Digital… Where to Start?
To recap
A short while ago on our blog post (here) we posted about Digital Transformation to help define what it is referring to, plus some key considerations before undertaking such an initiative. In this post we continue with the theme and offer some further detail around the relationship between Digital Transformation and Digital Strategy. We then provide a high-level view of the end-to-end process of developing your Digital Strategy from Business Vision through to a detailed Implementation roadmap.
Digital < Digitalisation < Digitisation
Before diving into Transformation and Strategy, it is important to know the distinction between the below terminology when discussing “Digital”. We often see these being used interchangeably but they are talking about different things (albeit related):
Digital Strategy and Digital Transformation
Digital Transformation – is ‘the integration of digital technology into all facets of a business and results in a fundamental shift in how the business operates and how value is delivered to customers.’
Digital Transformation is best achieved through sponsorship of the change initiative at the highest level and then driven down throughout the whole organisation. Its success is dependent upon instilling a cultural change where the organisation is willing to continually challenge the status quo, become more agile in its ability to respond to customer needs and competitors’ actions, experiment more and accept that failure is part of the learning process.
There are many common reasons for pursuing digital transformation, and it varies widely between organisations, but some include:
Improve customer experience
Improve efficiency
Improve decision-making
To beat the competition!
All goals of a Digital Transformation should frame the technology as an opportunity for the business – not the other way around.
Digital Strategy considers the reasons for pursuing digital transformation at your organisation, and typically requires an analysis of the market, and new technologies as well as your organisations business model (Customer Segments, Channels, Customer Relationships, Value Propositions, Key Resources, Key Activities/Processes, Key Partners, Revenue Streams and Cost Structures). The output is a digital strategy with a clear vision, new business options and an implementation roadmap.
The Digital Strategy is owned by the whole organisation and is researched, developed, and sustained by an internal team of people with a cross-functional perspective, this may include Management, Business Operations, Digital, Marketing and Communications, Technology, Sales.
The Digital Strategy should be framed in the context of a) What your customers need and expect of you, and b) the true transformation of the business.
Co-designing your digital services and channels together with your (external and internal) customers will greatly improve the chances that digital initiatives meet their needs.
So where to start?
A good starting point to develop your strategy roadmap for digital transformation is to clearly articulate the challenges faced by your organisation and then work through a series of stages to what and how these need to be done and at what time. This list will keep you aligned with the vision and strategic goals of the organisation.
First - Understand your Why.
Challenges – What are the problems or opportunities to be solved?
Objectives – What things we must achieve to meet our challenges?
Second – Work out What needs to change.
Capabilities – What changes in our capabilities must we make to enable us to deliver our objectives?
Actions – What actions are required to change our capabilities?
Third - Work out How you will implement the required changes.
Initiatives – What initiatives (or projects) need to be completed within our actions?
Roadmap – What sequence or phases are required for our initiatives?
Ok, so what is YOUR next step?
We trust the above serves as a good overview of the key ‘Digital’ terms being bandied about, explains the differences and relationship between Digital Transformation and Digital Strategy, and you have some idea about how to go about it all.
However, whilst a good idea provides much promise for your business, it will remain purely an idea until it is implemented!
If you require some assistance along your Digital Transformation journey and want to leverage our expertise, please Contact Us.
