A medium-sized business in Sydney would not always have the resources and personnel to oversee and manage digital transformation. The phrase “Digital Transformation” itself may sound too big of a task for any middle-level manager. Imagine how daunting it may sound like for businesses whose middle-level managers are also the top management and, ultimately, the decision-makers for the whole of the business?
While it may sound frightening or too big of a task, digital transformation can start small and simple. It may start by thinking about one simple process and output which can and should be shared across the team and understanding how cloud-based solutions, such as Office365 Migration, can answer this need. But, while it is easy to talk about how “simple” digital transformation can be, it surely is more difficult doing it than simply talking about it. So how can a medium-sized business in Sydney jumpstart a total digital overhaul of its company’s processes and outputs?
1. Strategy comes first
In many cases, the core and money-generating function of the business may not be IT Solutions. It can be shoemaking, pastry baking, supermarket distribution, or any other industry aside from IT. In this case, it would rather be a waste of time and energy to expect someone from inside the organization to come up with a comprehensive digital transformation strategy just by himself/herself. Building a digital transformation strategy should be done with the help and support of an IT expert. Without a strategy, efforts will not be cohesive. At the same time resources to purchase IT equipment or maximize subscriptions might not be efficiently spent. Having a strategy, a step-by-step guide on how the company should go through this transformation all together, is an important, if not the most crucial component of any digital transformation.
2. Technology should carry out the strategy
When creating the plan, it should be kept in mind that, next to the strategy itself, choosing the right technology is also another crucial component of a successful digital transformation. Medium-sized businesses should pay attention to the options before them. There will be tons of perks and benefits presented by all sorts of tech-based solutions to process and productivity improvement. The important task of choosing the right technology to carry out the strategy is on the shoulder of the top decision-makers of any company. So this decision should be done carefully and deliberately, considering cost, skills, and resources to operate and maintain this technology.
3. Recognizing change comes from the top
Related to the earlier point, recognizing and, more importantly, accepting change comes from the top of the organization. Without mandate from the CEO or the president of the organization, people will continue doing what they’ve gotten used to. If the top-management does not fully embrace the benefits of digital transformation, it would be hard for the rest of the organization to experience and appreciate the benefits brought about by a sound digital strategy and the right technology.
4. Process refining is driven from the bottom
After the top management drives the behavior and acceptance of digitalizing operations, they should not forget that constantly refining the strategy and the processes will be an inevitable part of the digital transformation. And the processes will be best refined by those who are using these processes, day in and day out. The people from the front lines and the bottom of the organization should have an open discussion with management to continuously assess the effectiveness of the strategy and the technology, and management should welcome the flexibility of adjust accordingly.
Digital transformation is not an overnight miracle. It isn’t a one-way street where management decides and dictates. It has to be a collective agreement to adopt new systems and constantly refine the solutions to achieve a more digital approach to business and operations.
