Skip to main content

A Digital Transformation reality check

Its become trendy to speak transformation, and it is getting more and more rampant. It has been so for a while now that we notice everyone prefixing pretty much everything with the term Digital as a mandatory condition. 

So what is this all about anyway?    Is it a band wagon that you must get on without questioning?

With the rapid changes in technology, and greater consumerization of technology, businesses have found themselves being left behind the customers and the digital transformation effort help the organization adapt the latest in technology faster.  The primary reason is to stay innovative, retain customers and serve the business and customer needs with efficiency.  Here is where it gets interesting, if it is treated as an initiative or a project, then it has a beginning and an end.  But fact is, it has to be on going.  Because the moment you stop, the world has moved on again and you are at risk of sliding into legacy.  So, how do you scope what needs to change, select what solutions to adopt and measure the progress and success of the transformation.  This is where people come in, and the smart and business focused ones get results, the rest deservedly get a mixed bag output.

There is another side to this and that’s the impact on people. Why does it make one feel as though what you are doing now is meaningless and non-digital, and that almost carries with it a stigma of sorts.  In some ways what one ‘does’ defines the person, and now the person is less smart, less relevant, less an asset for the future because of the digital conundrum.

Business demands value, yet do not always articulate what that is except for bottom line impact and market growth. CIO demands improvement yet does not take the trouble beyond setting objectives that will be ambiguously measured. Department heads will go about it in several directions, some will cut some fat that they knew was there all along, but the surgery will never be done in the right spirit all the way through. When the culling is happening at the bottom of the ladder, it should ring alarm bells.  And lastly, HR is usually playing along with formalities and not adding value and most times not the right people to make calls on individual’s performance or competency.

There’s also a risk that the ‘digital’ interpretation is kept deliberately obtuse so the champions themselves have built a layer of abstraction to protect themselves.  

One question is where did you start the process, I have come across organization that wants to bring in something new and popular and a successful elsewhere but they did not start at home. Typically, these steps are taken by new managers and short sighted leaders but they make a cardinal mistake in my view, of not ‘taking stock’ properly.  They do not take enough pain to assess the core business and to analyze the inventory, assets and investments.  

The mistakes worsen with leader’s oftentimes new to the organization dictating direction without looking inward at what you are, what you have and what opportunities you may have already invested in which can with some focus bring rewards.


It’s an exciting journey with Automation, AI, Blockchain, HCI and much more, but the transition is all about people, about culture change and inclusion.  This will define the situation as either an amateur balancing himself on a floating log or an alpine skier expertly carving a turn on a giant slalom.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The True Measure of a Technology Leader - Whats a CIO !

What is the true measure of a CIO or a technology leader? Is it simply the number of conferences attended, or the events organized under their name? Or is it something deeper — something more enduring? Did you deliver a keynote that mattered? Did you bring forward a unique perspective, rooted in experience, built through original thought and tested under fire? Did your leadership ripple outward — touching technology, people, industries, even your nation? True leadership is not about being seen. It is about making a real difference — solving problems, building resilience, creating opportunities, and enabling others to rise. Technology Impact: Building Solutions, Not Just Buying Them A true technology leader doesn’t simply implement what's readily available — they shape solutions that fit the real, evolving needs of the enterprise. They move beyond vendor promises and buzzwords , resisting the easy temptation to become another mouthpiece for someone else’s marketing. How...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Hidden Risks of "Long Term Contracts" and How Modern Enterprises Can Protect Themselves - A Perspective from a Global CIO

 The Hidden Risks of "Long Term Contracts" and How Modern Enterprises Can Protect Themselves  - A Perspective from a Global CIO Long term contracts promise stability and predictability. They look neat in proposals and reassuring in boardrooms. Yet in practice they often become rigid, expensive and fundamentally one sided commitments that fail to adapt to real world change. After leading enterprise technology and transformation programs across multiple continents, my experience has been consistent. Long term contracts usually favour the vendor unless the organisation manages them intelligently, fearlessly and with a clear understanding of value. This article brings together practical lessons from industry, academic principles of contract management, risk management frameworks and lived experience from the CIO seat. The goal is simple. To help organisations protect themselves and create contracts that stay relevant, balanced and value driven throughout their life. Why Long Ter...
Post a Comment
Read more

Awareness and Being Mindful of Our ‘State’

Awareness and Being Mindful of Our ‘State’ There’s a quiet skill that shapes every moment of our lives, though we often miss it in the rush: being aware of our state. Our state—our emotional, mental, and physical condition—is like the invisible atmosphere around us. It colors how we see the world, how we act, and how we react. Stress, anxiety, excitement, fear, calm—each shifts us into a different gear. Sometimes we’re flying. Other times we’re frozen. Learning to become aware of our state, and responding to it with mindfulness, is not about controlling everything we feel. It’s about knowing where we are internally—and choosing the best way to use it. Stress and Anxiety: Common but not identical We’ve all felt stress. We’ve all been anxious. But the experiences, the triggers, the intensity, and the solutions—those are uniquely ours. For one person, public speaking may send the heart racing uncontrollably. For another, a tight deadline may feel like a thrilling game. T...
Post a Comment
Read more