Contributed ArticleAcross the Middle East, digital transformation is becoming increasingly familiar to business decision-makers and business owners. It is worthwhile to take a deep breath and reflect on what this is supposed to mean for someone outside the information technology industry.
Whether digital or business transformation, these are all-encompassing terms, and refer to those organisations that are embarking on a path of innovation, that has been rolled out by bringing digital technologies into the center of the organisation’s business.
On a broader scale, such organisations would have adopted digital technologies and rebuilt their sales models, in a particular vertical market, offering completely new products or services and customer experiences, while significantly influencing an extended eco system of supplier partners.
Another reason why such innovators, disruptors, or leaders in business and digital transformation, do not get picked up on the radar of incumbents is because they are usually off their radars. Transformation leaders, innovators and disruptors, almost always leverage technologies that are not being used by incumbents and stalwarts. Their innovative business models, services and products, leverage disruptive technologies that are not being used by incumbents.
According to IDC, the Middle East and Africa region is now poised at the tipping point, where all accelerators are pointing forward, towards rapid adoption and increased spending. These include digital technologies like cloud, mobility, big data, analytics, as well as Internet of Things, blockchain, artificial intelligence, 3D printing, and virtual and augmented reality.
In order to survive, traditional businesses will have to start asking themselves:
- How can we become the Uber of our industry
- Can we really become an Uber of our industry
- Does the organisation foster an innovative climate
- Does the Board have appetite to survive digital challenges
- Does the organisation have strengths to reskill itself
- Can the organisation reengineer business processes
Going forward disruptive, digital technologies will only become better and better in improving the customer experience and customer journey. They will become more and more experiential, opening up new opportunities to discover the customer and their expectations. Thanks to cloud platform delivery, they will also become less challenging to use and apply. The real challenge in transformation will increasingly turn towards the organisation, its people and its leaders.
Internally, business and technology decision makers need to collaborate strongly so that transformation is homogenised internally and works end to end. Often times, businesses may also need to partner with specialist firms to kick start transformation in organisations and to accelerate them in their journeys.
Key takeaways
- Business and technology decision makers need to collaborate so that transformation is homogenised internally.
- Businesses may need to partner with specialist firms to kick start transformation.
- Transformation leaders almost always leverage technologies that are not being used by incumbents and stalwarts.
- Business models leverage disruptive technologies that are not being used by incumbents.
Organisations embarking on transformation need to take a hard look at their strengths and decide where they want to reach, writes Sami Esber, President MIDIS System Integration Group and Board Member MIDIS Group.
