How To Make Digital Transformation Work

Digital transformation: after the past year, with many businesses making immense adaptation as a result of COVID-19, it’s more than just a buzzword. Suddenly, it’s become a critical part of your business: bringing you in line with your competitors and ensuring that you can provide the high standard of service and convenience and customer service that your customers have come to expect.

It’s critical to the success of your business–perhaps even more so as life starts to go back to normal for people around the world. Digital transformation, from replacing outdated processes with digital alternatives to finding new technological solutions to programs and platforms that are no longer running as well as they could, is an ongoing process–and making it work can pose some unique challenges for your business, especially if you’ve struggled with outdated technology and solutions for a long time.

Fortunately, there are strategies that can help you embrace digital transformation within your workplace.

1. Understand the true needs of your business.

As a CEO, it’s more critical than ever before that you understand the real needs of your business on a deeper level. New technology, acquired throughout the digital transformation process, is often a key component of solving the problems your business faces on a daily basis, but if you aren’t aware of what those problems are, you can’t address them effectively.

Do you understand the real needs of your IT team? What about sales and marketing? What problems are they dealing with?

When many businesses went to a remote model as a result of the pandemic, communication was an immediate challenge–and technology was the solution. Using the right platforms and tools helped bring coworkers together, even when they were physically far apart. On the other hand, if your sales team is struggling to convince consumers to buy a product that is not currently relevant to them, transformation may mean adapting the products you offer so that you’re providing more effective solutions for your customers and, therefore, for your business as a whole. There may be digital tools that will help you get there, including effective data consolidation tools that will give you a better look at the specific needs of your target audience, but it may also take more than just adding another tech tool to help your sales team meet their goals.

2. Get to know the real needs of your customers.

Convenience is often key for many members of your target audience. They want solutions that will not add unnecessary complexity or challenge to their daily routines and their lives.

In the midst of the pandemic, consumers wanted safety. Many of them needed shopping options that would allow them to decrease interactions with people. Businesses responded with physical options–curbside pickup and home delivery options, for example–backed by technology: apps that made it simple to pick up needed items, add them to a cart, and get them to that customer with a minimum of effort on their part. Other consumers wanted ways to continue to communicate with the businesses they needed to interact with, but without unnecessarily increasing risk. Digital tools–Zoom calls, Skype sessions, and other video conferencing platforms–became the norm across most business interactions, for employees and customers alike.

The specific needs of your customers will change over time. Major events like the COVID-19 pandemic can create the sudden need for change and transformation, but other changes for your customers will naturally shift their needs over time. By keeping your finger on the pulse of your customer base, you can direct your company’s transformation in the way that is most likely to provide long-term benefit to your customers.

3. Provide your team with the tools they need to embrace technological changes.

One of the biggest challenges associated with adopting new technology is getting your team on board. Face it: if your team has trouble adopting the new technology for any reason–from a lack of understanding of that technology to a long process required in order to get started–it’s going to take much longer before your business can reap the benefits of adopting that new technology.

On the other hand, when they have the tools they need to adopt that technology and excel with it, your employees are much more likely to embrace the options you’ve provided.

Start by working with a solid company that can help you achieve your goals for your business. Whether you’re choosing an IT service and support provider or selecting an app that will help enable communication within your business, you want a company that will partner with you to make the transition easier. If you don’t receive adequate support from the company both during onboarding and as you move forward with a new platform, app, or service, you’ll find that it’s much more difficult to get everyone on board.

Second, make sure your team members have the training they need. That may mean specifically training one or two team members, then giving them time to train the others, or it may mean working in large-group sessions to help ensure that employees have all the tools they need to effectively utilize the new technology.

Finally, accept feedback from your team. Make sure you have a consistent feel for how the technology is actually working within your organization and what would make it easier and simpler for your team members to use it. Pay attention to how your employees respond. Listen to customer feedback, too: if the app or solution isn’t working for them, they’ll be more likely to turn to your competitors for their future needs. Be agile, responsive, and willing to adapt to changing customer needs, and you’ll find that digital transformation will carry your company much further.

Digital transformation is no longer an option for many companies. In fact, it has become an imperative. At Menark Technologies, we can help your business improve its digital transformation efforts and provide the IT support you need to make more informed choices about the technology that will work best for your business. Contact us today to learn more.