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Covid-19 has pushed us for Digital Transformation!
There are always two sides to a coin. One side COVID-19 has brought a stop on almost all human activities but on the other side, it has pushed us to think and create online ways to conduct all activities especially the classic ways to work for a business. In our country UAE, we have always been ahead in leading the world in the most innovative ways. Today all businesses are actively looking for Digital Transformation Company in Dubai to evolve at the earliest.
Definition of Digital Transformation
Digital transformation is the process of integrating digital technologies into all aspects of business activities, requiring fundamental changes in technology, culture, operations and the principles of creating existing and new products and services. For the most efficient use of new technologies and their operational implementation in all spheres of human activities, enterprises must abandon their old foundations and completely transform processes and work models.
Digital transformation requires a shift in focus to business processes and increased flexibility for data centers that need to support processes. This process also means the gradual abandonment of outdated technologies, which can be expensive for enterprises to maintain, as well as a change in culture, which should now support the acceleration of processes supported by digital transformation.
Digital Transformation – A Brief History
Digital transformation is now a popular topic of discussion in corporates. Covid-19 has pushed us to think of non-traditional ways to do business but in fact it has been spoken about for several decades.
From that moment, digital technologies began to develop rapidly, and the ability to quickly implement them directly determines the competitiveness of enterprises. And although the digital transformation is now a popular topic of discussion among technical experts, in fact, it has been spoken about for several decades.
The benefits of digital transformation
Businesses that welcome change and are ready for it, and that can adapt to more flexible working models, have more than ever greater potential for success. This is due to the fact that digital transformation covers all aspects of the business and offers effective ways to improve them along with the development of digital technologies.
Digital transformation – What exactly does it transform?
Many people think that digital transformation is just the introduction of new technologies in an existing organization: it’s enough to develop websites, chatbots, applications and connect social networks to be considered a digital company or, say, a government structure. In fact, digital transformation is not only an investment in new technologies (artificial intelligence, blockchain, data analysis and the Internet of things), but also a deep transformation of products and services, the structure of the organization, development strategies, customer service, and corporate culture. In other words, this is a revolutionary transformation of the organization model.
Is digital transformation just for businesses?
No, it’s not!
Digital transformation applies to any field. For example, active digitalization is taking place in healthcare. “Cloud-based” solutions for storing Big Data (test results, images) and the use of devices for remote monitoring of the patient’s condition, etc.
Digital transformation is also taking place in education. Now almost every modern school has interactive whiteboards, schoolchildren have electronic diaries, and teachers actively use social networks to stay in touch with students and advise on homework. True, the digital transformation of education is not limited to replacing a notebook with a computer. Technologies allow the use of methods that cannot be implemented in conventional contact training. For example, students must create audio and video content, do joint projects. That is, IT begins to act as an important tool for thinking.
Why do we need digital transformation if the company is doing well?
Every day the demand for digital technologies for business in the market is growing. Now customers expect that any of their wishes – even unusual ones – will be fulfilled as quickly and accurately as possible. It is breakthrough technologies that help to solve these problems. Businesses that cannot adapt to the demands of the digital consumer are likely to go bankrupt and cease to exist. They will be destroyed by new high-tech companies, because consumers will gain access to more advanced services.
Often, companies spend huge amounts of money on maintaining outdated technologies that have long been unprofitable and do not meet the requirements of the digital market. Maintaining obsolete technology in working condition is too expensive; upgrading is even more expensive. In addition, more than one person is required to service them. It is much easier to invest in the latest technology and expand the customer pool than to slowly go broke trying to maintain an unprofitable business.
Do you need to build a digital business from scratch?
A digital business can be built from scratch, or you can change an existing one.
On the one hand, starting a digital business from scratch requires technological competencies and involves a certain amount of risk: there are often no ready-made solutions, and it is difficult to make forecasts. On the other hand, the digital transformation of an existing enterprise sometimes requires the complete destruction of the existing business model. So the entrepreneur must himself assess the scale of potential risks.
What competencies should Implementation Team have?
The set of skills of an innovation team or change management manager should include both hard skills and soft skills. The creation of new business models, the ability to work with the latest technologies (artificial intelligence, robotics, AR and VR, blockchain, the Internet of things), data analysis, ownership of advanced project management methods (6 Sigma, DevOps, Scrum, Kanban, Lean, PRINCE2) include to “solid” skills, that is, professional competencies that are easy to test, for example, through testing.
Soft skills are needed for effective interaction with the team, partners and customers. Often they are called personal qualities. These are communication skills, emotional intelligence, design thinking (that is, user orientation in product development), adaptability.
How is the digitalization of business processes usually carried out?
Digital transformation should begin at the top level: not only the technology director, but also the company leader is responsible for developing a digital strategy. If the manager does not have the skills to work with digital technologies, it is necessary to hire a new one – and preferably from a more “digitalized” industry. The team should have at least five high-level technical experts, and also an experience designer – a specialist in customer experience design.
Only after the team is formed, you can think about product development. Is the business provided with the necessary infrastructure – that is, a set of technologies that will help in the future in its development? For an affirmative answer, businesses need professionals in the areas of security, cloud computing, industrial communications, and analytics.
And then you need to increase the level of technological IQ of the remaining employees, adapt them to innovations, a new style of management and work, involve them in the process of transition to a new stage of development.
Hiring a Digital Transformation Consultant or Agency in Dubai
Dubai is a fast-paced city and so the businesses operating in its heart. Hiring a Digital Transformation Consultant could be a real edge. A consultant will bring a great experience by virtue of its ongoing projects with many other companies at the same time. It is highly likely that an insider of business won’t be able to see a full picture and recognize the risks at the same time having an eye on details.
Why can digital transformation fail?
Digital transformation may fail due to misplaced priorities. As a rule, the focus of many companies is cost and result, rather than the technology itself. This is because the top management of these enterprises is too conservative. The implementation of innovations is also hindered by a lack of competent specialists, a lack of investments, insufficient maturity of business processes and a low level of automation.
Key stages of digital transformation
Despite the differences in digital transformation processes in each enterprise, there are a number of key common to all stages.
Creating a plan that takes into account all the business needs of the enterprise
At the beginning of the digital transformation process, it is very important to determine the direction of development, as well as a set of technologies that will help in this development. At the same time, enterprises must take an inventory of their resources, highlighting those that require modernization. At this stage, it may even be necessary to review the priorities in projects taking into account new business needs, as well as identify shortcomings and gaps that may become an obstacle to digital transformation.
Training employees to work with new technologies
This process can cause many difficulties, because traditional business models, employees had to know only certain systems that were planned to be used for many more years. For the success of digital transformation, employees must be prepared for any changes in work processes, if these changes are necessary to increase efficiency and productivity. Such readiness means the ability to think creatively, and the knowledge of the potential of new technologies, and the ability to use them with maximum efficiency.
Abandoning Outdated Technologies
Very often, companies spend huge amounts of money only to support and maintain their outdated technologies, which are no longer profitable and are not able to support the digital processes that are in demand on the market. This is because the modernization of old technologies is very complex and too expensive. Preservation of old technologies also impedes the development of the enterprise as a whole. A lot of valuable resources are spent on servicing old technologies that could be spent on technologies that are easier to use, increase the quality of customer service and / or accelerate data analysis.
How to learn more about digital transformation?
Many materials on digital transformation are published. Use as much online materials as possible to understand it before actually going after it. We will keep posting new insights on GCC Marketing blog, so keep coming back.
We also recommend reading the following books:
“How Google Works,” Eric Schmidt
“Reasonable Investor,” Benjamin Graham
“Scrum. A Revolutionary Project Management Method, ”Jeff Sutherland
“The DevOps Guide,” Gene Kim, Patrick Debois,
“The Age of Agile: How Smart Companies Are Transforming the Way Work Gets Done, ”Stephen Denning
Looking for Digital Transformation Company in Dubai?
GCC Marketing provides digital transformation services not only in Dubai but also in all over the UAE. Our experts are always ready to take on new projects to transform your business. For professional services or consultation from GCC Marketing Dubai please Contact Us or call us directly on 00971567300683