The 30 Types of People That Need Digital Transformation

By now, the need for enterprise-wide digital transformation is well-documented:

• Digital Transformation will be a $2.1 trillion marketplace by 2020
• More than 50% of IT budgets will be spent on digital transformation by 2019
• Technology, across all industries, is now a #1 CEO priority
• “Digital Transformation” as a term is 4.3X more popular in 2016 than it was in 2014

If you happen to need more evidence, stumble on our bank of stats here.

So “digital transformation” – who really wants it? who will find it essential lexicon to the future of their work? who should be asking for it?

We tumbled through our own experiences and came up with 30 archetypes of people and situations who really need it, some who don’t even know it yet.

Type of Executive Leadership

#1 The Skeptics

• Key Challenge: resistant, protecting status quo, not keeping up
• Evidence: 51% of businesses believe they are either resistant to (31%), or have mixed views toward transformation and change (20%) (Channel Insider).
• Require: An independent, objective Digital Transformation Audit that will open their eyes to the pace, risk and snapshot of where they currently sit as a digital business.

#2 The Slow Footed 

• Key Challenge: Risk averse, lack urgency, in denial
• Evidence: 62% say their organization is in denial about the need to transform digitally; 59% are worried its already too late (Progress).
• Require: Alternate Scenario Planning that accurately forecasts risks and disruption of maintaining status quo and charts new path.

#3 The “Show Mes”

• Key Challenge: Need spark, catalyst, want quantifiable evidence
• Evidence: 67% of innovation resources are spent on maintaining market position with low performing innovator companies and only 10% is spent on market disruptive innovation (vs. 34% and 28% in high performance organizations (McKinsey).
• Require: Host a Fast Futures Keynotes/Innovation Summit that ignites interest and dimensionalizes the lost potential of disruptive, breakthrough and game-changing digital innovation to executive and business teams.

#4 The Aloof

• Key Challenge: Unaware of emerging trends, customer behaviour shifts and technology changes.
• Evidence: “Leadership understands technology and trends”: In digitally mature companies – 96% agree, In digitally lagging companies – 7% agree (Deloitte).
• Require: Build futureproofing Trend Mapping/Emerging Technology Impacts and Implications as an awareness builder and prelude to any strategic or annual planning process.

#5 The Disconnected

• Key Challenge: Out of touch with marketplace, customer and talent expectations.
• Evidence: 79% of companies have not mapped out the customer journey and digital touchpoints (Altimeter).
• Require: Convene an Executive Team Workshop/Business Team ideastorm and Overall Company Surveyfocused on digital transformation.

Company Situation:

#6 The Failing

• Key Challenge: Need turnaround, question of survival in near future.
• Evidence: 47% of companies haven’t started to embark on a digital transformation process yet; 67% of executives believe digital transformation is matter of survival for their business (Progress/Cap Gemini)
• Require: Convene a Digital Leadership Stakeholder Review to develop and align 6, 12 and 18 month quick win developments required.

#7 The Lagging

• Key Challenge: Uncompetitive, vulnerable to disruptive competition and new entrants.
• Evidence: The average amount of time it takes for an incumbent organization to be disrupted is 3.1 years; 62% of executives believe they are falling behind (Digital Vortex/Fujitsu).
• Require: Scorecard your digital transformation Change Readiness Assessment and identify key steps and measures to accelerate and track your rate of progress.

#8 The Exploring

• Key Challenge: Interested, but experiments are scattered and best practices are not developed across company or scaled to bigger audiences.
• Evidence: “Company is deploying the right digital resources and skills”: In digitally mature companies – 77% agree, In digitally lagging companies – 8% agree (Deloitte)
• Require: Input, develop and agree to a centralized 18 month Digital Transformation Roadmap that will integrate best practices across the organization and fast track initiatives of highest potential.

#9 The Maturing

• Key Challenge: Driving value, but still need to optimize and build one integrated view of customer and talent.
• Evidence: Executives believe they are, at best, 25% toward realizing the end state of their digital transformation vision (eMarketer).
• Require: Drive progress against specific Customer and Talent Personas, Journey Mapping and Experience Management.

#10 The Transforming

• Key Challenge: industry Leader status, but need to get to next stage, defend against and attack with new digital business models.
• Evidence: 86% of organizations say that digital business has prompted them to enter, or consider entering, a new market (Accenture)
• Require: Internally disruptive exercise via a Business Model Innovation Review and consensus on a new digitally-driven Business Model Canvas(es).

To see the entire post and profiles of the 30 types of Digital Transformation people, go to our Insights area of Precog Digital.