Digital Transformation Myths and Trends

You’ve heard of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This is probably the most popular topic for business, opinion leaders, politicians, scientists and, of course, technocrats.

Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, who coined the term, writes: “The first industrial revolution used water and steam to mechanize production. The second used electrical energy to create mass production. Electronics and information technology for automation of production Today the fourth industrial revolution is based on the third – digital revolution, which occurred since the middle of the last century and is characterized by a combination of technologies defining the boundaries between physical, digital and biological. Sphere. “

He emphasizes a very important and relevant point: “Neither technology nor related violations are an exogenous force over which people cannot influence. We are all responsible for guiding its development into the decisions we make every day. consumers and investors. “

Although the term “digital transformation” is still poorly understood, digital transformation as a necessity of business is now widely recognized. So, what is digital transformation in practice? Is this an IT project? Or the introduction of cool tools into the business? Or add a mobility-focused customer relationship management initiative (CRM) to better engage customers?

Whether you want to move to or exit digital transformation as an organization, there are still some digital transformation myths that you should avoid. If you want to guide your organization through digital transformation, the first step is to understand the reality of digital transformation, not to get carried away with the hype.

In this article we will use excerpts from some prestigious industry reports/official documents to debunk some myths.

The reports/official documents quoted by us include:

World Economic Forum (WEF) White Paper on Digital Transformation of Industries: Digital Business Developed in Collaboration with Accenture
Forrester’s report, The Need for Digital Business, co-authored by Martin Gill and Nigel Fenwick.
Digital technology is fashion; a trend that my business doesn’t need to think about
Digital Transformation Process
Digital technologies have changed the market context of any business, and the pace of change is accelerating.
The WEF’s official document states: “Leaders in most industries widely recognize that the role of digital technology is rapidly shifting from the driving force of marginal efficiency to the driving force behind fundamental innovation and destruction. Transformations in many aspects of business, providing unprecedented opportunities to create and consolidate value, business leaders across all industries face the strategic implications of these transformations for their organizations, industrial ecosystems, and society.

Digital transformation means exceptional quality of customer service based on new technologies

Digital technology has not only affected channels and customers. This destroys organizations from within and changes the way they do business. Digital technologies are opening up new opportunities for organizations that can implement technology fairly quickly. This reduces market time, reduces costs and opens up new sources of income.

According to the Forrester Report, “Digital commerce is not just about quality customer service; it’s also a way to increase operational flexibility. Digital operations can accelerate market entry, increase employee productivity, promote lean processes, and make the most of assets.

Let me create an app. My digital transformation is complete.

Digital transformation is not the introduction of multiple tools to change certain aspects of your business, whether it’s employee collaboration or customer transactions.

Forrester’s report states:

Digital technology is fundamentally changing your relationship with your customers. You can’t approach this change with a digital strategy that adds an app or website to it. To stay competitive, you need to rethink how your business creates value for your customers in the digital age.

Digital transformation is only possible with revolutionary technology

With every digital transformation, you don’t have to take examples of Uber and Airbnb from the perspective of new technologies. Which stack of technologies you use depends on your business context, and technological impact is only part of a digital transformation. Sometimes you can achieve significant improvements in productivity, flexibility, and customer orientation through proven operating technologies (networks and databases) and critical technologies (enterprise resource planning or customer relationship management) or mobility.

According to the official WEF document, a real digital business is more than just the use of new technologies. On the contrary, what really distinguishes a digital company and gives it a competitive advantage is its culture, strategy and way of working. Digital companies are constantly striving to create new, cost-effective business models supported by flexible business processes, connected platforms, analytics and collaboration capabilities that increase business productivity. The digital business constantly explores, identifies and develops new digital business models and always ensures that customers and employees are at the center of everything they do.

Digital Transformation: I have to come this year to keep up

Digital transformation cannot and should not be sprinter. It is a long way with many points of contact and a thing of course; dependency and synergistic efforts.

Forrester’s report says: “You need to transform your business by applying digital thinking to everything you do: how to attract, serve and retain customers; How you manage your internal processes and how you buy commercial services.

Your answers to the questions below will help you create a roadmap that will expand digital transformation beyond IT.

The business success of digital transformation

Have you identified the areas of your business where automation is most relevant?
Is your current staff constantly improving performance and quality?
What steps have been taken to convince your investors of your digital vision and in creating the long-term value of your digital transformation path?