Digital business transformation

The digital business transformation changes the foundation of every company in its strategy, structure, culture and processes in the long term through the possibilities and potentials of digital media and the Internet. It affects the organization through change management . With digital business transformation, companies face the changes of the digital age, the digital age . As a further conceptual development, digital business transformation is derived from the English term “ business transformation ”, the development of new business opportunities and the implementation of new business models by a company.

background

The advancing digital age leads to a change in the existing understanding of customers, business relationships and value chains. An international study by the MIT Center for Digital Business and Capgemini Consulting shows that at the end of 2011 only around a third of companies perceived themselves to be successful in transforming their business model into digital business. The main challenges lie in the right digital strategy, effective conceptual integration, professional knowledge management , a flexible corporate culture and rapid integration into the IT structure. According to MIT, the success factors are:

a clear vision for the future business with a view to the use of IT
Investments in modern and classic IT in order to exploit their potential
Changes have to be carried out by top management.

In order to carry out a structured transformation, companies can use digital transformation strategies and a systematic digital transformation process.

application

Digital business transformation deals with the planning, control, optimization and implementation of the value chain of a company in the digital era. The focus is on the identification of the effects of digitalization on existing business models, sales, revenue streams and differentiating features of a company in the market. Entire value chains are changing. Not only individual functions and company areas are affected. The sustainable change and realignment of communication, marketing, sales and service are essential. Digital business transformation uses the advantages and potentials of integrating and implementing new technologies as an opportunity to change existing business models and generate new business potential from technical and functional, use-oriented innovations.

The digital transformation process

The changes induced by digitization in companies are far-reaching. Processes are renewed, work changes and the demands on employees change in equal measure. The socially acceptable design of this change process will continue to pose major challenges for companies, especially in medium- sized companies, in the coming years. In this context of digital transformation in companies, the image of digitization at two speeds is often sought: on the one hand, technological development is progressing rapidly, while on the other hand, the required organization of organizations requires significantly more time and the will to change. This picture can also be applied to the difference between large and small companies. While in large corporations you can already find a high degree of technological maturity and many examples of accompanying measures to redefine (collaborative) work, there are many smaller companies that are only gradually getting started. The fundamental challenges mostly lie in the systematic identification of digitization potential, the formulation of your own digitization strategy and the structured implementation of the digital transformation with the involvement of all relevant stakeholders in the company.

In order to be able to meet the diverse changes, a structured approach is recommended, with which the emerging and existing challenges can be addressed. Because the implementation of digitization projects not only harbors many opportunities and possibilities, but also risks and challenges. They are profound changes in which complex relationships between technical, organizational and employee-related aspects must be taken into account in order to enable the effective use and exploitation of the full potential. The digital transformation is associated with financial risks, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). In order to avoid bad investments and not endanger the competitiveness of the company, digital transformation processes have to be planned even more carefully.

The digital transformation process is divided into five phases:

Inspiration phase

For many companies, the digital transformation process begins with an inspiration phase, in which entrepreneurs and those in charge find out about existing technologies and solutions. For this purpose, practical examples can be used as well as demonstration systems that have been implemented in a similar operational environment can be visited. In addition, solution approaches from other industries or a different company environment can also be considered, as these are often transferred to specific, specific challenges.

Orientation phase

After the company has developed a vision for the future, the orientation phase focuses on determining the position. Often a maturity model is used for this, with which the company can determine its digital maturity, also in comparison to other companies. From this comparison, fields of action can be derived for the company that can show the direction in which digitization is developing. In the course of this, a digitization strategy should also be developed if one does not already exist in the company.

planning phase

The subsequent planning phase defines the first pilot projects in order to be able to meet the set goals of the digitization strategy on time. For this purpose, teams should be formed, which in turn set implementation goals and the associated target values. This process creates liabilities, even if the goals in the process may have to be adjusted again. When implementing the first pilot project, care should be taken to select a project in which the first visible successes can be expected quickly. These can be presented to employees, but also customers and partner companies, which can increase motivation for the implementation of further projects.

Realization phase

In the fourth phase of the digital transformation process, the implementation phase, the planned measures are implemented step by step. Technical measures should always be implemented together with organizational changes. In particular, the participatory design of the process is important, since a lack of involvement of the employees can lead to the rejection of the project and thus to the failure of the digitization project. If employees are involved in the process at an early stage, the acceptance of the new technology and the change in the company increases, since the employees are given the opportunity to actively influence the design. The implementation of the project can also result in direct advantages through the participation of the employees, as they can best assess their work environment and their work tasks and thus provide important information on the functionalities and ways of using the new technologies. Employees are thus encouraged to actively get involved in the new system and contribute their own ideas. Through direct contact with the employees involved, changes with regard to the acceptance of the change can also be recognized at an early stage and communication can be adapted accordingly.

Evaluation and adjustment phase

By dealing with the previous process steps, important knowledge can be gained for follow-up projects. For project management, it can be determined which aspects of the implementation are positive and where there is potential for improvement. With regard to the planned transformation process, a look back at the planning phase shows how digital maturity has developed and whether positive development trends can be derived from the updated comparison with other companies.

swell

↑ the fundamental change to the way a business operates, whether that be moving into a new market or operating in a new way , Cap Gemini website: Business Transformation ( Memento of the original from May 10, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet tested. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. November 2011. @1@ 2

↑ Westerman, George; Calmėjane, Claire; Bonnet, Didier (2011). Digital Transformation: A Roadmap for Billion-Dollar Organization (Report) ( Memento of the original from February 11, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Capgemini Consulting. @1@ 2

↑ Technical article Sebastian Janus, 10xStudio ( Memento of the original from September 6, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 16th August 2017. @1@ 2

^ Christian K. Bosse, Viola Hellge, Delia Schröder, Stephanie Dupont: Successfully shaping digitalization in medium-sized businesses . In: Christian K. Bosse, Klaus J. Zink (ed.): Work 4.0 in medium-sized companies . Springer Gabler, Berlin 2019, ISBN 978-3-662-59473-5 , pp. 13-34 , doi : 10.1007 / 978-3-662-59474-2_2 .

↑ Viola Hellge, Delia Schröder; Klaus J. Zink: The “Readines Check Digitization” as an instrument in the digital transformation process . In: Volker Lingnau, Gordon Müller-Seitz, Stefan Roth (eds.): Management of digital transformation . Vahlen, 2017, ISBN 978-3-8006-5541-0 .