Feature:
Digital Transformation for Your Business
The global pandemic has brought forward this realisation and then some. We have seen businesses pivoting their offerings in the course of a week and we have seen them doing so with compassion in mind. We have seen technology that previously took months or even years to produce being rolled out in days. Importantly, we are seeing this technology being used to support employees facing layoffs, to foster community collaboration and to assist governments protect citizens.
A big shout out here to GovTech and their TraceTogether app developed using agile methodology within days.
So what do you, as a business owner, do next? Businesses of all sizes must become capable of continuously adapting to ever faster changing demands and uncertainties, that’s for sure - and it’s not as hard as you might think.
The change capability required for successful digital transformation is a philosophy rather than a process. It has to be fundamental to every part of a business, and it needs to be taught and nurtured.
Transitioning from thinking about “agile” as a process (for example in Scrum methodology) to becoming an agile business full stop is actually not as difficult as you might imagine but it does require some bold moves.
For example, recruiting a transformative workforce will require a change in how your recruitment team work. We need to acknowledge that adaptability is more important than experience, and that ability to learn supersedes a perfect CV. Why? Because managing continuous change requires a team that can learn fast.
Similarly, we need to adapt when it comes to procurement. Traditional methods won’t function in an agile model. Assessing return on investment will have to be rethought. Changing how we work with suppliers, forming close partnerships rather than the traditional models of fear and protection will become central to the transformative business and will require the procurement team to change contractual terms to reflect this.
Agility at its heart is the ability to act quickly based on accurate and relevant data. The businesses - and dare I say nations - who have been most successful over the past few months have clearly understood this maxim. And this involves every employee. Digital transformation has to be companywide with technology simply being an enabler.
Critically needed data must be delivered to those who need it in a way that supports transformation. And this is where a very pivotal team needs to step in and step up.
Digital Transformation for Your Business
By Margaret Manning OBE,
Partner EY Digital ASEAN,
Ernst & Young
Even before the heartbreak and havoc COVID-19 continues to cause in the global social and economic community, it was clear that digital transformation was pivotal to the future of businesses in Singapore and beyond - and particularly to small businesses.
This article is brought to you by the Information & Communications Technology Committee.
Agility at
its heart is
the ability to act quickly based
on accurate and relevant data.