From today to future-ready: how to progress on your digital transformation journey

Let’s be honest: most organisations still have some distance to go on their digital transformation journey. “Business as usual” can be a significant roadblock to your success in the evaluation and reconfiguration of everyday business processes.

From our research with Economist Impact, we know most leaders believe work and business will remain digital. But while 80% are optimistic about their digital transformation, only 26% shared that their CEO is directly responsible for driving resilience initiatives.

According to research from Deloitte, “while 85% of CEOs accelerated digital initiatives during the pandemic, most can’t articulate their overall strategy and progress beyond that they made a tech investment. The imperative for change is increasingly the creation of an adaptable business— one that can thrive in the digital economy. If CEOs can’t say their digital transformation resulted in new business advantages or adaptability, then they haven’t really transformed.”

Digital transformation: what is it and why is it so important?

Digital transformation. It encompasses any initiative that uses technology to improve business resiliency and performance.

Today’s tech-savvy and digitally native consumers expect immediate engagement. As a result, businesses should upgrade their core operational processes if they want to continue to grow and thrive. Otherwise, they risk being left behind.

Not every industry has the same consumer needs, so digital transformation may mean different things to different organisations. However, the result is the same. Financial institutions using machine learning to detect and predict fraudulent transactions? Digital transformation. E-commerce retailers searching for new ways to serve personalised customer recommendations? Digital transformation. Government agencies converting paper to digital for easier access to public records? That, too, is digital transformation.