Digital Transformation — Start With A Plan And A Mindset
December 17, 2018

Digital transformation remains a hot topic in the world of business and IT and was the focus of Everlink’s annual Connections ’18 conference, held recently in Toronto.  Here, we explored the opportunities it presents to the payments processing sector and to financial institutions (FIs) in terms of enabling increased speed to market, flexibility, and economies of scale.  Clearly, though, digital transformation presents opportunities —  and challenges — for businesses of every stripe. In fact, International Data Corporation (IDC) forecasts that by the end of 2018, global spending on the technologies and services needed to enable digital transformation will be more than $1.1 trillion, up 16.8% over 2017.

So what’s driving this enormous spend? We believe two key factors are at play — rising customer expectations and technological advancements, which are propelling each other in a continuous loop.

In the FI sector, the customer or member’s expectation for fast, simple and secure banking and payment transactions, whether online, at the checkout, or person to person, is at an all-time high with an increasing demand for mobile solutions. Merchants, too, are demanding more convenient transaction capabilities. The opportunities are endless in terms of finding ways to deliver what customers or members want, but challenges exist too in securing the right technologies, ensuring privacy and security,  and the potential for customer or member disintermediation as fewer and fewer set foot in their branch.

Every industry and business will have its own unique opportunities and challenges, such as dealing with legacy systems or replacing processes that have been ingrained for decades,  but whatever the size or nature of the business, digital transformation will likely represent a major financial commitment and significant upheaval.  Having a clear plan to guide you on your journey is vital, as is ensuring your employees are on board.

Key Elements of a Digital Transformation Plan

• When creating a digital transformation plan, senior management must be fully committed
• A high-quality launch team must be established, with outside individuals brought in, if necessary
• Overall goals need to be clear, priorities set, and budget secured
• The consequences of changes implemented need to be understood in terms of impact on other areas of the organization
• A few projects could be identified as potential early “wins” to help generate buy-in from stakeholders and the broader employee base
• Good internal communication is essential and should enable employees also to be heard.

Fostering a Digital Culture in the Workplace

As Peter Drucker once said “Culture eats strategy for breakfast,” and this is worth thinking about because no matter how good your strategy, its success will depend largely on the culture of your organization, and culture is very hard to change. For many employees, embracing a digital culture will require an entirely new way of thinking about the client and how business gets done, and an acceptance of not only change but of on-going change.  It will also require a greater openness to risk, collaboration and networking as silos are broken down in this huge, new effort.

Clearly, digital transformation success does not simply depend on things like deploying the right new software, finding better ways to engage with clients, or achieving greater agility, efficiencies or cost savings. Success also depends on how fully an organization achieves a cultural shift among its people.

So how does this cultural shift take place?  Who is responsible for driving it?

With any major organizational change, good communication starts at the top and digital transformation is no different.  The CEO, with the help of the Communications team, if there is one, should describe in simple terms what digital transformation is, why it’s necessary, what it will entail, and the benefits it will bring to clients, employees and the organization at large.  Employees should have opportunities to ask questions, and answers should be forthright.

Downstream, line managers should be equipped to answer questions as they relate specifically to their teams.  All messages must be clear,  consistent and timely.  Regular updates to employees are the most effective means to foster positive attitudes and quell concerns or rumours, so news of progress, milestone celebrations, and even individual recognitions,  should be part of frequent outreach to employees.

With an engaged workforce, an organization is best placed to tackle the many challenges and opportunities that digital transformation will undoubtedly create.  It’s up to leadership to set the tone through open and regular, two-way communication to help make that happen.

1 https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS43979618