The hidden façade of digital transformation
The challenge facing companies is to adapt to a new era, and to change their organization, management, their relationship with consumers and the way they deliver value. We’re not just talking about digital transformation, but real change.
Confusion around this new way of thinking
Companies have for a long time swept the subject under the rug, due to a misunderstanding, cumbersome organizational systems or fear of change.
- A webmaster is hired and put in the basement and a digital agency is underpaid (or overpaid) to make a nice site;
- The intern is asked to put the TV or magazine ad on line …
- A company invests to make a video, create a Facebook page, an Instagram account or develop an app that is often useless;
- An e-commerce site is launched because others are doing the same
These examples are perhaps a little exaggerated, but in the majority of companies everything digital is regarded as a separate entity.
This new world in which we live is obviously full of different technologies and new tools but it is much more than that:
- It’s an interconnected world, where everyone and all things will soon be linked to the internet
- It’s a transparent and open world where everyone knows everything, where
people make comparisons and express their opinions
- It’s a more demanding worldwhere everyone knows what is best and wants to have access to it
- It’s a world of tribes where people do, see or consume in the same way as those with whom they share interests and values
- It’s a world of permanent challenges
- It’s a faster and unstableworld where change is continuous
Companies that are a step ahead are not the ones “digitalizing” by putting into place new tools, but those that have understood that in this new world the rules of the game have changed.
In a constantly changing world, the mission of a company remains the same: a business is there to satisfy people’s needs.
However, two observations have to be taken into account to position ourselves in our modern world:
- Digital tools allow for new innovations to respond to our needs more efficiently
- The pace and the origin of these innovations have changed dramatically.
Here are two examples:
- A taxi service still seems to meet our need to go from A to B, but Uber has created a new service that will satisfy this need in a better way.
This company has relied on the massive adoption of digital technology and tools (smartphones and apps) to invent a new business model.
- Netflix, originally an online DVD rental company, quickly repositioned itself as a streaming platform (when high-speed connections made this possible) before evolving again to become a leader in entertainment (notably thanks to the avant-garde use of the data collected on its platform).
So how can companies make radical changes in the best possible way?
First understand.
Companies must give themselves the means to actually observe, listen, and above all, understand how their world has evolved: their customers, prospects, competitors, partners, and their employees.
New tools have become indispensable: digital marketing, UX, Big Data, connected objects, block chain, mobility, robotics, hubs…
Dare.
Real change can only come from the top, based on a committed desire from management to make significant changes.
Become resilient
The survival of an organization over the long term is directly linked to its ability to innovate continuously, to challenge itself, in a constantly changing environment. The business model of a company can disappear tomorrow, the company must know how to adapt quickly to survive.