Digital and Analytics strategy for tech-enabled transformation

Digital and Analytics

The emergence of the Digital and analytics business model has put enormous pressure on the incumbents’ strategies and operating models. Companies that are successful are the ones who have been adept in embracing digital technologies. These companies have devised new ways of working in order to generate more value from their digital investments.
To be successful in executing a successful Digital operating strategy, it is imperative that companies rethink and reinvent every aspect of their business right from strategy to operations.

Elements of successful tech-enabled transformation

• Digital ecosystems are becoming more relevant as more companies are using online platforms to integrate related offerings.
• Digital ecosystems are changing industry dynamics and are expected to generate almost a third of global sales by 2025.

The right Digital and Analytics strategy

• A digital strategy can’t be incremental. Hence it is necessary that companies make big moves in order to reinvent themselves for the digital business.
• In order to build an effective digital strategy, companies need to strike a balance between digitizing their core business and creating innovative digital business models including models built on digital platforms. To achieve this, companies need to evolve their strategy from old fashioned annual planning to a continuous process so that they are able to respond more quickly to new developments.

The right digital and analytics workforce

• Digital natives are successful in matching their workforces to their digital priorities by devoting additional efforts to recruitment and training.
• In order to meet with the rising demand for technology products and business enablers, companies are hiring digital specialists. These specialists come up with deeper and broader skills.
• In addition, firms are also upskilling their current employees by creating analytics academies that provide customized training for all executives.

Agile Methodology

• Companies need to move towards agile ways of working that provide organizations with pace and flexibility to fulfill their customers rapidly changing needs.
• The agile methodology involves making prototypes, letting users try them and then improving those designs according to end users expectations.Using this approach, companies roll out products and tech solutions more quickly.This eliminates most of the risks that usually come up with Waterfall approaches.
• Design thinking can be successful only through an agile approach. This is because it helps companies figure out what users value the most.

Analytics and leveraging data

• In order to be successful in a digital context, firms need to apply analytics and AI to build applications that translate data to real time insights for decision makers.
• In order to derive maximum value from analytics, companies need to embed analytics across the organization. To achieve this, firms need to define strategic opportunities, increase investments, strengthen their data management practices and authorize their middle/senior level management to make analytics guided decisions.

Technology function becomes critical

• Technology functions have become more critical and are expected to support innovation and agile delivery while still enabling basic operations.
• Legacy IT Architecture and traditional software development process are no longer relevant.These process often tend to impede quick releases of digital applications.
• In order to transition to a digital operating model, companies need to configure their IT systems as a set of modular platforms and embrace advanced technologies. They must perform key activities inhouse, hire/train their personnel for a wide array of digital jobs such as product owners and user experienced designers.

Transforming business operations

• Full scale digital transformation is only possible by bringing a multitude of technology solutions into day to day business operations.
• Companies realize substantial value from technology by addressing two digital imperatives. The first imperative would be to create multiple digital solutions to boost efficiency and to improve customer experience across an enterprise.
• The other imperative would be to redesign the processes to capture the value of advanced technologies and guiding employees to embrace the new ways of working.

Takeaway on Digital and Analytics

The advent of digital and analytics has put enormous pressure on companies to shift their business and operating models to align to new ways of operating their businesses. This includes rethinking and reinventing every aspect of their business from strategy to operations.