Important Steps and Pitfalls in Digital Transformation – By Tobi Boshoro

Welcome to the second edition of The Mall Magazine, its already a great 2022 as we see major economies opening more to travel, trade and general movements across borders. This also means increased competition in the delivery of goods and services in line with changing customer taste and needs.
Digitisation gives the business owner a view into customer choices like never before, tracks and measures the customer’s ‘online and offline footprints, highlights precious insights into what the customer wants, what motivates them and the sort of products/services they’re interested in and helps to build a better picture of their behaviour for product enhancement or development decisions.

Let’s see what this means and how this can be achieved.

To reiterate; digital transformation is the adoption of digital technology by a company for the delivery of outstanding customer experiences either in the provision of products, services, or both. It is the integration of digital technology into all areas of business to improve/change how to operate and deliver value to stakeholders. This is typically to improve efficiency, create more value, drive innovation, or reduce cost to serve. It is also a cultural/mindset change that creates an environment that encourages experimentation, allows failure and learning from failures as well constantly challenging the status quo.

Pitfalls to watch out for

· Unclear goals. Unclear goals and objectives are one of the main reasons why digital transformation initiatives fail. You need to develop well-articulated goals that are measurable. Ensure everyone understands what the goals are, why it is important and how it helps to deliver on the overall business goals.

· 2) Lack of IT skills: The right capabilities, skills, tools, and talent must be acquired for a successful digital transformation initiative.

· 3) Inadequate leadership support: The leadership team must lead the digital transformation initiative for it to be successful, they must be passionate, engaged and committed to the transformation reiterating the importance of the initiative at every opportunity.

· 4) Ignoring customers: The customer must be considered and brought alongside on the journey of digital transformation, they are considered a stakeholder because ultimately digital transformation helps the organisation deliver value profitably to its customers in a effectively and efficient way.

· 5) Internal resistance: A well planned change management strategy as part of digital transformation is required to achieve successful implementation otherwise resistance will be built against the initiative.

· 6) Lack of budget: Digital transformation is capital intensive and requires proper planning. Working the initiatives in phases with clearly defined goals is another way to manage the financial impact of digital transformation.

· 7) Ignoring data: The use of data to drive informed decisioning is now more important than ever, as part of this initiative a lot of data will be collected. Businesses should clean up the data collected, manage and use it to gain business insights. Modern data management is crucial in the drive to win in the new digital economy.

· 8) Unrealistic deadlines: define doable and realistic goals that can be tracked and updated inline with defined milestones with the team.

Key steps to a successful Digital Transformation

· Start with a vision.

• Set realistic and measurable goals

Get your processes right.

       * Identify processes that need to be reengineered and digitized 
       * Pinpoint new processes to  upgrade 

· Get the right structure in place.

· Invest in the right technology.

• Identify current state and future state.
• Identify current tools and software

• Define technology and Resource gaps
• Assess digitization efforts past and present

· Get both your employees and customers involved.

• Keep it simple
• Encourage team collaboration
• Focus on outcomes
• Identify internal champions
• Focus on culture
• Start small
• Celebrate changes