Why and how to digitalize your business?
Digitization, now a ubiquitous phenomenon, is overturning codes and profoundly transforming the way we consume, communicate and work. As a result, companies that fail to anticipate and understand the digital stakes run the risk of falling far behind, or even being left behind.
And yet, many organizations are still dragging their feet when it comes to the investment required for this digital transformation. Employee reluctance and a lack of visibility on the returns on investment are slowing down the adoption of digital tools.
The aim of this article is to demystify the digital transformation of companies. We'll take a close look at the reasons for going digital, and the steps you need to take to make the transition a success.
Reasons to bet on digital
The shift to digital technology has many benefits for companies. Let's take a closer look at the tangible benefits they can expect.
Improving customer relations
Showcase sites, customer areas and mobile applications enable us to better understand how customers interact with the company. Thanks to advanced analytics, we're able to precisely identify their pathways, the pages they consult, their preferred channels of exchange...
Armed with these insights, marketing and sales teams fine-tune the customer experience. In this way, the website highlights content on the front page that best matches the interests of each user profile.
Above all, when a customer contacts customer service, the advisor immediately visualizes the history of past exchanges. They also have access to contract details, enabling them to respond appropriately to any concerns.
Similarly, in the personal space, customers can find at a glance the status of their requests, invoices, scheduled appointments... Depending on their profile and seniority, they can also be offered targeted promotional offers.
Chatbots also provide personalized support for users. They answer over 80% of questions autonomously, thanks to artificial intelligence. For more complex requests, they transfer the conversation to a human agent. This chatbot/advisor duo thus combines efficiency and empathy in the service of customers.
Today, nearly 80% of business leaders believe that digital technology improves communication with customers and employees.
Optimize and automate internal processes
The dematerialization of internal procedures saves employees precious time.
Optical character recognition, for example, now automatically scans documents and integrates them into back-office systems. The result: processing time drops from 4 days to... 4 minutes!
In addition, electronic signatures and automated workflows streamline validation processes. No more documents lost at the back of a cupboard waiting to be signed!
Promoting collaboration between teams
Another advantage is that online collaborative tools significantly improve internal communication.
Now, all stakeholders can access a centralized platform to share all project information in real time. Everyone can view the progress of tasks, add comments and submit deliverables directly online.
What's more, these new digital workspaces encourage collective intelligence. Teams can more easily co-author documents and co-construct new ideas using mindmapping or interactive voting functions.
Reduce costs and develop new revenues
Dematerializing processes eliminates the cost of storing and archiving paper documents.
What's more, SaaS and PaaS solutions optimize IT spending by eliminating the need to host infrastructures in-house. You no longer need to invest heavily in ultra-powerful servers that are expensive to maintain!
From now on, companies will be adopting a pay-as-you-go, on-demand approach. They only pay for what they use, via a flexible subscription that can be adjusted at any time.
Digital technology also opens up new revenue opportunities. Connected objects and marketplaces enable new value-added services to be invoiced.
And finally, digitally mature companies are 26% more profitable than their competitors(MIT Sloan Research & Capgemini).
How to achieve a successful digital transformation
1 - Auditing what already exists
The first step is to take stock of the company's information system and internal processes. We analyze the size of the databases, the applications used, the procedures in place in each department, the customer paths...
This phase enables us to accurately assess the level of digital maturity of each link in the company. In this way, we can identify the priority areas for the company's future transformation roadmap.
2 - Getting management and teams on board
The initiators of the digitization program must then present its ins and outs to internal stakeholders. The aim is to win the approval of decision-makers for the colossal investments involved.
The aim is also to overcome any resistance to change that may emerge among the teams. To do this, project leaders highlight the expected benefits in terms of working conditions and employability. They present digital transformation not as an end in itself, but as a means of concretely improving employees' daily lives.
3 - Precise mapping of processes to be digitized
Based on the results of the audit, project managers clearly define the scope of digitalization. They pinpoint the processes to be optimized as a priority, according to their level of digital maturity.
They model the future end-to-end process step by step, integrating the new digital solutions identified. These "blueprints" enable us to simulate the expected gains and size the necessary resources.
4 - Supporting change
Change management is crucial to the success of any digital transformation program. Without the support of in-house teams, the most sophisticated technological solutions will remain a dead letter, however sophisticated they may be.
The project's instigators must therefore redouble their educational efforts to convert employees to the digital cause. First and foremost, they need to guard against two symmetrical pitfalls: technophobia and technophilia.
On the one hand, local managers temper employees' legitimate fears about the permanence of their jobs and the cognitive overload induced by this inevitable paradigm shift.
They demonstrate, with scientific evidence to back it up, that the advent of digital technology does not sound the death knell for traditional professions. On the contrary, it is creating new skills needs and guaranteeing their future employability.
On the other hand, they warn against the techno-babble of self-proclaimed experts. Enthralled by the hype of the latest innovations, they often minimize the inertia of habits and the need to support stakeholders.
And yet, without a gradual increase in users' skills, the most sophisticated tools will remain little technological gems... under-exploited.
To achieve this, an extensive training program is deployed prior to start-up. Video tutorials and step-by-step instructions are made available as self-service on the corporate social network. In just one click, employees can find illustrated instructions on how to carry out their new digital tasks.
Thanks to this multi-modal support, each employee progresses at his or her own pace towards mastery of the new tools. Digital technology, once perceived as a constraint, gradually becomes an important ally in the serene accomplishment of each employee's mission.
5 - Adopt an agile approach: test, listen to feedback and improve
Rather than deploying all the technological bricks simultaneously, we favor iterative approaches. The aim is to rapidly launch first versions of the future target system (MVP) to gather feedback from end-users.
They evaluate the solution and share their irritations and ideas for improvement. This continuous field feedback enables us to enrich the solution as each new version is released, so that it best meets the expectations of our teams.
Conclusion
Ultimately, digital transformation brings tangible benefits to all levels of the company. It optimizes the customer experience by responding sharply to fleeting expectations. It also boosts team productivity by automating tedious internal processes. Above all, it perpetuates the company's business model by opening up new avenues for growth.
Admittedly, as with any major change, the technological shift is not without its bumps and fractures. But the additional value created in the medium term more than offsets the initial inconvenience.
So, far from seeing digitalization as a passing fad, it should be seen as a necessary step. Wise managers approach it with lucidity, but also with healthy ambition. They see it as a vector for continuous improvement in customer service, and for employee fulfillment in the workplace.
Knowmore supports your digital transformation from A to Z. Our business expertise and innovative platform ensure that your teams adopt digital tools over the long term. Boost your growth by taking advantage of the latest innovations!