Digital Transformation and Software Innovation

Regardless of your industry, digital transformation is about more than just adopting new technology. It’s about changing your business model and fostering innovation with customers, employees, and partners.

It’s important for leaders to clearly articulate what digital transformation means to their organization. But what does that look like in practice?

Implementation

When implemented correctly, digital transformation allows businesses to create better outcomes for themselves and their customers through software innovation. This can be done through solutions such as Adobe’s Photoshop, Acrobat Reader, and Illustrator software, or by a financial services company’s use of telemedicine and electronic health records.

These technologies help businesses migrate away from manual processes toward digitized systems, which can make processes faster and easier, improve outcomes, and meet customer expectations. For example, the fax machine has been replaced by email and PDFs, paper invoices with two-click payment options, and automated payroll solutions that integrate with accounting systems.

However, studies from thought leaders like McKinsey and Harvard Business Review show that up to 70% of digital transformation projects fail. This is often due to poor planning, lack of communication and change management strategies, and a failure to include teams impacted by the project. To avoid this, work with your technology vendors to craft a strategy and provide solutions that are relevant to your team’s needs.

Integration

As digital technologies continue to evolve and become more complex, it’s increasingly important for businesses to integrate them into their processes and workflow. This includes implementing automation, cloud computing, and leveraging analytics and big data. However, integrating these technologies requires careful planning and management to ensure success.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, companies learned how quickly and effectively they could implement digital transformation strategies to improve their business operations. For example, manufacturers were able to increase production and provide products faster to the market while retailers shifted customers from in-store to online shopping.

The goal of digital transformation is to help businesses become more agile and competitive by incorporating new technology into their processes. This can include everything from implementing automation to improving customer experience and creating innovative solutions. It also involves changing the company culture and allowing employees to be more flexible and experiment with their work. By establishing strong governance controls, providing solutions that make manual tasks easier, and encouraging a culture of entrepreneurship and risk-taking, companies can better leverage digital transformation to achieve their goals.

Security

Digital transformation requires a shift in the way we manage software. The new systems and infrastructure must be secure. Modern companies need a cloud-based, intelligent, integrated system that is simple to use, scalable, and cost-effective.

The research points to the importance of incorporating cybersecurity measures early in the design process. This can help organizations avoid the delays and costs associated with fixing security problems discovered later in development cycles. Similarly, when building a mountain road, builders do not wait until cars start to fall off the cliff before putting in safety features like guardrails.

For many employees, implementing new processes and technologies can be intimidating. The research also highlights the importance of empowering employees to take risks, collaborate and collaborate effectively, and embrace change. For example, Whatfix’s no-code digital adoption platform empowers employees to learn new processes and technology through guided onboarding, reinforcement training, and continuous performance support. It’s a seamless and engaging way to enable your digital transformation efforts.

Analytics

Digital transformation efforts can provide valuable business outcomes – from improving customer experiences and increasing productivity to reducing costs and enhancing security. However, implementing and using the right technology is key to achieving those business goals.

To drive digital transformation and innovation, companies must clearly define their vision and goals and ensure that they are aligned with their business strategy. They must also develop a roadmap and allocate resources to support their initiatives. And they must cultivate a culture that encourages experimentation and risk-taking.

A number of companies are embracing digital transformation to meet customer expectations and improve their competitive position. For example, Domino uses a mobile app to let customers order and pay for their food, which reduces checkout times and offers deep insights into customer shopping behavior. Mercer’s Swift finds that three groups of employees tend to slow digital transformation momentum: old-timers, by-the-book players, and lone wolves. It is crucial for companies to engage these groups and help them make the transition to a new way of doing business.