VOICES
Opinion
Digital transformation has grown in popularity
and, perhaps, evolved into something far more
intangible than it needs to be. Quite simply, digital
transformation is the continual development and
deployment of new technology to meet the changing
needs of businesses and their customers.
Transformation doesn’t have to involve a root and
branch restructuring. Instead, it can simply be an
approach to improving business by implementing
modern technology. Rather than viewing it as
one large-scale project with broad implications
and interruptions, digital transformation
should be a constant and measured pursuit of
technological improvement. We all know that
technology is developing at pace, so one of the
key shifts in thinking is to consider improvement
as continuous and not just a fixed-term project.
This could be implemented by the creation of a
relatively straightforward platform to enable teams
across multiple locations to work effectively and
efficiently or be wholesale changes to legacy systems
that have been propped up for too long and are nowhaving a negative impact on operations. Even if it’s
the latter, what may seem like a big change can still
be broken down into manageable chunks to ensure
smooth development.
Ultimately, digital transformation is being
driven by the expectations of every individual
that engages with a business, from customers to
employees. Businesses that fail to innovate now
will face a very real competitive disadvantage in
the future – technological progress is commercial
progress. Businesses that succeed have a long-term
vision for improvement, aligned with their long-
term goals.
Yet still too many businesses see innovation as
a side project: rather than seeing it as something
that could genuinely improve overall day-to-
day operations, they are instead hiring ‘heads of
innovation’ that have no power in the organisation.
But we have started to see attitudes change at
a board level, with technology moving from a
supporting framework for operations to be a tool for
real competitive advantage. Digital transformationBECOME A DIGITAL
TRANSFORMATION EXPERT
Philip Rashleigh discusses what digital transformation really
means in a workplaceTRANSFORMATION