Tag Archives: Digital Transformation Consultants

Few innovations have so saturated modern society quite as much as digital has. Perhaps the best example of all is in the consumer products space. From navigation apps, streaming media services, mobile devices, voice assistants and so much more, artificial intelligence tools and features are regularly used by approximately 85% of Americans, according to a 2018 survey conducted by Gallup. And that was three years ago — the percentage has almost assuredly risen considerably since then.

The ubiquitous nature of digitalization has essentially forced businesses to take steps toward incorporating the latest and greatest technologies into their production processes and strategies. Its implementation is evidenced at just about every stage of the supply chain.

Has your company embarked on a digital transformation journey? No matter where your organization is in this shift, there are a few important things to be mindful of to ensure that the changeover is as painless as possible. Be aware of these issues during your company’s digital transformation journey:

1. Transformations don’t always take

Once businesses makes the decision to move forward with a transformation, those who are new to the processes may underestimate how lengthy it all can be – and their chances of finding success. In other words, even though the presumption is going digital naturally increases efficiency, it doesn’t always come to pass.

For example, in 2018, directors, front office executives spent a combined $1.3 trillion on digital transformation initiatives, according to reporting done by Forbes. However, of that total, $900 billion was ill spent, as the transformations never took hold.

Why not? There are plenty of reasons, but as noted by Harvard Business Review, it may have something to do with decision makers’ failure to put the right strategy or mindset in place before the transformation actually begins. Employees — not to mention people, in general — are creatures of habit. Installing new systems and technologies with which they’re unfamiliar can lead to frustration and resentment. That’s why it’s important to establish what workers can anticipate; namely, the changeover may come with some rough patches in the beginning, but the end result will make the challenge worth the effort. Therefore, it is pivotal to define a digital transformation strategy to help evolve your organization, as per digital marketing firm Dash.

2. Provide ongoing training

In a similar vein, digital transformations are described as such because the change is often substantial, even though it may occur pieces at a time to avoid major interruptions in production. That’s why it’s important to ensure staff members have the instructions they need to utilize unfamiliar equipment — and can provide directions to customers who may have the same difficulty making the transition.

A classic example is in the manufacturing space. According to Oxford Economics, the speed with which manufacturers incorporate robotics into their workflows can dramatically enhance production. Indeed, the study found that increasing robot installations by 30% within the next 10 years could lead to a 5.3% uptick in global gross domestic product.

While just about all business decisions are time sensitive, a sudden infusion of robotics can cause confusion and consternation amongst workers, which is part of the reason why digital transformations so often fail. Ongoing training, seminars, and fielding questions from staff is essential to digital adoption so nothing gets lost in translation.

3. Consider a digital transformation consultant

Financial institutions, warehouses, manufacturers, and processing centers have all implemented digital solutions into their workflows in one form or another. While you as an owner must serve as a leader in these efforts, you may not have the level of expertise to effectively answer your workers’ questions. That’s where a digital transformation consultant can be worthwhile. In addition to ensuring work processes go more smoothly with digital elements as opposed to physical or analog, a digital transformation consultant traditionally specializes in whatever industry new tools or solutions are being rolled out, be it manufacturing, consumer products, life sciences, or food and beverage. In short, a digital transformation consultant can make the unavoidable growing pains of process changeovers less painful.

4. Recognize the reality of the digital divide

It sure seems like the world as a whole has gone digital, especially when you consider that a majority of citizens in a number of developing countries own smartphones, according to polling done by the Pew Research Center. But it’s important to understand that access to digital technologies is not as ubiquitous as it may seem at first blush. Look no further than the United States. In a separate survey also conducted by the Pew Research Center, nearly 80% of homeowners who live in or along the outskirts of the city have broadband internet connections. However, less than two-thirds of Americans who live in rural neighborhoods can say the same.

Similarly, 83% of suburban residents own smartphones, Pew found. That percentage drops to 71% for Americans living in rural climes — a 12% gap.

Translation: If you’re looking to grow your business and cater to more customers, you may need to continue providing legacy services until digital technology and the accompanying infrastructure casts a wider footprint.

5. Make sure it’s scalable

While just about every industry has gone through some kind of digital transformation journey, they’re often confined to one particular department or sector, typically the one that needs it the most. In a recent survey of 200 manufacturing senior executives in the U.S. and Canada, more than half of the execs polled said their industrial internet-of-things innovations were small in scale and could not be subsumed by other units, IndustryWeek reported. This may be due to the pinch points that are so often associated with integration.

Making these efforts more scalable requires ongoing communication among departments, step-by-step instructions tailored to each department and selecting an integration platform that is user-friendly and fosters collaboration, IndustryWeek advised.

Transforming your work processes won’t be done overnight and it may not go exactly as you intended. However, USC Consulting Group has expertise in many different industries and can help your employees adopt and adapt to a new production approach more seamlessly than going about it on your own. Contact us today to learn how we can help.

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Digital technologies have revolutionized the world in countless ways. From the items people wear to the devices they keep in their pockets, there’s no question that the digital transformation is in full effect. In fact, it’s estimated that 85% of Americans today use products with digital and/or artificial intelligence elements on a daily basis, according to recent Gallup polling.

It’s the frequency with which advanced digital technologies are used that has forced many companies to recast themselves as digital businesses. They’ve done this both to keep up with the times and to improve the overall customer experience. However, implementing a transformation strategy is much easier said than done, especially for industries that have grown accustomed to legacy systems.

A digital transformation consultant, however, can make the transition a great deal easier. What should you look for in one? What do they actually do? In what industries are digital transformation consulting services most relevant? This article will help you better understand how your company can become an authentic digital business.

What does a digital transformation consultant do?

A digital transformation consultant is akin to any other consultant, in that they aim to make work processes go more smoothly from start to finish. But specifically, digital transformation consultants enhance the technological components of running a business. This may be evidenced by concentrating on where technology is already deployed, or where it ought to be in order to enhance the customer experience and provide a better product or service.

How has digital affected certain industries?

Although just about every business has been impacted by digital in some way, certain industries have experienced it more acutely than others. Chief among them is financial services, particularly retail banking. Gone are the days when people had to see a bank teller to get checks cashed or withdraw cash from their savings accounts. ATMs make this possible. Of course ATMs have been around for decades — more than 50 years, in fact — but many of them are now optimized with various features that make the customer experience even more convenient, by dispensing dollars in multiple denominations and offering cash recycling services, among many others. Digital transformation consultants have enabled banks and branches to better determine where and how state-of-the-art technologies may be best deployed to improve operability and enhance functionality.

An industry where digital technologies are on the rise is in food and beverage manufacturing. According to a recent report by ING, digitalization is one of the top promising applications in food technology. An example of digitalization within food manufacturing is IoT, specifically the interconnectivity of shop floor machines to PCs. The connection allows for both better traceability of product but also better control — processes can be inspected and reviewed remotely and often in real time. With strict quality requirements for food products, the move toward digitalization has helped organizations in the food manufacturing industry maintain those standards while keeping processes efficient.

Is digital always the solution?

While digital technologies are designed to make work processes run more smoothly so customers get a better product or service, it’s not necessarily a fail-safe. People — both customers and personnel — tend to be creatures of habit and may not find favor with major changes in processes. Computer-aided design and manufacturing is helping more factories improve production through advanced automation for repeatable, by-the-book work processes. However, employers still need personnel there to actually work this technology to ensure it performs seamlessly. With the sector experiencing a shortage in high-skilled labor, businesses must train workers on how to work digital technologies to avoid production declines that may result from unfilled positions.

With technologies constantly improving, digital transformation consulting is something that an increasing number of business owners will seek out in order to become better and obtain a competitive advantage over rival companies. Here are a few things you should look for in order to make sure a digital transformation consultant has your best interests in mind:

What a good digital transformation consultant does

• Does their homework – No matter how long you’ve been in business, a digital transformation consultant should take the time to know what you do and why you do it. It’s never been easier for them to do that thanks to online resources, but even if this wasn’t the case, their taking the time to learn your business is pivotal because no two digital transformation solutions are the same. What may work for one company may not work for you. A consultant will likely want to discuss how your company got off the ground in order to design the best digital strategy.
• Values your people – A digital transformation strategy can’t work without having the right people in place. Some fear that technology, specifically AI, will cost them their jobs, when it’s actually designed to make better use of personnel so they can be redeployed in a manner that makes the best use of their strengths. A good digital transformation consultant should consider people every bit as important as the process.
• Offer solutions for change management – Change is never easy, even when it’s for the better. A truly competent digital transformation consultant will be able to offer insight on how to implement a change management protocol so the transition is seamless and as turbulent free as possible.

No matter what industry you’re operating in, the digital transformation consulting experts at USC Consulting Group can provide your business with the tools, technology, and tactics you need not just to survive, but thrive. Contact us to learn more.

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