Six steps for creating a digital transformation strategy
In today’s digital-driven era, companies that don’t have a digital transformation strategy are certain to lag behind their competitors. Andy Murtagh, the Chief Operating Officer of technology consultancy ROCK, walks through six steps how companies can create a digital transformation strategy.
Creating a fully-fledged strategy can be a daunting task. Without knowing where to start it can often feel unattainable. Your first steps in creating and executing your digital transformation strategy are vital and will have a significant impact on the creation and success of associated projects.
Define objectives
The first step in the plan is simply identifying what outcome you want from your digital transformation. This could be something as simple as cutting costs or offering more flexible working for your employees. Remember that these are the wider goals which you are looking to achieve, rather than detailed points for each.
Identify actions
Once you have created your list of transformation objectives, the next step is to identify the actions which will get you there. For example, if your ultimate goal is to offer more flexible working, one action may be to move your servers to cloud hosting. Another to create secure remote access or replace static office equipment with portable docking solutions. While creating this action plan, you should also look at which technologies will help you to realise your objectives.
Define needs
After creating a clear action plan, find out what your organisation needs to make it happen. This could be mistaken as simply identifying the technology involved, but in reality, it goes much deeper. Rather than just technology, you’ll also be looking to identify any processes, policies, procedures and people you need to fulfil the action plan criteria.
Further reading: Six steps to include in digital transformation planning.
Establish costs
You’ll also need to establish your costs before any project work takes place. One of the advantages of your fully-fledged digital transformation strategy is that, with clear goals and actions identified, you’ll have a much clearer view of required budgets. At this point, it’s vital to ensure that the project will bring sufficient returns in order to justify the expenditure.
Create a timeline and project team
The creation of a timeline and project team are the last tasks in developing your digital transformation strategy, but equally as important as everything which has come before. Your project timeline should include realistic deadlines for each action that will allow you to fully plan tasks which rely on each other or that could be actioned at the same time.
In addition, when assigning your project team, you’ll be able to identify responsible and accountable personnel for each task. Working together, with this one plan, each member of the team will be aware of their duties and deadlines, as well as the responsibilities of their colleagues, and how tasks tie together.
Finding your strategic partner
Creating a digital transformation strategy can be a tough task. Without knowing the latest advances in technology and best practice, even the research needed to have a firm grasp on the available options is typically too substantial a task for all but the largest organisations. This is where external partnerships can be vital to businesses, allowing your C-suite to focus on ongoing business tasks.
Digital transformation consultation services offered by strategic partners can provide a vital insight into the options available. These services ensure that your organisation is able to enact transformative and impactful change through use of technology, working with you to guide or entirely create your digital transformation strategy.
