Great article that positions many of the change management issues that you need to look at as part of your digital transformation.
Digital is hard and it isn't about moving to cloud, (though that could be part of it). Moving to cloud replaces your old systems with new systems. Where is the change in that?
Moving to digital means you need to change your current operating model, which means investing in digital skills for your employees, find new (digital) ways of working and changing your processes to enable you to take on the benefits of digital.
For example, it's pretty pointless ripping out one accounting system and replacing it with another, unless you are upskilling your staff and taking efficiency benefits from new processes. If you are still doing all the same things that you did before, you might have a new and cheaper cloud based system, but what really are the business benefits you have achieved?
The same with sales and marketing. In the internet, social media and mobile enable world, what business impact are you going to make to market to and sell to the internet enabled prospect and customer?
We ignore advertising, we ignore corporate content, we hate unsolicited emails and we hate unsolicited telephone calls. Luckily I have standard functionality on my iPhone that blocks cold callers and standard functionality in email that enables me to block unsolicited emails.
Now while you may not agree with that, but I'm sorry, it's a fact of life. It's a fact that your prospects and clients are using technology and legislation (GDPR) against you to try and stop the onslaught of noise.
Digital Transformation isn't about technology, it's about having a different people and processes enabled to support the new digital age. This means that your organisation has to retain relevance and make sure you are gaining new clients (prospecting) using the tools and techniques of the day. That will require you to invest in enabling your employees and equipping them with the right skills that are fit for purpose to meet the modern customer.
Lesson 1: Figure out your business strategy before you invest in anything. Leaders who aim to enhance organizational performance through the use of digital technologies often have a specific tool in mind. “Our organization needs a machine learning strategy,” perhaps. But digital transformation should be guided by the broader business strategy.
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