Digital transformation is a term that you have probably heard at least once over the past few years. Many companies looking to make their way in this new era of business have discussed, debated, and analysed.
Digital transformation refers to an organisation’s ability to change or improve its products or processes with information technologies.
It’s no secret that digital transformation has changed the way businesses operate. As technology continues to advance, so do the challenges faced by companies trying to keep up. However, there are many ways for businesses to overcome these issues and thrive in today’s ever-changing business world.
According to Contino’s 2021 Europe digital transformation report, digital transformation is a challenging process for any company, but you can use many different strategies to make it easier. Many businesses are struggling with how this process will affect them personally – but don’t worry!
Challenges Associated with Digital Transformation
Finding The Right Talent to Accommodate Your Digital Transformation Goals
As more and more companies make their way in this new era of business, there is a growing concern surrounding addressing these changes. Not only do businesses have to find ways to keep up – but they also need ways of keeping employees on board with the transition as well.
Luckily, there are several ways businesses can adapt to this new era of business. For example, businesses need not worry about finding the right talent to accommodate their digital transformation goals – because it’s already happening!
In recent years, more and more employees have become aware of the changes within companies. As a result, many businesses find that their talent pools grow because workers want to be involved with digital transformation efforts. Additionally, businesses can now find talent from different parts of the world that they may not have had access to before.
The Rise of Social Media and Its Effect on Business Digital Transformation
Another challenge companies face during their digital transformations is social media’s impact on business operations. Social media has completely changed the way consumers interact with businesses, and it has also allowed for new forms of marketing and advertising products and services.
As a result, companies need to find ways to adapt their digital transformation strategies to account for social media’s impact on business operations. Luckily, many businesses have been successful in doing so!
One way that businesses have managed to overcome this challenge is by creating a social media policy. This policy outlines the types of content that aren’t allowed on company social media platforms and how employees should interact with customers online.
Another strategy businesses have used to overcome the challenges associated with social media is updating their websites. This allows companies to make sure they are reaching customers in new ways while also making it easier for potential prospects and current consumers to access company information online.
How Experts Have Helped Businesses Overcome Issues With Digital Transformation
Kathryn Tingle
At the time of the digital innovators’ report, Kathryn Tingle was a Senior Technical Programme Manager at Sainsbury’s. She has been working to transform Sainsbury’s digital services while continuing its commitment to being one of the best food stores in the UK.
“It’s all about harnessing our power and being able to meet customer needs and expectations as quickly and seamlessly as possible,” said Kathryn.
Kathryn worked extensively on shifting the company’s mindsets to meet customer needs in a high-growth retail environment by being clear on who the user was, determining your north star, and clearly articulating the value of your work.
During the pandemic, when physical stores were closed and consumers were unable to get their food items, Sainsbury’s demonstrated how strong its digital abilities were by swiftly increasing click-and-collect sites as well as delivery times across the country, prioritising elderly, disabled, and vulnerable customers.
Fiona Deans
Fiona Deans became the director-general of the Government Digital Service, which is the team in charge of making sure that all government services are delivered digitally.
In this role, Fiona has been successful in helping citizens increase trust in government during the Coronavirus pandemic and Brexit. She achieved this by putting the user first and foremost, raising your people, and looking after your data.
Fiona believes, “When you have to get something done, people make it happen.” She created Government-as-a-Platform – a set of shared digital components made to avoid duplication and support delivery – which was utilized for texting citizens using GOV.UK Notify saw a 700% spike in demand and GOV.UK Verify, which supported the verification of identities for Universal Credit.
Hima Mandali
At the time of the innovators’ report, Hilma Mandali was the Chief Technology Officer of Solaris bank, a digital-only bank in Germany.
Solaris bank is the first company to offer a mobile banking app that doesn’t require a customer to have a bank account.
In this role, Hilma has been successful in helping Solaris become one of the most popular banks in Germany. She leveraged simplicity and scalability to accelerate the future of banking.
She was able to achieve this by investing in the people and putting tech people at the forefront of banking projects and solving problems with a piece of code rather than processes.”
Solarisbank migrated its whole platform to AWS in 2020, during a worldwide epidemic, without interruption for its clients. Now that they’re in the cloud, they can replicate their platform across multiple locations. The next step is to extend into Europe. It’s not just one country; instead, it’s most of them at the same time!
Chris Zissis
At the time of the report, Chris was the Global Chief Information and Technology Officer at JLL, a multinational commercial real estate company, where he has led a remarkable change.
In this role, Chris has been successful in helping JLL create a peerless digital proposition in the commercial real estate industry by developing a customer-centric strategy to digitize every process across the company.
In his interview, Chris reiterated that “You have to have a clear strategy, clear engagement, scale as much as possible, automate, digitize, and then you create products that clients and colleagues love.”
He also said that it’s critical to have a strategy in place and pivot; listen and ensure people are heard; automate, standardize, and scale processes.
JLL’s digital dominance has given them significant market power. It allowed JLL to seamlessly incorporate an important acquisition while the COVID-19 lockdown was in place, an accomplishment that would have been difficult for rivals to duplicate.
Summary
As the digital transformation continues to accelerate, it’s more important than ever for businesses to adapt and evolve. The key is understanding how your business can leverage new technologies as they become available without letting them overwhelm you.
