As we go deeper into the realm of digitization, organizations are slowly creeping in and finding better ways to make their operations and processes better and more efficient. One of the primary challenges businesses face, is the constant transformation of digital platforms and assets due to numerous factors. One way to address this is by focusing on users instead of systems.
In this post, we’ll go over some of the concepts of digital dexterity and how it can cater to the needs of employees more than systems and processes. After all, at businesses’ cores are their employees.
Digital Transformation for Organizations
Any digital transformation starts with people, not processes. Although both are headed towards the same direction, digitization and digital transformation are two separate courses separated by their scope.
The idea of digitizing business processes, operations, and people is simply the inclusion of technology and systems. They mostly aid staff members, as a result, operations become more efficient. Moreover, it applies to small, medium, and larger scale businesses with the goal of lightening their workload.
In a nutshell, digitization is the process of digitalizing information individually. Digital transformation, on the other hand, refers to the digitalization of a company.
The Efficient Approach to Digitization
With more and more organizations and companies embracing the digital age, several industries find it rather challenging and difficult to digitize. And of all for the challenges involved, the root of them all is that their efforts are focused on systems instead of people.
Focusing on systems not only makes things difficult, but it also disregards the users who will be responsible for keeping track and managing those tools. Many businesses prioritize their systems over their employees, without realizing the positive impacts of user-centered digitization.
It Digitizes Complex Processes
Not all sectors and industries can easily exercise the concept of digital transformation and adopt it to their processes. But having an independent approach with the goal of focusing on the people, will make things a lot easier and more efficient.
Let’s take the medical industry as an example. It’s a difficult industry to digitalize, especially since it requires the physical attendance of doctors. But by adding digital tools from appointment setting, scheduling, and even getting in line, these eliminate the need for people to do this, making the lives of staff members and patients a lot better.
It Makes the Business Data-Driven
In business, quantifying resources and results is key in ensuring that the business is going well, and with a traditional setup, manually counting and quantifying can be extremely challenging.
With digitization, machines, programs, and software need to be interconnected to a specific network for accurate and precise measurements. That being said, when implemented correctly, digitization can help businesses become more fact-driven through harmonious data consolidation in a bigger picture.
It Improves Front and Backend Visibility
Digitization removes the separation of back and front-end sections of business by integrating both through technology. Thanks to this visibility, the flow of information will be faster, enabling employees to have direct communication with everyone.
This leads to a more efficient and collaborative workflow across different departments. It also saves effort and time in between communications.
It Standardizes Internal and External Reporting
Reporting has been one of the most tedious jobs employees did and continue to do. But by having the cursor on users and employees, internal and external reporting could be improved. Old legacy systems can be replaced with more advanced and automated systems that require less intervention from employees.
As a result, reports like attendance, wages, submissions, or any other report can be standardized and made effortless through digitization.
It Automates Processes
And lastly, user-focused digital transformations can replace manual work with AI and automation, particularly in the administrative sector. Besides the fact that these modifications will be low-cost, it can fully enable administrative employees to carry on better, more serious, and higher-value tasks.
Not only would this open space up for employees, but it can also lead to other opportunities that would be beneficial for the business. Advancements in AI are still underway, so, there could be a lot more things in store for organizations in automating processes.
Read More: End-to-End Solutions: A Guide to Strategic System’s Managed Services
The Impacts of User-Focused Digital Solutions
In Gallup’s findings about digital transformation, only 17 percent of workers agree that their company implements new technology to help their productivity.¹ Additionally, most organizations find it difficult to transform everything as a whole–and that’s where user-centered digitization comes in.
Higher Productivity
Of course, the main goal of digital transformation isn‘t to be on the trend. The idea of transforming some business practices is to ensure the company gains better and higher productivity.
You can’t expect everything to be better on the onset of transformation efforts, but it should come gradually as the team becomes more familiar with the changes.
Decreased Costs
This was one of the things that surprised businesses the most, and yes, it’s true. Since digitization can ultimately help businesses in terms of gaining better and more resources in flexibility, scale, and scope, it can reduce the overall costs. This is because processes will be smoother and older models that often require more technical maintenance will be replaced.
Almost everything will be automated and controlled via computers, and, therefore, the need for more workers will be less.
Better Competitive Advantages
Lastly, user-centered digitization always calls for better advantages when it comes to competition. The market is vast, there will always be competition that does what you’re doing–sometimes, even better.
But, with digital transformation, you can always be ahead, especially if you can able digitize your company, people, and assets correctly.
One example is Michelin. They know that more of their competitors are indulging in smart manufacturing. These allowed competitors to manufacture more products in different variants in a shorter timeframe. So, they decided to invest and build a digital growth strategy by streamlining operations, personalizing B2B experiences, and using technology to create and draft newer models.²
Related Reading: Responsible Innovation and AI Adoption: 8 Policy Considerations for Employers
EMPOWER YOUR PEOPLE THAN YOUR PROCESSES AND MAXIMIZE THE EFFECTS OF DIGITIZATION WITH STRATEGIC SYSTEMS
With years of experience and unrelenting expertise in the technical field, Strategic Systems is committed to providing the best assistance businesses need in digitizing and optimizing their processes. Through empowering people, we’re capable of providing timeless solutions to staffing challenges and problems.
In the evolving IT field, we can find top candidates and provide services to organizations in the IT, banking, healthcare, financial, manufacturing, insurance, and even telecommunication sectors. Strategic Systems can be your partner in executing the digital transformation you’re looking to have in your company. Get in touch with us!
References
1 Taboada, Gerard. “Championing Digital Transformation: Start With 8 Steps.” Gallup, 28 Apr. 2021. https://www.gallup.com/workplace/343019/championing-digital-transformation-start-steps.aspx.
2 Than, Ethan. “Michelin: From the World’s Leading Tire Manufacturers to a Leader in Mobility Businesses Driven by Data and IoT.” 20 Apr. 2023. https://medium.com/sfiacorporation/michelin-digital-transformation-canvas-4407ac584e5.
