Digital Transformation is a fancy name for something which is already happening to most of us whether we know it or not. We should not just sit back and ride this wave passively, I believe it is critically important that we should stay ahead of this unstoppable trend and understand where are the practical benefits to take full advantage of this fast paced digital revolution.
The transformation is not proceeding at the same pace everywhere. The 2016 McKinsey Industry Digitisation Index states that in the UK, across all industries we have advanced to only 17% of our full digital potential.
Most companies today are using computers of course, but does that mean we are already transformed?, job done? certainly not.
What I am meaning by transformation is we should look to employ the computers, networks and software systems we have already to make positive changes to the organisation. If done right this can automate and improve the primary business processes, leading to improved long term profit margins.
Companies such as Toyota or Apple computers understand how to transform their business which is what they will continuously invest in year on year. What I am saying here is that even the very smallest micro enterprise or small company can improve their bottom line by looking objectively and in some detail at their software and workflow processes.
I hear so may times when I discuss this with my clients, well we are in “The Cloud” already. What then happens is they list out a series of products they have purchased, perhaps DropBox, Office 365, Slack, Xero etc etc, but I seldom hear how they have integrated these products create a single system or how they use these products day to day.
The cloud vendors will provide a web site user interface, each with a different password, access controls, processes. Users end up re-keying data from one to the other and the workflow can often be made worse when cloud products are employed.
Thankfully many vendors have invested into Application Program Interfaces (API). These tend to be very technical which is why an IT support company these days should be working with cloud vendors to integrate systems and to create efficient workflows.
Based in London (UK) Tupelo Technology have been transformed. We are no longer just an IT support company, we are a digital transformation resource which can be afforded by mere mortals.
If you are interested in learning more, please book a meeting slot using the calendar below. There is no obligation just a general chat about what digital transformation means and how we can improve the way IT works.
Michael White
June 2020