Digitalization, the Digital Transformation.

Digitalization is as old as our first computers. And we have been at it for years: we automate all our processes, scan all our archives and develop our protocols so that human intervention is less and less necessary.

?Digitalization of data and processes is now the norm, and the goals may vary, but the most obvious ones are efficiency and improvement. Digitalization is about building a digital organization where you have thought very carefully in advance about how and what role your company could and should play in the digital reality. It is easy to imagine that only the purpose of your business remains the same and that strategy, operations, business model, staff and corporate culture need to be redefined.

?Ongoing technological transformation has the potential to drive more inclusive and sustainable growth by driving innovation, generating efficiencies and improving services.

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Whatever this means for your vision and mission, digital transformation comes from the core. Digital transformation therefore requires a totally new kind of leadership, because to foresee is the way to rule.

?Digital transformation is the combination of digital leadership and the development and use of digital assets. From digital leadership, a strategy is set up to create the best user experience for the customer, create innovative business models or optimize core processes. Digital leadership helps the organization make the move to a more digitally oriented and, above all, agile organization. And above all, the agility of our organization is becoming increasingly important because Digitalization requires constant changes that can be implemented quickly and appropriately. Furthermore, you watch out for vendor lock-ins better said you rule them out. Fortunately, with the advent of data management systems, data can be accessed from almost any technology.

Digitalization requires a change in our organizational DNA. Leaders who think that the digital transition is a tool or perhaps a path to a new way of working are dead wrong.

?However, digital transformation is much more than digitizing existing business processes and facilitating and automating them via customer portals, apps, tools, digital forms and robots. It is therefore not the same as digitizing. The meaning of digital transformation, however, is much more far-reaching. Digitizing processes is a phase in an organization’s journey towards a more digitally oriented and data-driven organization and requires awareness, vision and decisiveness from managers and entrepreneurs.

?We are embracing our digital brainpower. Thanks to digitalization, powerful computer systems and smart design of IT infrastructures, we are already able to mimic and even surpass human intelligence in some areas. Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning offer infinite possibilities to business and society. The core of this playing field and its applicability will be determined by the extent to which we can collect data and store it for short or long periods of time. The success factor of the business in the coming period will be determined by how organizations manage to keep data under control. And if you have not already done so, it is high time to map out all possible potential strategic scenarios.

Digital transformation affects all your business processes, your IT solutions and even your corporate culture. It requires cross-curricular and multidisciplinary skills.

Good leadership is therefore the most important success factor for digital transformation!

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