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Power of People: Driving Business Transformation

Gaurav Sharda
Contributing CIO
drive business transformation

In this era of business transformation using technology, many organizations have found this kind of digital transformation challenging. If this sounds like your organization, you are not alone! As a technology leader, a change management enthusiast, and having gone through a few transformations in various organizations across technology, retail, fitness, and transportation sectors, I have found five key elements that ensure success for any transformation.

Digital transformation starts with identifying manual processes that are painful and time-consuming for the end users and then digitizing those processes. One such example is the manual timesheet processes for employees where they have a daily paper sheet on the in and out times and meal breaks. Employees are filling these out daily (hopefully!), and they are sent to the payroll team via mail. We may look at implementing a time-tracking system to digitize this process and allow employees to enter time and payroll to review and approve it. A digital system would provide visibility to employees for their hours worked and reduce the manual burden on the payroll team. It sounds simple in theory, doesn’t it?

However, I have come to realize that a CHANGE is a CHANGE! No matter how positive it may be in its end state, humans are not wired to accept and adopt change very easily or quickly. Recognizing that and providing the right tools and support to our people is key to ensuring technology solutions are not just collecting dust. With just a few key elements, digital transformation is not out of your reach.

Key 1: People

Digital transformation is rarely about technology; it’s about the people who will benefit. Identify the key stakeholders who will be impacted by this change. Make sure they understand why this change is necessary and why it will benefit them. I call it the “Why” and “What’s in it for me.” Communicate this at the onset with the executive leadership team and the broader stakeholders. The key to successful business transformation lies in balancing cutting-edge technology and effective change management. A people-first approach is essential to achieving this delicate balance, as it empowers employees to embrace innovation and drive the organization toward a more efficient and competitive future.

Key 2: Communication and Engagement

Once you have identified your stakeholders, avoid working in a silo, and keep the broader audience engaged. Use various forms of communication to keep the broader audience engaged and informed in the transformation journey. If you are creating custom software, use workshops to do white-boarding sessions to get low-fidelity wireframes of products laid out with stakeholders. If you are implementing standard cloud solutions, engage stakeholders in the demo of the products early on to get their feedback. They should genuinely be included as part of the journey and help shape the product. In a nutshell, ensure your people are part of this journey from the very beginning and keep them engaged through constant communication. It is never enough!

Key 3: Roll-Out

A strong product roll-out can make or break stakeholders’ responses. Do pilot launches with small user groups to validate the product or cloud solutions. Get honest feedback and adjust before rolling it out to a broader audience. Pilot does not mean just moving forward with the plan – always factor in time for critical feedback and adjustment to the product. Sometimes, the product may be completely off-track, and doing a pilot early can help catch that very early and avoid reworks down the line and frustration with the broader roll-out. Again, keep a focus on your people – focusing on end users and their feedback.

Key 4: Training and User Adoption

A successful digital transformation is the result of successful product adoption. Utilize various training modes and communication channels for your people to ensure they are excited about the new product and are set up for success. Use short videos, one-page guides, flyers, and interactive training tools to empower the end users with appropriate training materials. Try to avoid training guides which are like big novels and lean on bite-sized instructions. The attention span for frontline employees is limited, and engaging to-the-point content is essential.

The launch’s first few weeks are a critical, hyper-care support period. Conduct in-person training sessions and better support channels to answer people’s questions and avoid sending the questions to a 1-800 number where things get lost in the shuffle. Use multiple communication channels – texting, emails, WhatsApp, newsletters, posters in common areas, etc. to drive awareness and engagement. Maintain excitement and encourage more people to use the product. This leads to increased word-of-mouth marketing of the initiative, a powerful medium in the frontline world. Users feel part of the journey and provide suggestions for better use of the product versus trudging along using the product as a “necessary evil.”

Be very open to listening to feedback and maintaining that excitement, which leads to high motivation and engagement and eventually to better adoption. Better adoption is all we are looking for!

Key 5: Change Champions

Peer-to-peer support and excitement spread like wildfire. Build local change champions in the field who understand the product well, can spread the word, and provide support to field users. This is also helpful in scaling up roll-outs, and these change champions can help you in your longer digital transformation journey. This could be a win-win situation for people seeking leadership opportunities to progress in their careers.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, it goes back to people. Keep them at the focal point of this. End of the day, it is people interacting with people and ensuring folks feel supported through this change process.

It is Not About the Tech

When implementing digital transformation, It is less about technology and more about people, partnerships, and change management. You can build all the fancy products in the world, but if people do not use it, it is all a waste of time. Frontline people are willing to learn new ways of doing things, and the right people-first mindset can be the secret sauce to help move the organization forward in the digital transformation journey.

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