In the last two years there has been an accelerating push for digitization and many business models have changed, but barriers are now emerging that limit progress towards more mature digital strategies. The ones that are holding back this process the most are the lack of leadership, the resistance to change and the inaccuracy when measuring the progress of the digital transformation.
Digital transformation has gained a lot of traction since the pandemic was declared and organizations were forced to be more creative and agile to face the challenges of confinement and the near standstill of many businesses. At that time, the situation forced the adoption of digital solutions to enable remote work, boost online business and improve technological infrastructure . But this stage has given way to a new context in which many organizations want to adopt a more mature posture in digital , and problems are surfacing that make progress difficult.
A recent study by human resources consultancy BTS reveals that the pace of digital transformation of companies has acceleratedsince the start of the pandemic, forcing them to speed up certain processes to be more competitive in their respective markets . The shift to digital has made it possible to adopt new technological processes and ways of working, which has had a positive impact on business results. For 53% of the companies consulted, digital transformation is the trend that most influences business growth, and many companies will continue to advance in the process.
In his report, Philios Andreou, global deputy CEO of BTS, says that “ before the pandemic, digitalization was secondary for many organizations, whose main focus was still on the physical world. Nowadays , companies value digital strategies positively , but there are still several challenges to implement a hybrid strategy, such as resistance to change, unidirectional leadership or the lack of measurement of progress ”.
Resistance to change
According to BTS researchers, many companies have unrealistic goals and inadequate processes that slow down digital transformation, but the main obstacle is resistance to change. Human attitude is by nature which is not easy to overcome and many organizations are finding that their workers and even their managers are reluctant to adopt the changes that come with digitization . It is not easy for them to step out of their comfort zone to adopt new technologies and processes in their daily lives, and their understanding of the benefits they bring needs to be improved in order to continue advancing.
Lack of digital leadership
For an organization to be able to carry out important changes, it is vital that there are figures who act as examples and catalysts of change. Your leadership has the potential to inspire and reassure your subordinates. Andreou points out that “ the mistake lies in the fact that many bosses consider that it is enough to communicate a change for it to be effective. Employees are not convinced just by receiving an email or listening to a boss in a meeting, they must interact with the message and feel that there is an opportunity to discuss and deepen it”. For the experts, it is clear that employees expect their managers and leaders to be the first to adopt the changes, and they recommend that organizations strive to enhance the role of these figures in driving digital transformation within the company.
Change Monitoring
The third problem that hinders the advancement of digital transformation is that many companies lack adequate metrics to monitor the progress of digital transformation, and this prevents demonstrating the value that changes bring . In many cases, the change is only evaluated once it has occurred, and not during the process, which makes it difficult to identify the barriers that can slow down the digital transformation, and also the positive signs of change.