Thoughts on culture in digital transformation

Although many businesses have come a long way in their digital transformation before this global pandemic struck, many remain far from achieving digital transformation. But what is digital transformation??

Sascha Friesike and Johanna Sprondel explain this concept well in their book (Tr?ge Transformation). They offer a great explanation of digitalization as the process of using a paper map to create new accessible data. Digital transformation is possible once this data is used to create apps like Google Maps and Waze. (Friesike and Sprondel, 2022)

The term “digital transformation” has been used to describe the effort of many organizations across industries. Definitions vary, but they all share a drive toward improving digital operations and reducing costs.

Learning from observing my mother’s approach to technology, I realise that digital transformation is not always about technologies but often more about people. Understanding what people do and how they do it is an important part of digital transformation. For some years now, my mother’s school has had electronic blackboards (whiteboards) and iPads for student use, but when it comes to monotonous tasks like checking vocabulary skills or doing real schooldays work, all digital transformation efforts stop, and she goes back to handing out sheets for the students to fill out.?

As a techie myself, I see many possible uses of technology. However, it’s more than just technology—it’s also a cultural shift. A generation of teachers, doctors, lawyers, and other professionals who have been doing things one way for decades will not accept new technologies if they are simply told that they are beneficial.

A study by BGC found that ignoring culture during digital transformation projects can lead to failure. The researchers found that organizations that incorporated culture into their processes saw a five times greater financial performance than those who did not. (Hemerling et al., 2018)

The ability to embrace change is one of the biggest hurdles businesses face when it comes to embracing new technologies. If a business wants to keep up with the competition and continue growing, it must teach its employees the skills they need to flourish in their careers while making certain they remain motivated. (Developing a Digital Mindset, n.d.; Singh, 2022)?

Culture can affect the adoption of technology. Organizational culture affects a company's ability to pioneer. However, it is everyone's responsibility to shape culture, and digital leaders should help create an empathetic, agile, experimental, and cooperative culture within their organization. Culture is the force that enables companies to achieve their digital ambitions.

While digital culture change itself is a phase of rapid change, it results in a culture of continuous change as outcome. - Hartl Eva

Success doesn’t always look like you may hope for in the beginning.

Reference:

Developing a Digital Mindset (n.d.) Harvard Business Review.

Friesike, S. and Sprondel, J. (2022) Tr?ge Transformation. Welche Denkfehler den digitalen Wandel blockieren: [Was bedeutet das alles?] (Reclams Universal-Bibliothek). Originalausgabe Edition. Reclam, Philipp, jun. GmbH, Verlag.

Hemerling, Kilmann and Danoesastro (2018) It’s not a digital transformation without a digital culture. Boston Consulting, Available from https://web-assets.bcg.com/img-src/BCG-Its-Not-a-Digital-Transformation-Without-a-Digital-Culture-Apr-2018_tcm9-207937.pdf.

Singh, H. (2022) Inside Levi’s Digital Transformation. Harvard Business Review.

Hartl, Eva. "A Characterization of Culture Change in the Context of Digital Transformation." AMCIS. 2019.

Mehta, A. and People Matters Media Pvt. Ltd (n.d.) Role of culture in digital transformation Available from https://www.peoplematters.in/blog/culture/role-of-culture-in-digital-transformation-23193 [accessed 9 August 2022].