The concept of digital transformation is present in the day-to-day lives of most professionals across all sectors. Companies that wish to grow and remain competitive must prepare to be more resilient and increase their capacity to respond to the constant changes occurring in the business environment. Organizations must develop digital assets that allow them to innovate and adapt traditional business models to the changing demands for greater personalization of the service received by the customer.
[su_note note_color=”#F0EFEF” text_color=”#333333″ radius=”5″ class=””]
window.hsFormsOnReady = window.hsFormsOnReady || [];
window.hsFormsOnReady.push(()=>{
hbspt.forms.create({
portalId: 7555051,
formId: “69ee043b-74a0-4723-8133-9ea7d8275ca1”,
target: “#hbspt-form-1791756601000-0051740693”,
region: “na1”,
})});
[/su_note]
What is digital transformation?
Digital transformation is the process of incorporating technology into all areas of society with the aim of improving citizens’ well-being and offering opportunities to make it more equitable.
What is digital transformation in business?
Business digital transformation is the process of incorporating technology and applying it to improve the processes carried out within the company, with the aim of gaining productivity and increasing added value for its customers.
As a result of digital transformation, the company gains competitiveness, discovers new opportunities, increases revenue, and reduces operating costs.
Who is ready for digital transformation?
Digital transformation is the third phase of digital technology adoption. After digital competence and digital use, digital transformation completes the journey.
Therefore, not all organizations are ready to apply digital transformation.
The company and its workers must be trained and must have internalized digital competencies. After that, the intensive adoption of technology in their processes will bring maturity to the company and will make clear the areas for improvement in business processes and how the adoption of new technologies delivers greater value to the customer.
Who should not carry out the digital transformation process?
There is no one who can remain on the sidelines if they want to survive over a 10-year horizon. The future is digital, and companies that carry out digital transformation will be more competitive (reducing costs and increasing revenue), will enjoy greater preference from their customers (by delivering greater value), and will have more qualified workers who identify with the company’s values (by improving their efficiency and dedicating more time to creative processes).
The keys to a digital transformation process
Digital competencies of business teams
As we have seen above, it is not possible to carry out a digital transformation process if the company is not already digital. Both management teams and middle managers and front-line employees must have a digital mindset and preparation in line with the functions they are going to perform.
Management teams must have solid high-level training in digital environments. Knowing the possibilities offered by technology, having the capacity to discover its application to the sector, and having examples from their sector (of success but also of failure) is an obligation for an executive who wishes to initiate this process.
Workers must have digital training and have internalized its use. A system that saves large amounts of processing time and delivers benefits to the customer is of no use if the person who must use it is unfamiliar with it or lacks proficiency with the technology.
Defining objectives
Setting objectives is another task we must carry out to initiate a digital transformation process. Objectives do not have to revolutionize the entire company; adopting small but constant changes that become successes will allow us to travel the path with confidence. In this regard, agile implementation processes will help us.
Investment
Obviously, an economic investment is necessary to address the process. We may need to move toward the cloud model if we have not already done so. We will likely need to invest in certain field-use devices for operations or the sales department. And we will certainly need to expand, renew, or adapt the business management software and rely on professionals to accompany us in its implementation.
Current technologies
There is no single technology that guarantees an adequate digital transformation process. It will be a set of technologies — those available to companies at any given time — that will help us carry out the process successfully. Currently we are talking about
- The cloud model, which allows quick access to software, freedom from concerns about updates, and immediate remote access.
- Mobility systems bring information acquisition closer to the point where it is generated and, conversely, make information available wherever it is needed.
- IoT (Internet of Things) is a growing technology that enables significant cost savings and multiplies the data available for decision-making.
- Artificial intelligence helps the company in decision-making.
Two examples of companies that began digital transformation
Mardom
With an on-site implementation scheduled for the period from January to October 2020, the pandemic prompted a rethinking of the project: shelve the project until the lockdown was over or find a solution that would allow team coordination and remote work.
Opting for the second option, Mardom and KCP Dynamics quickly implemented Microsoft Teams. Not only the installation on remote devices, but also staff training and environment customization.
Thanks to the decision and the choice of tool, on November 1, 2020, Mardom successfully launched its business management environment based on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations.
Cerarte
During 2019 we accompanied Cerarte, a supplier of finishings in the Dominican Republic, in a digital transformation process that involved the entire company and whose main objectives were
- Avoiding lost sales and customer complaints due to stock-outs once an order had been accepted.
- Elimination of administrative errors in order dispatch.
- Improved efficiency in report generation.
- Improved efficiency in import processes and price changes through their automation.
- Having an online catalog for their sales teams.
- Reducing negotiation times with suppliers at trade fairs.
All of these objectives were achieved through the adoption of Microsoft cloud ERP technologies, the use of Microsoft PowerBI, and Microsoft Apps.
You can read the full case in our article Cerarte, a success story in Microsoft Finance and Operations implementation.