These are the 7 steps you should follow to digitalize your company

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on all areas of our society and has forced all companies to accelerate their digital transformation.

Suddenly we have gone from going to the office in person each day to working remotely and attending virtual events, which has not only affected internal communication, collaboration and organization, but also how employees feel. However, the challenges this crisis is presenting provide an opportunity for organizations to evolve to a new reality where digital predominates.

Everything work-related has evolved as companies have implemented the use of technology to modernize their strategies. The crisis we are experiencing has accelerated changes that were foreseen for the next 5-10 years. Therefore, as these changes intensify, many companies simply cannot compete and disappear. COVID-19 has become a measuring instrument to know how prepared organizations are on the path of digital transformation.

Competition is coming from everywhere and companies have the need to innovate and digitalize to remain competitive. To obtain a deeper understanding, from inlea we have prepared a roadmap for the digitalization of companies where we explain how to lay the foundations to benefit from the opportunities that the digital transformation of your business will bring.

1. Make an initial diagnosis

First you must know the starting point of the organization. To do this, it is necessary to analyze how the company works, the resources it has, the sector and the environment. All this analysis helps to get a better understanding on which improvement to include in the digitalization of your business model.

In order to make a good initial diagnosis, at inlea we recommend analyzing the key areas for the digitalization of the company. The areas that are usually involved in a digitalization process are: operations, communication (internal and external) and technology / IT, always with the reinforcement of Marketing and Human Resources.

2. Listen to your customers

For a good digitalization process it is necessary to know well who your customers are, to know what their needs are in order to offer them an added value. For this, the control of Big Data is essential, as well as knowing how to analyze and manage the information that is received by customers.

As the volume of data produced in an organization increases, the greater the challenge of analyzing it and the implementation of specialized tools can become essential. There are many tools available for data management and analysis and we must choose those that allow us to channel the information in an organized way for a correct subsequent analysis.

3. Keep an eye on your competition

Observing closely what our competition is doing is vital to having good results. Knowing their strengths and weaknesses you will be able to know the opportunities you have to compete with them.

Analyzing the competition forces us to study in detail the sector in which we are operating and to better know our clients and their needs. In this way, you can meet the demands and improve the customer experience.

4. Develop a digital strategy

With all the above information, the objectives to be achieved with the digitalization process must be defined. These objectives must take into account the economic, strategic, sales and even cultural areas of the organization, that is, they must be part of the business model.

Do not forget the need to create a digital culture. Understanding the culture is understanding the dynamics within each area and that must be encouraged by senior managers. Having a digital culture improves productivity, collaboration, agility and improves results, so it is key to choose the technology that best suits the culture and needs of the organization.

Working, for example, with ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software can be an ideal way to enter the digital age in an integrated way and manage all the company’s data centrally.

5. Decide your digital communication channels

Once we have a clear strategy to follow, we must decide the communication channels that can offer the company the most results. There are many platforms available and you have to decide on the one that allows fluid communication both internally between employees and externally with customers. Some of the best known are Webex, Microsoft Teams, Slack or Zoom, among others.

6. Measure your results

The digitalization process never ends, since it is necessary to be flexible and adapt according to the needs of the moment. Therefore, it is necessary to have a designed structure that allows to measure and evaluate the strategy used by the company, that is, to measure the results. The analysis process requires, in addition to technical and digital knowledge, a certain autonomy, creativity and analytical skills. Only in this way will we know if we are approaching the objectives that we have set for ourselves or if it is necessary to restructure the proposed strategy, in order not to waste our time and money.

One of the determining factors to measure the success of the digitalization process is the ability to analyze the actions taken and the effects they have had both internally and externally. In this sense, having properly chosen digital resources is essential to manage and analyze the data channeled through the digital platform.

7. Capture and train digital talent

The implementation of technological tools in the organization is only the first step. The company must train internal talent to be an active part of the change and make proper use of the digitalization process.

Sometimes, the digital transformation process entails the need to hire new qualified personnel to take care of the technological part and, therefore, the best qualified personnel possible must be selected according to the needs of the company.

At inlea we are clear that digital transformation has less to do with technology and more to do with people. There are endless technological tools available, but the ability to adapt to an increasingly digital future depends on the skills of the people who are best prepared to adapt to change. In this sense, at inlea we recommend our clients to promote change, generating trust and betting on training their employees in digital skills.

Technology will continue to improve, market demands will increase and companies will have to remain resilient to adapt to the environment and its particularities. The pandemic has given companies the opportunity to demonstrate that they can help drive change and inlea we are clear that listening and reconciling the interests of the different actors will be essential in this work.