A Better Path to Digital Transformation
When companies face competitive threats, new technology usually inspires change. But can’t there be an easier way?
Regardless of how people try to define it these days, digital transformation is ultimately about getting people to work differently. Any shiny new technology can jumpstart the effort, whether cloud, cyber, AI, IoT, blockchain, or something else. But the end goal is about changing how an organization operates, and the tool is just a catalyst to shake things up.
True, some forward-thinking organizations will initiate a digital transformation effort proactively to get a leg up on the competition. But in our experience with clients, such an endeavor more likely begins with a moment of threat.
Leaders recognize they’re being outpaced by their peers, or out-tooled by an emerging disruptive platform from Silicon Valley. Someone else is finding a way to automate what they do, and it’s scary. It might even set off an existential crisis.
Those realizations make an organization acutely aware that they need to do better in building an unbridgeable gap between themselves and their industry peers. That’s natural. But all too often, the c-suite considers technology to be a silver bullet — a new way to throw money at a problem.
Yet overcoming a threat is never as simple as one tool. Standing up a new AI program is a fine directive, but it soon leads to a web of complex decisions affecting the company’s entire solution stack. Where should AI be applied, exactly? And who gets it first: sales, marketing, supply chain, or HR? Even the largest, most sophisticated companies can’t do everything at once.
Regardless of an organization’s size or industry, we’ve found that the biggest obstacle to transformation is usually a lack of clear accountability on the inside. Each department wants the latest tech and tools, but no single one wants to commit to a big complex effort. Self-preservation kicks in, risk is avoided, and committees become mired in analysis paralysis.
So companies typically turn to the outside for help. Some hire a partner that specializes in a particular tool, but soon realize that broader expertise is required. In other cases, a committee agrees on a large and well-established consulting firm. The choice certainly mitigates risk internally, but it soon initiates a long and expensive journey with no end in sight.
Months pass, perhaps even years. The competition keeps improving, tools continue to evolve, and the threat grows more urgent. While well-intentioned teams and partners soldier on, tangible results fail to materialize. And what began as so-called transformation becomes an expensive new version of the old status quo.
But there’s good news. We at OX have found a better way.
Most everyone in our field agrees that digital transformation is about aligning people, processes, systems, and technologies to help achieve progress against company strategies and key business goals. But our definition adds a critical phrase: in service of the user.
In guiding clients through these initiatives over the years, we’ve found that whatever technology is in play, a user-centric approach is essential for achieving real results.
Our peers tend to place heavy emphasis on the what — a high-level strategy — and the how — a tactical plan for getting it done. We agree that both elements are critical to a successful effort. But we approach our work with more focus on the who. Meaningful and lasting change can only happen when real human needs are front and center, factored into every decision.
In our view, both internal and external participants are part of the user base that should guide decision making. That means front-stage users, such as customers and consumers who interact directly with new technology, as well as the back-stage employees who translate new tools into real-life experiences. We believe insights from each side must inform both strategy and execution.
At OX, our teams are equally sensitive to the needs of the people who hire us. We know our clients have demanding jobs with significant responsibilities, and in their world, digital transformation represents just one workstream among many. So we’ve designed a process that makes complex problem-solving less stressful for them.
The core of our process is a six- to eight-week workshop effort. We begin with the core pillars of the company’s identity — mission, vision, and purpose — which serve as the foundation of everything to come. We gather sources of truth to inform the effort, from user insights and personas to the analytics, systems, and strategic intents already in place.
Armed with these key pieces of knowledge, we lead clients through a series of inquiries on where transformation might take place. Between in-depth interviews and facilitated group discussions, we determine how new tools and processes could affect a number of key areas, from customer acquisition and content strategy to ecommerce enablement and performance measures.
Throughout the process, we strive to balance what’s possible and what’s practical. We identify the blockers that might impede progress, so we’re all aware of them in advance. We determine any constraints that apply, from budget to resources to solution stacks. And we always plan with a keen eye on both the people and technologies needed to foster change.
With a full range of possibilities before us, we then arrive at the trickiest part of the workshop process: prioritization. Through a spirited exercise we call Thunderdome — with all Mad Max connotations intentional — we do the difficult work of determining what to do first.
Together, our teams balance effort and impact to decide which tasks will begin our journey toward change. At once, we select the iterative approaches that will achieve quick wins — all while keeping an eye on larger and more transformative opportunities.
Then, and only then, can the work of iterative development begin.
Whatever metaphor you prefer, whether it’s boiling oceans or eating elephants, one guiding factor is clear: lasting change occurs one small step at a time. An estimated 70% of all digital transformation efforts fail, according to McKinsey, for any number of reasons. But in our experience, one culprit is the most common: the desire to do too much at once.
By translating clear guiding principles into prioritized tasks, companies can avoid this temptation. Instead, they can identify the best candidates for putting points on the board in a matter of weeks rather than months. Armed with a clear change management plan, the development team achieves early success, and the project gains internal momentum.
Perhaps most importantly, a successful pilot program gives leadership meaningful results that provide reason for optimism. Even the most skeptical executives warm to encouraging data, and tangible outcomes within a project’s first quarter make a complex effort easier to visualize, support, and invest in. Belief is great, but ongoing proof of the project’s success is even better — ideally across both short- and long-term time horizons.
A string of early successes, even relatively modest ones, also serve to grow an organization’s digital maturity. It’s common for internal functions to operate in silos, or bring tension when they do work together. But across departments — from project management to product ownership to delivery — even seasoned professionals and teams can learn from each other over time, strengthening their ability to collaborate.
Initial programs can also force teams to be more nimble. In our experience, the first few phases clarify what’s most important to driving real change. Our priorities may shift as we learn more, but ideally, our guiding principles remain consistent. We’re still operating in service of the business strategy, even if our mode of organizational change needs to evolve.
At every decision point, we at OX encourage our clients to look through the lens of the user — in both an external and internal sense. Even the most thoughtful planning still depends on that moment of truth when expectation and reality collide. The collision of technology and human experience teaches us our most important lessons, demanding our full attention.
And when all goes well, whatever technology might set a transformation effort in motion, we and our clients experience the ultimate goal: new and better ways of working together.
To discuss your digital transformation needs further, contact the author at cmanalo@officeofexperience.com.
