How to Become A Disruptor: 23 Iron Clad Rules

“The standard definition of digital disruption,” says CIO Wiki, “is the change that occurs when new digital technologies and business models affect the value proposition of existing goods and services.”

To put it simply, some companies are transforming by leveraging digital technology to change everything they do in their businesses.

So, what factors are driving this process? First, we must recognize something critical: There’s no “silver bullet” or single formula to achieve success. Instead, it’s a complex process that requires people and companies to align to numerous elements.

Below are the 23 iron clad rules that in my opinion can help you and your company to turn into a disruptor:

1.    Senior management top of list agenda :  Disruption is now a critical element on every senior executive’s agenda and a major priority for every manager. Also needs to full back up because it touches every core business element of the organizations.

2.    Legacy isn’t an acceptable excuse:  Stopped blaming legacy systems for your problems or old ways of doing things. If you aren′t able to fix it, you’re legacy too.

3.    Become a technology-driven company: As a disruptor, you can made digital technology the core of what you do and one of your biggest strengths. Looking forward, most of the companies need to embrace technology if they want to stay as an industry leader. (ie. A software company, a cloud company, an SAS company, etc.). Technology will drive everything we do, becoming not just a competitive advantage but also a key value proposition to your company.

4.    Set clear strategies and goals but execute flexibly: The change process goes beyond just being agile. It’s about also being flexible, modular, fast, and adaptable to your partners’ needs and your market’s necessities. Pivoting, which is fine when needed, will help you make corrections. This process doesn’t mean going crazy in different directions, but pivoting smartly and being flexible.

5. Startup operating model; being agile and flexible it is key: You need to shake the status quo, look for efficiencies like operating your small startup, looking for the best time to market, flexibility and being agile: Kill bureaucracy.

6.    Make customer experience your true north: This statement is almost a cliché these days, but it has real implications. The goal is to elevate the standards and processes and transform yourselves from being product-oriented to “customer-centric,” with NSP and customer engagement and satisfaction to be the true north.

7.    Emphasize teamwork and eliminate silos: Goals can’t be achieved in isolation. A single department or unit can′t drive the process, but it must include every worker at all the company’s layers. In short, everyone in the companies must embrace change and commit to digital transformation. It doesn’t matter his or her level. We’re all responsible for change.

8.    Think as an ecosystem and strong partnerships: This process isn’t a zero-sum game. To do great things, you′ll need great partners. But you need to find partners that not only share the same willingness to change, but also to embrace the disruptor’s journey. In our connected society, we need to be open to giving and receiving help. We also need to think of our partners as an integral part of our ecosystem.

9.    Avoid innovation dilemma: Initially, we need to look for a “low hanging fruit’ and quick wins. But we also need to develop our assets to help us address the middle- and long term. In other words, we need to keep an eye on the impact on our organization and our business in the short run. We also need to observe its impact in the middle-term and long-term. Otherwise, digital technology becomes just a tactical fix for an existing business problem instead of a strategic long-term disruptive approach.

10.    Execute tactics well: Developing and investing in strategy wastes time and effort if we execute the strategy poorly. In the end, everything depends on how well you execute a given plan. Successful disruptors execute tactics well.

11. Choose your battles wisely: You can’t be all over the place. In the end, you have limited resources and time, so you can’t do everything simultaneously or make mistakes in choosing your priorities or focus. Those things could be fatal mistakes. Keep in mind that everything is about timing, so you need to be ready when the market is ready—a skill we need to master to survive.

12. Get the best talent: New challenges requires new skills. So, bring in the best people you can find. Often, digital activities are so strategic they can’t be outsourced without hurting quality. So, if it’s a core skill and strategic, do it in house. Bringing in the talent needed to this may require adjusting your organization’s culture but it pays off. To meet the needs of today’s more demanding customers, you need the best digital workers on your team.

13. Make sure the changes impact your core business: We see this mistake often. Digital changes leave the organization’s core untouched. Sure, it’s risky to make these changes. It’s also easier to let them go. But making digital changes that have no impact on your core elements is a critical mistake. Digital disruption must touch your core services and processes. That’s how you generate real change.

14. Making changes requires courage: Making digital changes challenges you. No doubt about it. It also means you’re bound to experience ups and downs during the journey. Plus, you’ll make mistakes and face ridicule from detractors. Your leadership team must have courage to stay the course while fighting the storm.

15. Expect failure on the path to success: Don’t be afraid of failing when making changes. Instead, welcome it. It’s how we learn. Just don’t make the same mistake twice. Instead, learn fast from your mistakes. That beats fear of failure and “analysis paralysis” every time. If you have clear strategy, failure is just another step in the journey to success. Michael Jordan said he missed more shots that anyone practicing how to be the greatest basketball player of all times.

16. Leverage your competitive strengths: Strategically, you need to first understand what your company strengths are, then you need to reinforce them. Finally, you need to take them to the next level using technology. This process is analogous to a 100-meter sprinter becoming a marathoner. It won’t happen overnight, but it will happen faster and easier if the runner bases the changes on his strengths and uses technology in the process.

17. Be open, curious, and alert: Past success doesn’t mean future success. Solution that you learned in the past won’t work in the future. You must have the professional mindset of being always alert, learning about what’s happening around you, and how to connect the dots or how can you apply any technology or solution.

18. Use horizontal thinking: Companies need to connect the dots horizontally, like connecting different platforms or solutions. Here you must have a creative mind to apply other successes or cases to yours and understand how something that gets traffic be applied to your industry.

19. It’s about the journey, not the destination: Technologies get obsolete quickly. Any digital competitive advantage can be copied, so it’s critical you have the mindset of continuous internal disruption. You need to look at it as a journey, not a destination.

 20. Break out your comfort zone: If you feel comfortable, you’re not doing the right thing for the organization or project. You must push yourself and the project you’re leading beyond your comfort zone. Like everything in life, it will be tough, but that’s the only way to evolve.

21. It’s about real business: This effort is about doing real business. More importantly, it’s about providing critical business value, user engagement, and customer satisfaction. If you’re not doing that, you’re not disrupting. Instead, you’re just a PowerPoint presentation.

22: It is about People: To do this massive transformation, specially in an established business, in order to be successful you need to evolve and change behaviors, some cultural changes to this new way people has been operating successfully in the "analog world", some people will embrace this change others will take longer. Make everyone participant to drive this change, this is a inclusive game, leverage human resources and senior management for training and "communicate, communicate and communicate". Technology is a part or it but people is the critical factor.

23. Enjoy the ride: You must enjoy the ride. Fortunately, we live in one of the most transformative eras—thanks in large part to technology. Plus, we have the luxury of transforming businesses and impacting people lives. It’s an unbelievable time for the ones that know how and when to drive impact.

Again, there’s no silver bullet out there to help you and your company to achieve success. But these 23 iron clad rules described above can help you and your company to become a digital disruptor. Becoming a disrupter can transform your company into a market leader, enabling you to enjoy all the benefits that come with doing so.