The companies that have leaped to adopt a digital architecture are more likely to enjoy better sales and a larger market share. In addition to making a profit, these companies have higher customer satisfaction rates, better morale among its employees, and consistent growth. Digital transformation can be compared to a moving target that is surprisingly difficult to pin down.
Simply, digital transformation is the alteration of the activities, processes, and models of a certain business to take full advantage of both current and emerging technologies. This transformation also consists of the integration and use of new technology into all aspects of a society other than the business environment. However, we will focus our attention on the business dimension of digital transformation.
Quite a few businesses have openly embraced technology for use with various crucial systems which is a foreseen outcome of these huge changes that are aimed at ensuring that the business becomes flexible, adaptable, customer and people-oriented, as well as gain the ability to take advantage of every opportunity to grow as a company and increase their profit margin. Regardless, there are also some potential challenges as well. As a student, this is a likely topic that you would present to your preferred essay writing service owing to it being a highly contentious subject.
Most companies that have already started the process of adopting new technologies to achieve their goals and objectives more effectively. It takes a lot of time to implement effectively, time that most company executives do not wish to waste. What they do not realize is that it is an essential step into the future regardless of whether or not it is likely to result in the interruption of normal business operation. The key is to ensure that the change is positive and will be accepted by all affected parties.
However, according to various organizations worldwide, the change to a digital infrastructure needs one to take into consideration the challenges that may arise. Based on personal experience, below are some of the most common challenges that companies are likely to face when implementing digital transformation projects. They include:
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Not being open to the possibility of change
Only a small fraction of people in the world love change, and this is a reflection on the employees in any company. Digital transformation presents new uncertainties concerning their role in the business. As such, the change will not be openly accepted by each person. However, with the current changes in the business environment, not changing with the times would not be in the best interest of your business. A good example, Kodak was the 1st company to discover the possibility of a digital camera way back in 1975, but it missed out on a great opportunity due to its inability to accept change.
Poor development of a company-wide approach
Digital transformation, just like any part of your business, requires precise planning to succeed. However, most companies fail to plan a strategy for the implementation of various technologies that could lead to a catastrophic failure of multiple business processes with no way to revert to previous systems. You will be expected to develop a clear vision of how to achieve digital transformation with the resources available by setting goals and objectives in line with your company’s vision and implement them with time depending on the complexity of the project.
Inflexible pre-existing infrastructure
To be successful with the transformation process, you will need to devise a strategy, whereby, new technologies are added continuously and monitored to evaluate their influence on the business environment. However, this would not be costly if the current systems are not easily replaced or upgraded.
Stuck on the legacy business models
A common mistake that most businesses make is trying to provide the same products and services via a digital channel. This might not be a problem at first, but in the long run, you will realize that you are far behind the competition. Consider a company such as Uber which has managed to develop the world’s largest car service without hiring any drivers or buying any cars. This is replicated in many other companies such as social media giants that do not generate any content and online retail chains without inventory.
Understandably, as a business administrator, you would be somewhat resistant to new challenges and uncertainties within your business. However, companies that effectively implement digital transformation strategies into their business models often realize that the introduction of new technology offers more scalability, flexibility, sales and an increased profit margin when compared to the legacy approach. However, this process requires some research, testing, and overcoming some challenges along the way.
