
You already have an idea about the platform and the solutions you’re going to choose to take your corporate practices to the digital realm. How will these solutions, however, make you capable of further innovation adoption in the years to come?
Refrain from selecting a monolithic platform that integrates and offers everything. Rather, you should opt for a module-based solution that enables the addition of new capabilities as these become available or required by your team.
Many cloud-based solutions already operate this way, offering a ton of flexibility. If you don’t want to be going through another digital transformation in a few years, this is the best approach to adopt during the process.
Think in Terms of Business Models, Not Products
Choosing e-commerce solutions is great but it’s going to be insufficient if you’re planning to make the most of the brand new capabilities.
Instead, you should be conceptualizing business models and workflows that make use of the respective digital solution you’ve chosen.
What’s the difference between the two?
Very often, business owners think they can keep the business unchanged and only enhance it through the introduction of a digital solution. It doesn’t work this way. New technologies necessitate a change of mindset and processes that are in line with the company’s current state of development and future goals.
So essentially, a digital business transformation is heavily focused on a change of mindset. It starts with the managerial team but it needs to encompass just about everyone. This is the reason why company-wide policies, training and educational opportunities matter as much as the selection of new technology.
Know Your KPIs and Measure Success!
Finally, you have to keep tracking the performance of your digital transformation.
Every single choice you make as a business owner should contribute to positive outcomes – higher productivity, better employee engagement, improved collaboration, enhanced customer service and ultimately – revenue optimization.
When planning your digital transformation, you should determine which metrics you’re going to track.
Assessing the performance of new technology and processes allows you to make additional adjustments and correct some initial shortcomings. Luckily, digital technologies come with extensive reporting capabilities, giving you access to all of the important data required to determine just how successful you’ve been.