Technology doesn't need to be complex. Just beneficial

Technology is known for catalyzing big changes. Be it centralized work communications or the uptick in mobile-first environments, we know technology profoundly shifts the way we work as well as how businesses can deliver unprecedented value to customers.

It’s my belief technological change doesn't necessarily need large steps or a complex scale to be effective. Sometimes, simple steps can play the biggest role in revolutionizing customer experience.

In this article, I explore how businesses can further customer success through a small-step approach to digital transformation.

Map investments to enable innovation

A challenge I’ve seen many businesses struggle with is having to delay device upgrades until they have financial capacity - managing an organization’s entire suite of devices can demand significant time and money.

Even when a business has financial capacity, device upgrades, in my mind, aren't the most desired allocation of a business’ time and resources. Of the IT managers I've spoken with, many believe resources that are drained on device management would be better spent on other strategic projects (e.g. using IT innovation to improve outcomes in a hybrid world).?

This is why I like device as a service (DaaS). Instead of having to purchase individual devices, DaaS allows businesses to access IT management services - like PCs, smartphones, and mobile devices with predictable per-user, per month pricing. IT management is simplified through the outsourcing of this role to the device provider - instead of the business.

This allows businesses to enjoy immediate access to better-performing devices without high up-front costs. IT departments are also freed up so they can focus on core business tasks like data security and business growth. Companies using DaaS, I’ve found, are also better equipped to respond to technological breakdowns if they occur.

Prevent poor performance with predictive analytics

From my experience, a customer isn't as concerned with what went wrong as they are with how the problem can be fixed. Wouldn’t it be great though, if IT providers could prevent common problems (e.g. PC crashes) before the customer has caught wind of them?

This is where, I believe, predictive analytics enters the picture. I think focusing on embedding predictive analytics into technology has the potential to ensure IT managers can make amendments before the device fails at an inconvenient time.

To bring this into greater context, imagine you’re in charge of managing the Prime Minister’s (PM) Office - more specifically, the PM's PC.?If you're the head of IT in this situation, you wouldn’t want to receive a call saying the PM's computer is down. Because, by that point, it’s already too late.

The PM and the PM's Office don’t care what went wrong. They just know something went wrong and it’s stopping them from doing their job - not good when a conference call with another head of state is on the agenda.

In the interests of avoiding this predicament, the head of IT would want to know beforehand if there’s a way technology can predict if a computer will soon crash. Is there a kind of technology that can issue reminders to schedule device health checks or scheduled replacements??

Based on predictive analytics, devices can be scheduled for updates around the times when they’re not in use by way of preventing expected failures. When companies use DaaS, such updates are easier to coordinate as everything - from PC to mobile devices - are grouped together in a single solution.

In the case of managing the PM’s devices, if updates are tactfully scheduled around the times when they’re not in use, the PM need never know any change has been made. A device could be swapped entirely while the PM is at a lunch meeting. So, in that respect, this type of IT management is seamless - the PM experiences the benefit of timely updates without knowing they’ve been made.

From a user perspective, replacing a PC or laptop might appear to be a small step. But this small step makes a world of difference when the user no longer needs to worry about sudden technological breakdowns or impediments to productivity.

This is exactly how I think the experience should be for the user - the digital change doesn’t need to be disruptive; it just needs to make their life easier, more productive, and enjoyable.

Determine whether a step is worth taking

In a recent conversation I had with a coworker, we discussed how a business should decide whether to take a step towards digital transformation.

In my opinion, it should start with small steps from a financial standpoint, not the IT department. It needs to come from top level management (the CEO, CFO and CSO, etc.) so IT spend can be optimized throughout the entire business.

For instance, if a company wants to change from an OpEx to a CapEx model, the motivation to do this primarily stems from financial considerations - how can the business maximize the bottom line? Is this right for the organization? How will the change affect people in the organization?

At Lenovo, I’ve seen this play out in our customer interactions. For instance, during a customer’s annual planning, they bring in their Lenovo account team to manage their whiteboarding. In this situation, we advise the customer on what’s possible based on their cost layouts - ahead of any decisions about devices, solutions, or support. We think of the bigger picture for the business but implement it in small steps.

An organization can only integrate so much change at any given time and large-scale, all-in-one programs can be expensive, especially when they go wrong. Implementing digital transformation in small steps enables businesses to maintain control and better understand their changing operations. This, as research from the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) shows, leads to improved long-term resilience.

Instead of going straight to technology, approaching digital transformation with small steps from a financial standpoint ensures the development is aligned to what the business needs and can afford. Financial considerations as a baseline for digital transformation, I believe, helps businesses frame development that successfully delivers - resource planning is harnessed from what the company knows is available.?

Steps that may appear small on the surface can play the biggest role in enabling businesses to further success for their customers. These steps don’t need to be disruptive or delivered on a complex scale. They just need to be developed in a way that’s financially viable for the business and deliver seamless benefits to the customer.

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