Digital transformation is one of the most important initiatives that organisations undertake in order to stay competitive in today’s digital age.
The rate at which technology is evolving is astounding. It seems like every day, there is a new piece of hardware or software that can help organisations improve their productivity and efficiency.
According to Contino’s Europe digital transformation report, the rise of technology has allowed organisations to move from traditional methods of doing business to more efficient and effective digital transformations.
The field of digital transformation has been greatly helped by this influx of technological advancements like digital products and some of the most innovative tech leaders from across Europe have managed to integrate technology as part of their strategy to great success.
In this post, we’ll look at how business executives have used technology to help their businesses succeed as well as the current state of digital transformation in organisations.
Here are some the tech leaders from the Europe digital transformation report that managed to use technology effectively with great results.
Paul Whyte
Paul Whyte is the Managing Director of Best Food Logistics, a leading provider of food logistics, warehousing and distribution.
Paul has been in the industry for over 20 years and has worked on many different projects with some of the world’s largest retailers including Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons.
He has also led Best Food Logistics’ digital transformation strategy which includes implementing a new warehouse management system (WMS) that allows customers to track their orders in real-time and gives them access to live inventory updates.
Paul believes that embracing technology is key for businesses looking to grow and be more profitable than ever before and to transform a loss-making food logistics company into a market-leading data aggregator. Strong project governance is critical to digital transformation success.
“Carefully managing the execution of a technology implementation is critical: tracking risks, logging issues, flagging barriers to change and celebrating sucesses” said Paul.
It is important to communicate your case for change to create belief across stakeholders, spend the majority of time on change management and strong project governance is essential.
Paul also stresses that technology should be used as an enabler for businesses looking to improve their operations and grow sustainably over the long term.
Best’s on-time deliveries increased from under 40% to over 95%. Customers can now see the company’s success, as well as that of its partners, through the portal and a simple mobile app.
Best’s business rates have improved and expanded. In 2020, Best’s success resulted in it being bought by Booker Group, a Tesco PLC subsidiary.
Fumbi Chima
Fumbi Chima was the Global Chief Information Officer of Adidas at the time of Contino’s report and she is now currently is the BECU’s executive vice president and chief information officer.
Fumbi has extensive experience in the area of digital transformation, process improvement and technology enablement. She believes technology has a significant part to play in organisations that want to change their business models and operations.
For firms wanting to future-proof their business, understanding, anticipating, and servicing the consumer with technology is critical.
She believes that successful companies focus on creating aligned incentives throughout the business and are ready to pivot when needed. They also understand that there is no such thing as “done” in the digital age – it’s an ever-changing landscape.
“Customer journeys keep evolving. Behaviours change. Transformation is a journey; you can never stick a pin in it and say that you’re done”
The strategy has resulted in faster throughput of superior products that are more personalised and more responsive to the customer. The flexibility of the new model also gave Adidas the ability to pivot, which is critical when the world is changing so rapidly
Debra Bailey
Debra Bailey leads the technology and digital agenda for O2 in the UK, including developing new propositions, platforms and customer experience to drive growth in both retail and enterprise markets.
It is important to understand the business challenges, automate business processes from end-to-end and build with the future in mind.
She was able to achieve digital transformation by unifying technology and businesses to help digitally connect customers with the things that matter most to them.
Debra said, “The business challenges are what drives the beahvour of the supporting functions, including I.T. Understanding them is the first port of call.”
After less than a year of the new operating model, O2 has already hit their target of a 10% lift in speed-to-value, is on track to hit 2022’s target of 25% and has a huge target of 75% by 2024.
Conclusion
Technology has a critical role to play in the process of digital transformation, and businesses that don’t embrace it will struggle to keep up with the competition.
Leveraging technology can help organisations optimize their processes, become more productive and creative, adapt to changes faster, reduce costs and increase revenues.
If you’re looking to succeed in the digital era, your organisation needs to start its journey of transformation as soon as possible.