How do you navigate digital transformation uncertainty?

Be bold about your desired state, even if it means cannibalising your existing revenue streams, apply 10x thinking and not be held back by how things have worked so far.

The journey is to transform your Business using technology. Technology is only the means. To start, articulate (1) Why are you transforming (2) What will be the end state, (3) How will you know you’ve succeeded. These set the North Star for the journey you’re starting. Working backwards from the end state, break the journey into phases - each phase unlocking and creating foundational business capabilities for the next. Do this ignoring your current reality. Seems counterintuitive, but are you wanting 10x or 10% change? For each phase critically assess needed (1) Capabilities (2) Internal environment (3) Leadership capability, (4) Change readiness. Transformation is all about people, and it starts with YOUR commitment to the journey.

Often people confuse digitization with digital transformation. Digitizing is simply taking what you already do, and making it digital. Digital transformation, more than simple digitization, is critical to ensure continued growth for companies in an increasingly competitive digital world. Digital transformation is transforming how you do things leveraging digital. There is a world of difference between the two, and AI is a strong part of the latter.

Digital transformation is more of change in mindset. Accepting and introducing newer options to do the business differently with the help of Digital disruptive technologies. This requires due assessment of maturity be it skill, culture, technology and the customer segments.

There are two key traps in digital transformation. The first is technology. It's nit about the tech, it never has been. It's about business transformation first and how the opportunities to digitally transform improve your business, reduce customer friction and increase market reach. The second trap is what Forrester call the digital dilemma. Digital transformation can't only enable the customer and reduce outside-in friction. It must at the same time reduce inside-out friction by integrating fully to your backend operations.

People first. You need to recruit the believers and bring them to the table with the deniers to have conversations. These must be facilitated by experts to bring a third perspective and allow dialogue.

Even the most logical and rational digital transformation strategies will fall flat if stakeholders are not brought along for the journey. When change is seen to be something that is happening to someone rather than something that are involved with and engaged with they are likely to reject it. The key here is to seek feedback - but do this before decisions are made - so that it can actually be integrated and utilised in the strategy and planning for the digital transformation.

The risk of Agile transformation failing to fully achieve its full advantages is often restricted by the number and seniority levels of invested stakeholders. While bottom up can be successful there is a ceiling that exists at each management level that can derail a transformation. Stakeholders need to actively include the business side of the organization, not just IT, another common failure point. Pick your stakeholders carefully and try and get one at every level of your organization, teach them and make them active supporters with a role and not just passive watchers.

Within a pharma & biotech environment, addressing the Medical/Commercial/Marketing/Clinical siloed workflow would be a great start. Breaking down these siloes is crucial to achieving the full benefits of digital transformation. A great framework that can be used to address this issue is the multi-domain master data management platform for pharmaceuticals and biotech companies. This model promotes cross-functional collaboration and data sharing across the entire organization, allowing for a more holistic approach to digital transformation. This model has been shown to be particularly effective in the pharmaceutical industry, where complex regulations and processes can often lead to siloed operations.

Do not mix delivery v/s experiment. The freedom to fail is crucial but should not affect the regular promised features. Have a "labs" culture of trying out things outside of regular sprints and product feature road-map to gauge your understanding before moving it to the delivery path. This will ensure wins for both Engineering and ProductManagement

Number one risk for me is lack of ‘problem’, i.e. ‘solutionising’ before you’ve identified the problems to solve, requirements / needs, and then expected benefits. Sometimes ‘transformation’ can be the equivalent of using a sledgehammer to crack a nut, with far easier and more cost effective options on offer, which address the core problem(s) / root causes. When problems are clearly understood and articulated, you can then move to creating awareness and goal alignment / congruence between stakeholder groups and establishing ‘tone at the top’ (both key risks in themselves), then deliver transformation using established methodologies (the main risks from this point are change management, governance, and quality / timeliness of delivery).

One thing that is sometimes overlooked while identifying risks, is cybersecurity. Not that it is complex to address it with readily available products and services. It is just something that is better thought of in advance and not reactively.

Digital transformation brings multifaceted risks, ranging from technical to reputational. Strategic and proactive risk management is essential, systematically identifying, assessing, prioritizing, and mitigating these risks effectively. Balancing risk and reward is key, and embracing calculated risks becomes foundational to drive innovation. By addressing risks comprehensively, we unlock the disruptive potential of digital transformation. #DigitalTransformation #RiskManagement #Innovation

The biggest uncertainties (or risks) in digital transformation are: 1) will what we’re planning actually work? 2) can we do it within the budget we have available? 3) will it deliver the benefits we think it will? 4) will the business actually use the new process we’re putting in place? If you can understand these uncertainties and find ways to mitigate against the associated risks, you can refine the project or programme to be as close to certain as possible.

Digital transformation is undoubtedly a collaborative journey, requiring us to leverage our wider ecosystem. In today’s competitive landscape, solitary endeavors fall short; we must adopt a mindset of strategic collaboration and co-creation. Thorough analysis of market and industry trends is pivotal, along with engaging with potential collaborators. This focus on co-innovation is key to not only generating but also capturing unprecedented value, benefiting every ecosystem participant.It’s in this mutual exchange where unprecedented opportunities are unearthed, allowing innovation to thrive organically. #DigitalTransformation #Innovation #Collaboration

Transformation is all about change mgmt and having a mindset to back your org to embrace it and strive for it. Change will be non-linear and some changes will need few iterations. Its ok to falter or redo things for more optimization. Transformation is a Journey, what is Transformation today will look like legacy tomorrow n be ready to change into new world every day.

Redefine the rules of the game Digital transformation is about reinventing your business, not about using IT to automate the legacy. Automation has been around since the early days of the mainframe (or the steam engine, if you want to go down that path). With digital transformation, gaining new insights into your business, better understanding your customers, suppliers and partners, you have the opportunity to recreate your industry.