Digital Foundations

In 2021, with the massive changes we have seen in consumers flocking to digital to live their lives, it’s concerning to see how many organisations treat digital as surface level cladding, rather than an exciting opportunity to design and re-invent their business model on new foundations.

Adding a couple of ‘optic’ hires with fancy UX, Design-Thinking and Innovation titles, and digitising a few processes with some shiny tech is far from true digital transformation of the organisational mindset, skillset and toolsets.

Customers in every industry, B2C and B2B are looking for brands that enable them to achieve what they want in the most efficient and friction free manner. Organisations that think a few ‘cool’ digital initiatives are going to save the day are going to need saving.

Focused digital change needs to be driven from the CEO and leadership team in all directions. Upwards to educate their boards on how they need to charter a new course as a business with digital being the primary enabler for purposeful and sustainable success. Downwards to help teams assemble and continuously optimise a digital first culture, platforms and processes to better navigate ‘the now’ and adapt at speed to ‘the future’. Sideways into lateral partnerships to create and tap into new forms of value creation.

It can be tough soul-searching work to re-invent legacy business models, kill legacy tech and dump past ways of working. But all successful legacies are built on adaption to change to create meaningful value that helps them thrive and grow. Digital is never done and change needs to start yesterday.