This week’s five is a weekly column on five recent reads from all over the web. This week, we’ll talk about some facts and figures on digital transformation.
IoT, cognitive computing, cloud, machine learning, wearable tech. Big names, huh! These are the names of technologies you should be acquainted with. There’s a set of interconnected mainframes and devices— whether hardwired, wireless, or virtual– that your business depends upon. It’s called the IT, the nervous system of your business. And these technologies are going to have a huge impact on your IT, and thus your business, whether you like it or not. So, you better be prepared.
Digital transformation is buzzing everywhere. But are we clear on its concepts? For many 21st century business people, it’s hard to identify whether digital transformation is a sink hole or a ladder. For those of you who think of it as a ladder, well and good. And for those of you who think of it as a sink hole, which you’re getting sucked in to and don’t actually know what to do about it, there’s good news. You’re not alone.
Although a good chunk of people know about digital transformation, not many understand it. A recent survey shows that 86 percent of IT decision makers are aware of digital transformation, but 76 percent of them feel they need to know more. Also, 40 percent admitted that they don’t have a clear strategy for implementation. Another survey by Vanson Bourne suggests that 52 percent of IT decision makers are having performance issues with digital transformation projects.
[To learn more about confusions around digital transformation, click here.]
But whether digital transformation is a sink hole or ladder, businesses are not stopping. According to a recent report by Dell, 97 percent of businesses are investing in digital transformation, and 90 percent of them consider IT security to be a business enabler in these cases. While more than three quarters agreed that security aspects were introduced later than they should have been, only 18 percent have actually implemented security measures in the field of mobile, IoT, cloud, and other trending digital initiatives. Needless to say, if the rest fail to pull up their socks, they won’t survive.
[To learn more about how security issues slow down transformation, click here.]
There’s an ocean of security solutions out there. It constitutes MDM, NPM, SIEM and many other transformation enablers. Take APM, for example. Not many people know this, but APM can actually help you cope with IoT. IoT is all about interconnected machine communication. Now, in an office environment, most of the devices communicate through applications. With a proper APM tool in place, one can easily map out the flow of data among different connected devices and pinpoint the information bottlenecks that can affect critical business processes. So, if you’ve been carrying out changes and developing gills, now is the time to take the dive. We all know what happens to the fish out of the water.
[To learn how APM can help with IoT, click here.]
Now, security is not the only enabler. ITSM also plays an important role in transformation. No change can occur effectively without employee cooperation. And no cooperation can be attained without a proper ITSM solution that not only reduces costs and improves service, but also automates workflows and optimizes overall performance. According to a user survey by ManageEngine, 34 percent saw an increase in efficiency after implementing a full-fledged ITSM solution, and a whooping 71 percent experienced optimized performance. And we all know the formula: happy employees = easy transformation.
[To learn how ITSM helps with digital transformation, click here.]
Apart from all the technicalities, there are some general things you should keep in mind while transforming. You need to determine whether it’s an upgrade or a transformation, whether your team is ready for it or not, what value will be generated from it, and how will you measure that value. Only then will you be able to successfully bring in the change.
[To learn what general things to keep in mind before stepping up to digital transformation, click here.]
Forrester assessed that by 2020, every business will either become predator or prey. There’s a toolbox with some really cool, transformation enabling IT management tools. They can help you become a predator. So get yours now and prepare for the hunt.
Check out the last week’s five here.
