We know that 2020 has undoubtedly been a year of change and forced many businesses to rapidly adopt new practices and operational models; across all spectrums of the business from HR to marketing to finance. At the heart of these changes has been the concept of technology, empowering and supporting employees working from home, and assisting them in streamlining organisational processes, enhancing efficiencies whilst ultimately and adding value at a time when businesses needed it most.
As 2021 is in full force, organisations need to place greater emphasis to their digital transformation journeys, embedding it within all departments of the business and using data to drive actionable insight and excel top-line growth from remote locations.
Senior Director of Business Solutions, John Faucher, at SplashBI examines how organisations can untap the exponential use of technology much more effectively to help improve sales and marketing campaigns, retain and capture the right talent whilst reducing the financial reporting headaches from mundane activity.
Digital transformation journey
‘Digital transformation’ has been a term adopted by the majority of well-established businesses over the past couple of years and has unquestionably been the top of many heated boardroom agendas. But there is now little reason for businesses not to adopt digital technology; digital technology should be embedded within all departments of the business to ensure that customer expectations are exceeded (and beyond!) and that value is being delivered not only effectively and efficiently.
In order for digital transformation to be successful, a cultural shift is required from everyone in the organisation; it needs ‘buy in’ of the employees and they must recognise that changing processes and challenging embedded practices will not be a walk in the park. With the right attitude, organisations can strive towards business goals and drive services to the next degree.
Moreover, in order to be victorious and ensure return on investment is generated, digital technology must be implemented within every department and not singled out to purely product development or IT where strategies are likely to be deployed first. Instead, the processes within every department, from finance to HR to sales and marketing, must be reviewed to ensure that technology is making the department work smarter, and therefore benefiting the entire organisation as efficiently as possible.
A win-win for the whole business
With a collective approach to digital transformation, the true advantages can really be acknowledged and worked upon.
Example One: The finance department
The company’s financial reporting processes can be transformed with a data-driven approach, removing the headache of manual, repetitive, time-consuming data input and analytics. As a result, this frees up time for other priority tasks such as forecasting and reporting on results to senior leadership with visual, easy to digest data dashboards.
Example Two: The HR department
HR can use a data-driven approach to take the guesswork out of its hiring process and ensure all new recruits are based on desirable characteristics of existing employees and team culture. By profiling the standout or rising star employees within the business and understanding what key attributes these employees have, the HR team can ensure they are attracting talent that will compliment the business and contribute to its future goals. Additionally, embedding digital technology in the HR department and adopting a data-driven approach will not only help to attract the right talent but also retain talent, which in the current turbulent pandemic is extremely important.
Example Three: Sales and marketing teams.
Extracting manual data reporting on lead generation and marketing campaigns will free up time for the sales and marketing teams to focus on other lead generation activities or how to increase engagement on social media channels. Implementing a digital-first approach within these departments will help the organisation to become far more strategic in its approach to attracting and winning new business and will be in a better position to meet its business objectives.
Making data and technology a priority
Digital transformation is certainly not a new advancement, but it is something that many businesses still need to recognise as a positive step forward. Improving systems and changing archaic processes within the entire organisation might seem daunting and time consuming, but with recognition amongst every team that a data-driven, digital-first approach will reap significant rewards for the future of the business, the change can be readily adopted and the transition can be uninterrupted. Businesses might not always get it right the first time, but learning lessons and failing fast with a quick recovery will bring long-term gains.
In almost every case of digital transformation, the wheel does not need to be reinvented so the next digital transformation project should be a continuation, with more confidence gained each time. As 2021 quickly unfolds it’s time for organisations to step up and make their businesses truly data- and technology-driven before it’s too late!
