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Finding your digital transformation advisor
Look for industry, technology, and delivery expertise
Published
02/25/2020
“Longevity in business is about being able to reinvent yourself or invent the future." – Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft
Digital transformation remains a top C-level priority, but few companies are equipped to deliver transformation on their own. This is where a new breed of advisors can add significant value.
According to the World Economic Forum, more than 70% of CEOs believe they need a radical digitally-led transformation of their business model. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of CEOs are putting this belief into practice. But why?
It's because CEOs and other business leaders need a guide for their transformation journey. Given the market volatility and high stakes involved, this need has never been greater. However, it's hard to find a trusted advisor who deeply understands your industry and what makes your business unique.
Driven by this need for more versatile advisors, the distinctions between three traditional business services segments – consulting firms, systems integrators, and outsourcing firms – are blurring:
Leading businesses are increasingly seeking more agile, visionary, and hands-on advisors – rather than a team of brainy consultants, commodity IT services players or big brands.
Enterprise leaders need collaborative guidance, not predefined or instructive methodologies from inflexible consultants. Increasingly, knowing how to apply innovative data engineering, analytics, and AI technologies to achieve an outcome – with industry nuances in mind – is an essential characteristic of leading advisors.
Advisors must also consider organizational constraints related to people, process, and technology. Surprisingly, the technology aspect of digital transformation is for some often the easiest. As one industry analyst put it, “Sociology is harder than technology."
Therefore, in addition to culture, industry knowledge, and process understanding, the advisor must have the agility to adapt to your company's unique and changing environment. Typical consulting firms, systems integrators, and outsourcing firms struggle to achieve this combination of skills. This is where a new breed of trusted advisors can take center stage.
Industry analysts can provide a shortlist of advisors who have successfully transformed businesses within your industry. As Nadella said, reinvention is essential, so look for an advisor with the following traits: