8 Tenets of an Effective Digital Transformation Strategy

Digital technologies are dramatically reshaping industry after industry. As per a McKinsey survey, over eight in 10 companies undertake digital transformation (DX) initiatives to keep up with the technological trends or stay ahead of the competition. However, only one-third (30%) of those succeed at improving their organization's performance. 

So, what can you actually do to give your digital business transformation the best chance of succeeding? Experts suggest a few critical pieces of the puzzle, such as having a well-defined digital transformation strategy in place, preparing the organization for cultural change, and hiring a reputed and reliable digital transformation services company. 

In this article, we will be talking about the eight major tenets of a successful digital transformation strategy essential for DX success. 

Answering, why digital transformation?

Figuring out the answer to why digital transformation is required for your organization and how it is meaningful for everyone involved is the first major step in your DX journey. Your employees must know and understand what they are supporting. They should also know the benefits and challenges that tie to the digital transformation strategy and its winning.  

Aligning transformation with business goals

The alignment of the digital transformation strategy with your business goals is an important factor for success. Remember, the transformation cannot be driven only out of IT. Therefore, it must completely align with your enterprise’s overall business objectives, mission, and planned future.   

Starting small but strategic

Digital transformation is a long journey that takes months and sometimes years to accomplish. Start with projects that are small in scale but have a good ROI. Projects that can ensure quick wins and show measurable results within six months or less. 

Why? Getting a return on investment in a short period of time gives your digital transformation initiatives the required momentum.   

Mastering risk management

Digital transformation is about moving fast, scaling new technologies, and developing operational mindsets. Therefore, everything about digital transformation seems to go against the traditional IT concepts of risk containment.

However, as per experts, these very characteristics demand diligent design of risk management around the digital transformation effort. Organization leaders who master this are most likely to accomplish a successful digital transformation. 

Preparing organization for cultural change

The heart of the digital transformation is not technology but humans. And while it is natural for there to be resistance to massive change, you should be prepared to address that push-back. You should work towards building a team mindset with representatives across all departments - sales, marketing, IT, and more. 

It is natural to face transformation challenges along the way, but the representatives should work on nurturing a culture where every employee learns from mistakes and builds on successes.   

Mapping out the technologies to be implemented

Technology is a necessary tool that will help your digital business transformation initiatives reach the desired outcome. A common set of digital transformation technologies fundamental to achieving the desired DX results include:

• ● Cloud
• ● IOT
• ● Artificial Intelligence
• ● Machine Learning
• ● Data Analytics
• ● Mobile
• ● Augmented Reality

The technology set should be chosen, keeping in mind your initial digital transformation use cases. While some of these technologies may already be in use in your company, there might be some missing pieces preventing the real business value from being realized. 

Hiring a reliable digital transformation services partner

To realize the full potential of technology implementation, it is important that you partner with a reliable digital transformation service provider. Finding the right DX partner with the required expertise accelerates the whole digital transformation process. 

Some of the key questions to ask while examining the options for a digital transformation service provider include:

• ● Does the company understand your business’ digital transformation vision?
• ● Will the company be able to support you in your long-term strategy?
• ● Does the company have the right technology and expertise for the specific use cases of your business?
• ● What results have the company achieved in its previous digital transformation projects?

Gathering frequent feedback and measuring success 

At this point, you have the required vision, strategy, technology roadmap, and partners essential for your business’ digital transformation success. Now, before moving ahead, clearly define the KPIs for each project. Make sure all the key stakeholders are aware and accountable for what needs to be done to make the project successful. 

At the same time, make sure to gather frequent feedback from all the stakeholders. This will ensure that everything is on track and that everyone is learning from their experience on the go. 

Final thoughts

As industries and businesses evolve, digital transformation will continue to be a crucial part of business strategy for organizations to remain competitive in the market. However, embracing digital transformation is not easy, especially considering the times when technology is continually reshaping the boundaries of what’s possible. And, it gets even more difficult when employees resist change or when an investment fails. 

Leaders with a systematic approach and a well-defined digital transformation strategy are more likely to win the DX battle and see the investment pay off. The eight tenets mentioned above must be taken as a blueprint to take the first steps towards thriving in the new digital reality.