My Digital Transformation journey

TL;DR

In this article I reflect on what I’ve learned about digital transformation. I review a report I wrote during a management consultant assignment about five years ago. I’m surprised by how well it has stood the test of time, but I would likely make a few additions if I got a similar task today – emphasizing the need of change management, embracing a Lean startup mindset and making sure that management is fully on board. Keep reading for details…

The Rowell report

In 2014 I got back to the consultancy business after detour as R&D manager in a product company. My first assignment was to support a well-established, large, traditional product company, taking on the challenge of digitalization. More specifically, the task was to provide insights and inspiration on how to build capabilities to develop connected products and digital services. I summarized my findings and proposals in a report – the “Rowell report” (as some of my colleagues referred to it).

The mission was to assess the client’s current situation and capabilities, and propose ideas and potential solutions within areas such as development processes, organization, system architecture etc. I interviewed many stakeholders, gathered input from other companies at the forefront of digitalization and bounced ideas with experienced people in my network.

My advice

In the report I emphasized a few fundamental concepts, including

• Cross-functional collaboration
• User-centered design
• Continuous delivery

Here are a few snippets from the report. (Note that I’ve made a few changes to protect the integrity of the client.)

“Cross-functional collaboration is really the core of creating innovative and attractive digital services. Designers, product managers, engineering, IT, sales and market people must work together during design and development. In other words, all major stakeholders must be involved from start to finish.”

“A continuous, user-centered design process will help [the client] to develop innovative and attractive digital services. Let the business opportunities and user needs be the starting point of the design process.”

“To meet the demands of the fast-paced market, the ability to release often and with quality is of essence. It is vital to set up processes and tools to enable frequent deliveries for all components of the digital services, including mobile apps, web apps, server solutions, embedded software etc.”

“Embracing Agile, Lean and DevOps principles throughout the whole value chain is the way forward.”

So, what happened then?

The client went ahead and implemented many of the suggestions. They established a new development organization based on cross-functional agile teams. They fully embraced DevOps and the cloud, abandoning their traditional on-premise servers and ITIL processes. To fast-forward their learning process, they brought in experts in various areas such as cloud architecture, system development and agile methodologies. And I personally got the opportunity to be a part of their journey, working very hands-on in the middle of the action.

A few areas where however, in my humble opinion, not properly addressed, such as product management, cultivating cross-functional collaboration and putting the customer needs in focus.

How would my advice change today?

When I read the Rowell report today, more than half a decade after it was written, I find most of the insights and suggestions still valid. But considering the experience I’ve gained since then, I would make a few additions.

1. Change management

I would emphasize the need for proper change management. Embarking on a digitalization journey requires a cultural change more than anything else, especially for well-established, traditional product companies. Getting commitment from everyone involved is critical, as well as embracing collaboration and challenging the silo mentality. Change management will be a valuable tool and I'm personally a strong advocate of the Lean Change Management approach - a feedback-driven, iterative model where the people affected by the change are involved in designing the details of the change.

2. Lean startup mindset

I would also advocate a hypothesis-based, experimental development approach, including continuous product discovery as well as business model innovation. Creating compelling value propositions and solid revenue streams with digital technology is a different kind of ball game than developing yet another product iteration that is 0,2% better than the last model. Research, prototype, test and improve! And remember that it is not enough to build an agile development organization, the whole value chain must be on-board to fully reap the benefits of agile and lean.

3. Management support

Top-management must take clear ownership of the transformation. The new value streams likely span across organizational silos, and a clearly communicated common vision as well as active, hands-on leadership is essential to bridge the organizational chasms. And even more important, the middle management must be fully committed to support the digital agenda. This is where the battle between the “new” and the “old” will take place, and without managers fully committed to drive the change status quo will reign.

Wrap-up

So, what’s the moral of this story? I guess my main message is that you live and you learn. Both as an individual and as an organization. To conquer status quo you must dare to try. The most important part of your journey is the first step. Don’t over-think, just do it and improve along the way. Experience can only be achieved by doing stuff.

And feel free to reach out if you need a travel guide on your digital journey. ??