Why co-Creation for digital business transformation?

Why become a digital business?

As customers are demanding engaging experiences, linear supply chains are giving way to networks, and ecosystems (network of networks), companies need to innovate their business model to remain competitive. Emerging digital technologies provide the capabilities for business model innovation and ultimately becoming a digital business which can (co)operate in multiple ecosystems.

Why co-creation?

Keeping pace with business, technology and regulation in a Do-It-Yourself mode is no longer possible.

Understanding the digital waves (Internet, Mobile Internet, Internet of Things, AI & Robotics) and reinventing the organization requires broad solution disciplines and partners.

Gartner defines co-creation as “providers actively using customers in the design process of future products with the help of a collaborative platform provided by the provider”. The stakeholders include internal, customer, vendor, partner as well as society (open). My visualization of a co-creation ecosystem is depicted below:

Simultaneous interaction and collaboration must be possible among all the co-creators on a innovation platform.

Co-creation means collaborating with outside stakeholders to build a new product or obtain feedback to refine a product.

What are the critical capabilities of co-creation partners?

Innovation

A co-creation partner should bring value to the table in his chosen solution domain.

• Continuously develop, evaluate new technologies (Social, Mobile, Analytics, Cloud, IoT, AI, AR, Blockchain, IoT, etc.)
• Develop use cases and technology maps to aid the digital business with developing business cases for PoCs
• Develop accelerators for rapid prototyping and implementation based on open source/ commercially viable mainstream technologies that have gone past the hype/ fad and became a trend
• Develop the ability to provide non-linear growth to the digital businesses
• Develop the ability to scale digital talent

Collaboration

Collaborating with stakeholders should be a perfected art for the co-creation partner, building ISVs and implementing them for enterprises. ISVs and enterprises are now converging to be digital businesses.

Following are the critical capabilities on collaboration and co-innovation with each partner.

Customers:

• Run customer working groups to present theory and product, understand the practice and build the product vision, roadmaps, release themes and timelines
• Embrace agile development methodologies and make customers part of the sprint/ release reviews, beta programs
• Run customer advocacy programs such as special interest groups, user group meetings, lunch and learns, etc. to share upcoming products, services and solutions and seek active feedback
• Run customer success programs encompassing business reviews, surveys, periodic visits to ensure continuous alignment, customer delight and 100% net promoter score
• Interact with customers’ customers, participate in customer events to understand their experiences, needs and inputs

Partners:

• Partner with several leading maker platforms including low code platforms and all PaaS providers (E.g. Microsoft, Oracle, Mendix, OpenText, etc.)
• Make them part of the solution delivery where needed

Society:

• Contribute to the development of standards
• Engage with analysts to understand broader market trends and needs and adopt them quickly

Vendors:

• Apart from the strategic partners in solution delivery, have a select list of vendors, specialists in tools, processes, products and skills
• When these vendors emerge as key contributors, Make them partners in solution delivery

Conclusion

As every business is becoming a digital business embracing product-centric approach to deliver enabling software systems for business operations as well as designing and delivering data-driven digital services, selection of the right co-creation partners is key to the digital business transformation success.

Key capabilities include

• Demonstrated experience in developing customer facing, revenue generating, mission critical, enterprise class, consumer grade software products with shared vision and execution excellence
• Spirit of collaboration
• Understanding of and experience with the ecosystem partners
• Relentless focus on business value

We at coMakeIT stand for co-makership and co-Creation.