Digital Transformation

We transform brands into the digital future, today

Scope

To transform strategically from a physical-first to a digital-first business taking into consideration your brand’s digital affinity, your industry’s characteristics, and selected market & technology trends that help the process of transition

Intro + Why

Digital is transforming how we live. While it seems intangible, its impact is visible both in our professional and personal lives. Whether that is positive or negative, it is up to us human beings. There used to be a saying that money is an asset, what you use it for can be either right or wrong. Today, the same is true for digital. We believe that it is our responsibility to use digital in a way that gives us back more time. This can mean that we find ways to avoid repetitive human effort but can also mean to build better paths of brand, market, and business development than the existing ones. Furthermore, in the current global pandemic, it can mean creating innovative ways to reshape industries, strengthen resilience and prove that the future holds more than what we used to believe about it.

Yesterday was a good day to start digital transformation

The pandemic showed us many things, starting from major flaws in our healthcare system to business-critical challenges that shook the world’s status quo. This changed how leaders think, use, or pilot with digital. People used to point fingers at brands like Uber, Airbnb, Wise, or Netflix and say, ‘Well yes, they are unicorns, the lucky ones.’, believing that what was possible for these companies is far-fetched from them. That changed, not by choice, but by the lack of it. There is a massive wave of enterprises re-evaluating their traditional business models in order to use digital to create sustainability.

This is not easy, especially for those who haven’t placed strategic focus on digital before. On the one hand, this creates an opportunity for brands who are willing to go the extra mile, on the other hand, this will increase the competition in digital as never before, putting enormous pressure on companies who are in the early stages of their transformation.

Methodology

We have defined and applied our approach for leaders who understand that change starts in the mind and innovative approaches are able to reform how organisations are developed. The process we apply is based on two components:

Component 1

A 3 pillar structure that defines the key milestones of a digital transformation journey

Digital Transformation doesn’t start with technology, it starts with people. First and foremost, there is a need for a shift in mentality that encourages people to experiment, allows them to fail, and at the same time, demands learning from these endeavours. Furthermore, it requires a humble approach, where people accept that what used to work in a certain way will change inevitably. Letting go of the old is not easy, but it is critical. These transitions in mindset will set the ground to carry out the 3 pillars of Digital Transformation efficiently:

Digital Strategy (DS)

Align the transformation goals with the brand vision

Define what and how to use in digital to support business and brand growth

Determine where to start and how to implement

Digital Strategy Audit (DSA)

In case of an existing strategy, analyse relevancy in terms of industry and digital potential

Map the required changes and their impact on the current strategy

Digital Experience Strategy (DES)

Your brand hit a growth limit with the traditional business model:

Set customer/employee experience goals and break down these into strategic milestones

Determine how to create these experiences according to your DS

Digital Delivery

Digitalization is already part of your strategy, but you are unable to drive new business with it

Application of the DS

Vision

People

Data

Technology

Application of the DSA

People

Processes

Interactions

Application of the DES

People

Processes

Interactions

Value creation

Component 2

A dual framework that stands as the strategic foundation of the transition process

In order to be able to execute the above-described pillars in a way that challenges conventional thinking while identifying new digital horizons, businesses need to adopt Digital Transformation Frameworks that make the process tangible and intuitive. The scope of such frameworks is to help you organise transition as success depends on systemising the Functional Elements of the business.

People

The people making up the team(s) within the Organisation

Process

The practical manner in which People work

Technology

Technology supporting the operation of Processes, Departments, and Innovation

Department

The subdivisions of the Organisation, such as Marketing Department, Financial Department, Logistics Department, and so on

INOVATION

How involved is the Department in researching and seeking out new methods of development not yet implemented

These Elements are the building blocks of the dual framework:

A. The Organisational Framework

The system that focuses on the functions between People, Processes, and Technology. Using this will help identify the critical functional bottlenecks that create organisational transformation caps such as:

The traditional cap

When well-prepared People work with well-established Processes but lack proper Technology, the Organisation is not future-ready.

The human cap

When well-established Processes are combined with proper Technology, but the Organisation lacks People with relevant knowledge and experience, performance indicators will suffer.

The scaling cap

Well-prepared People work with great Technology but don’t have proper Processes instilled, it’s impossible to scale the Organisation’s work.

In most cases, there is a combination of these types of caps, and the framework will assist in understanding, analysing, and resolving them to get to an optimal scenario, where the right People work within well-defined Processes sustained by front-line Technology, thus delivering the best possible results in Digital Transformation.

In order to use this framework efficiently, the following strategic tasks need to be carried out:

People

Strategic tasks:

Knowledge base strategy
(what it consists of, how it grows)

Knowledge transfer model
(how the team learns, how follow-up is made)

Development model
(why does a team get motivated to learn)

Technological support to sustain knowledge base and learning

Process

Strategic tasks:

Prioritising departments

Mapping out recurrent tasks amongst departments

Mapping out recurrent tasks within departments

Defining process goals (eliminating/renewing outdated processes)

Process optimisation (automating recurrent processes)

Technical support for constructing and sustaining processes

Technology

Strategic tasks:

Building a map of the ecosystem (based on departments)

Exposing narrow cross-sections in the ecosystem (where do technologies block out each other)

Eliminating/renewing outdated technologies

B. The Departmental Framework

The system that focuses on the functions between a Department, Innovation, and Technology. Using this will help identify the critical functional bottlenecks that create departmental transformation caps such as:

The chaotic cap

A well-functioning Department is making continuous Innovation, but emerging Technology is not embedded correctly in the ecosystem.

The impractical cap

Innovation and Technology work well together, but the Department is not involved, leaving its practical functioning underdeveloped.

The outdated cap

Focus on well-functioning Technology and Department makes the habitual methodology quickly become obsolete.

Most businesses face a combination of these types of caps. The framework offers an understanding that ignites an optimal scenario, where a knowledgeable Department works with proper Technology in order to create relevant Innovation.

To utilise this framework efficiently, the following strategic tasks need to be carried out:

Department

Strategic tasks:

Analysing and re-evaluating the department’s goals

Mapping out pain points within the department

Devising a development strategy as for the department

Technological support for the department’s operation

Innovation

Strategic tasks:

Measuring the duration of department-specific executions

Rethinking and replanning the slowest processes (in terms of mechanism and technology)

10x strategy (innovative solutions which lead to 10x more efficiency/growth reach)

Innovational brand sprint (what kind of strategic innovations are to be implemented short-, mid-, and long-term)

Technological support for introducing and sustaining innovation

Technology

Strategic tasks:

Monitoring, refreshing and supplementing department-specific technological packages

Mapping out technological connections amongst departments

Eliminating/renewing outdated technologies

Benefits

Experience a digital transformation process that is guided the right direction step-by-step

Learn from data-driven piloting and constantly improve business performance

Dodge unnecessary investment in old-fashioned digital projects where you see results only at a late stage

Avoid hefty consulting practices that say more than they do

Grow your management’s digital affinity by insights from our experts’ hands-on experience

What to expect

Challenges that take both your people and processes out of standard operations

An innovative journey, not a regular digital project

Continuous involvement that starts with a limited allocation need but grows steadily as you accomplish milestones and related KPIs

Measurable business transformation that you can compare to the previous era

Short-term discomfort for long term business sustainability

What you shouldn’t expect

Short-term ROI

A solution to all of your organisational challenges

Being able to copy the success of established digital brands within a short period of time

DELIVERABLES

Digital strategy and digital experience strategy delivered by our experts on workshops and documented in a PDF format

Performance reports on a defined frequency depending on the pilot’s requirements

Strategy driven technology, innovation, and department-specific process implementation

Continuous guidance in the transition process

When is recommended

We could have made a list of moments here when it would be ideal to start a digital transformation journey. However, the truth is that all those moments are gone. The best day to start this was yesterday. Nonetheless, here is what we recommend instead:

The fear of missing out is normal, but you shouldn’t jump into the deep water without knowing how to swim. Make sure you build a digital strategy first.

Don’t try to do everything at once, focus your resources on business-critical transformations first.

Find out with a Digital Due Diligence

Here are some use cases when our onboarding makes an impact:

You feel that digital transformation is a black hole:

We make it tangible and implementable so you can grab it and do it the right way.

Your brand hit a growth limit with the traditional business model:

We help you find the right direction with digital transformation to create new value for your customers

Digitalisation is already part of your strategy, but you are unable to drive new business with it:

We assist in drawing the path to digital growth.

You have worked with digital agencies before. Usually, they are good at execution but don’t take responsibility for strategy:

We take action, build the right digital transformation strategy and help you execute it efficiently.

You have worked with digital transformation consultants before. Usually, they are good at giving directions but don’t know how to walk their talk:

We avoid unnecessary jargon and prolonged project management by combining a lean and agile leadership process that keeps timelines concise and uses budgets efficiently.

You thought your digitalisation efforts were on the good path but saw the market move at a different pace:

We create a digitalisation strategy with a proper focus that is not just mimicking the market but helps you position your brand in the leading quadrant.