Digital Era

Digital Transformation seems to spearhead the whole Industry 4.0 thing. Google “digital transformation and industry 4.0”, you will surely find a lot of articles talking about the relationship between both.

See, Industry 4.0 emphasizes heavily on connectivity, and digital transformation is the process of transformation company to be connected. It is not exaggerated to say that digital transformation is the train to get a company adapts to Industry 4.0.

What is Digital Transformation?

But, what exactly is Digital Transformation? To put it into layman term, Digital Transformation is the process of involving digital technology into the whole business, which will change the fundamental of how a business operates.

Challenges

Of course, with transformation, come challenges. So, here are some challenges an enterprise might face when it comes to digital Transformation.

Challenge #1 – Not wanting to change

The resistance to change comes from anywhere, in any form, with anyone in the organization. It’s common sense that people resist change, especially when it involves in their financial security. Many will think that digital transformation will be equal to losing their job, where technology will be replacing them from their role. Resistance to change can result in serious damage to the company, as they are unwilling to follow the market trend.

Challenge # 2 – Sticking back with the old business model

That is one big challenge that enterprise face when planning to digitally transform themselves. The old business model often time does not match with what digital can bring to the table, and sometimes even do the opposite of good. It is important to keep in mind that digital transformation also means transforming the old business model to match with the effort. This is also why getting the culture right is important

Challenge # 3 – The problem with data collection and using the data

Industry 4.0, which Digital Transformation meant to help a company to achieve, highly depends on data and connectivity. The importance of data is unimaginable during our time now as many things that are possible with Industry 4.0 are driven by Data. A traditional company that used to collect and store data psychically will have difficulties in compiling and putting those data in use.

Challenge # 4 – Not having a clear goal for the customer’s digital journey

I always believe that it is important to have a clear and specific goal in mind before taking any action, and apparently, this belief is true too when it comes to digital transformation. Due to the habit of handling the business in the same way for so many decades, the company will often be mixed up their digital and traditional goals. It is crucial for a company to clearly state how they want their customers’ digital journey with them be like.

Challenge # 5 – Not being agile enough when it comes to the technology stack and development processes

Digital transformation is a new thing, which therefore means a lot of trial and error is required to find out what’s the best for the company. In order to achieve the highest efficiency in the trial and error process, being agile is important. However. Many companies were not build based on agile methodology. That itself will be a challenge for the company.

Final Verdict

No doubt, companies will need to go through digital transformation to keep up with the current market. But before taking any action, it is important for management to have in mind the challenges that they will be facing and rectify it. As mentioned in challenge # 4, having a clear and specific goal is crucial for every action.

For that, having a fundamental understanding of digital transformation is important too for those who are involved in the process.