Digital Transformation — essential reading
The speed with which consumers adopt new technologies is often breathtaking. Digital Transformation is the term many businesses use to describe their response to this. It’s a problematic phrase but an important idea. In reality transformation is happening to us all, every second of every day, whether we like it or not. It raises a fundamental question for us:
How shall we organise for a digital world?
Below is a collection of some of the best articles on digital transformation, organised into Problems — ideas that highlight common issues and Solutions — thoughts on a way forward.
The Problems
I’m having a digital transformation right now
Brilliant, funny diatribe on some of the more unhelpful aspects of digital transformation and the reasons there’s so much written on the why and so little on the how.
It feels to me like the human side of ‘Digital Transformation’ could get forgotten in all the excitement — but that this is where all the real excitement resides.
Digital Transformation and Leadership — The Five Big Questions
- What does ‘digital’ actually mean?
- How will your company cope with digital transformation?
- What happens to the people who can’t or won’t go digital?
- Are your leaders doing what digital leaders have to do?
- Are you personally ready, willing and able to go digital yourself?
Why so many high-profile digital transformations fail
Summary of the pitfalls many change initiatives struggle with
Understanding digital mastery today
Capgemini 2018 report on digital transformation —
- It’s still as hard today as it was in 2012
- Technology and consumer behaviours continue to evolve at pace
- Talent and culture represents a major challenge (organizations are often failing to ensure their employees feel part of the journey
- Focus on the key dimensions for success in digital transformation, such as operations and governance and in particular, talent and culture
Solutions
The new landscape of digital transformation
Following on from his ‘I’m having a digital transformation right now’, Tim Malbon explores the area in relation to Eric Ries work in The Startup Way.
At its heart it’s about small, empowered, cross-functional teams exploiting economies of speed rather than scale.
What is Digital Culture
Summary areas to consider when building a future-fit culture
What the Best Transformational Leaders Do:
- Transformational leaders tend to be “insider outsiders”
- They strategically pursue two separate journeys
- They use culture change to drive engagement
- They communicate powerful narratives about the future
- They develop a road map before disruption takes hold
Culture for a digital age
People think digital transformation’s 90% technology and 10% people where the reverse is usually true. Important article emphasising the importance of culture
One is to embed a mind-set of risk taking and innovation through all ranks of the enterprise. The second is for executives themselves to act boldly once they have decided on a specific digital play
Mastering Digital Transformation
- Define what digital means for your organization.
- Describe a vision worth fighting for.
- Design your organization to deliver on the vision (not the other way around).
- Develop the culture and capabilities needed to bring the vision to life.
Agile Transformation at ING — a case study
ING’s journey of transformation. A rare example of a traditional business going through a successful long-term transformation.
‘It requires sacrifices and a willingness to give up fundamental parts of your current way of working — starting with the leaders. We gave up traditional hierarchy, formal meetings, overengineering, detailed planning, and excessive “input steering” in exchange for empowered teams, informal networks, and “output steering.” You need to look beyond your own industry and allow yourself to make mistakes and learn. The prize will be an organization ready to face any challenge.’
