Big data, artificial intelligence, and data science are some of the words that are expanding at a very fast pace. But the amazing thing is that there is a “mother” of them all. A “super buzzword.” It is “digital transformation.”
Around the world, its growth is clear and continuous. Just look at the graph on thailand phone number data Google Trends for the word “digital transformation”.
digital transformation google trends
In Brazil, the path is the same. Of course, with a delay and a slowdown due to the crisis, but it tends to resume even stronger when the market heats up and people start thinking about investing again.
digital transformation google trends brazil
Because it is such a broad concept, it is very difficult to understand what “digital transformation” actually is and what its consequences are. I am trying to demystify this challenge, helping you understand why you need to pay attention to this much-discussed word.
Benefits for those already undergoing digital transformation
Benefits for those already undergoing digital transformation
The impact of digital transformation usually appears in several areas of the company. Costs usually fall considerably with automation and operational efficiency. This leads to healthy cash flows, which greatly impacts the company's environment and brings a light and positive atmosphere to day-to-day activities. This further motivates the team, which seeks to improve itself even further, forming a positive cycle.
Efficiency is also perceived by customers who are able to solve their problems with qualified service. It may seem contradictory, but companies with a high level of automation, such as Amazon , have call centers that are recognized for providing extremely humanized service. This happens because in these environments, machines perform machine services, allowing humans to focus on what they are best at.
Unfair competition
When your competitor is already able to reap all these benefits and your company is still struggling to assimilate digital transformation, the risk becomes imminent. Delivering a quality service at low costs makes it difficult for you to compete. Just look at examples like Taxi vs Uber , or Netflix vs Blockbuster. They will always have the power of price in their hands to challenge you.
Things that companies that are aware of digital transformation don't do
Things that companies that are aware of digital transformation don't do
When we have a new and comprehensive topic like this, it is often difficult to understand in practice what it means and how it impacts my day-to-day life. Therefore, I have brought some examples of what companies in a high degree of digital transformation DO NOT do:
Meetings and more meetings
A study conducted in the US showed that 37% of meetings held in companies are considered unproductive. This represents 3.7 billion dollars a year thrown away by companies.
The need for meetings is usually related to a lack of autonomy and communication problems. Let me give you some examples. If I am given a task to organize an event and in order to do it I always need to approve details with my superior, this shows that the time of two employees is being wasted on this task. On the other hand, if my superior makes the objectives of the task clear to me and grants me autonomy (as long as I have the capacity to carry it out), I would save his time that could be used on other company activities.
For this to work well, the superior who delegated the task needs to know what he wants and make it clear. How to do it is up to you!
Several people to make the same decision
Here is another symptom of a lack of autonomy. Several people are involved in the same process. Ask yourself, do you really need to involve everyone? Each person who is idle is time that could be used for other tasks. Therefore, the agility of companies is closely related to autonomy and how much each person can make good decisions without needing several people to explain the entire context and debate the matter.
Lack of clarity about company culture
My uncle used to say, “You have two ways to lead, through love or through fear.” Fear can work, but the problem is that you will always need to create friction and demonstrate power. This is exhausting for the team and for you. And as the company starts to grow, it becomes unfeasible for you to keep an eye on everyone. It doesn’t work anymore! So how do I motivate people to dedicate themselves without having to give orders? This happens when the company’s goal is aligned with the people’s goal. With a clear purpose and values, people identify with it and naturally act in favor of that cause. Those who are not aligned leave and those who are aligned come in. This creates what we call culture, which from a certain point onwards escapes the manager’s hands and moves the entire team effortlessly.
