The world is a very different place from even ten years ago, with technology continuing to rapidly evolve and expand. In order for businesses to keep up, they need to focus on becoming digitally driven and flexible enough to adapt to whatever new invention comes down the pipeline. Following are four ways to do this.
Digital Transformation
The latest technology allows businesses to fine-tune how they interact with their customers via the use of:
- Big data
- Cloud
- Data analytics
- Mobile
- Social media
Businesses can leverage these technologies to use data-driven business processes in real-time, which gives a much more effective overview of how customers are using the business.
IT Transformation
Gone are the days of the IT department being almost a separate entity from the rest of the business. Instead, successful businesses are looking to automate processes, modernize the infrastructure, and transform operations. Automating processes reduces not only time spent on manual tasks but also the risk of human error, and can easily be accomplished with management tools. By modernizing their infrastructure, businesses can save on overhead costs through the use of flash storage, converged systems, and a software-defined approach. Finally, transforming operations by using a hybrid cloud environment and focusing on agile IT services will allow for more flexibility and efficiency.
Security Transformation
Businesses need to take advantage of new security practices in order to protect sensitive customer data. As in digital transformation, analytics can be used to spot and track anomalies within the system, and the size and scope of cloud services allow for widespread surveying. With the global stretch of the internet, businesses can now geo-spread important data to ensure that they always have a copy even if something like a natural disaster occurs at the home location.
Workforce Transformation
The workforce continues to age up, meaning that businesses are now finding that their employees are digital natives: those who have grown up with technology and are always connected. Supporting these digital natives is essential, and businesses need to become comfortable with DevOps processes and applications within the cloud in order to offer appropriate end-user devices and software.
All these transformations may seem overwhelming, but they don’t need to be accomplished overnight. Putting a plan in place will allow businesses to transform in ways that allow continuous improvement. Supporting digital natives, using real-time analytics to interact with customers, leveraging new security practices, and transforming the IT department will enable a business to be flexible and efficient, no matter what new technology is discovered.