Have you ever bought a new gadget you didn’t really need, just because everyone else was doing it? Unfortunately, that’s what’s happening to a lot of companies these days when it comes to digital transformation. Rather than building a strategic plan for change, some companies are adopting the newest technology because they assume it will make them successful. And unfortunately, that’s a really bad investment. Studies show that “hopping on the bandwagon” to implement new technologies has no positive impact on business outcomes. Instead, the ROI is achieved when companies “implement the most appropriate technologies to transform their core business capabilities.” But where to begin?
First, forget the buzzwords like “digital transformation” and “digital ecosystem.” The most successful companies in today’s rapidly changing marketplace are not worrying about lingo; they are simply letting their customers lead the digital charge. As Pega CEO Alan Trefler once said, customers drive everything about digital transformation. New technology itself is nothing unless it has a customer-centric purpose. Would Uber exist if customers weren’t tired of paying too much for taxi rides? Even more, would Uber still exist if it didn’t constantly grow and evaluate its business model based on customer and drive feedback? The answer is clearly no. But for some reason, many companies find it hard to put customer need ahead of technology itself. If you’re one of those companies, it’s time to pay attention. The following are a few things to keep in mind as you shift to build a customer-centric company.
Focus On Customer Experience (CX)
Today’s customers are all about personalization. That’s why CX continues to be the top differentiator when it comes to business success. Luckily, technology is supporting companies that recognize this. Big data and automation can help you form deep and meaningful connections with your customers—ones that lead to long-term loyalty and trust. Indeed, today’s customers don’t just want to shop. They want to bond. They want you to care. As a company, that’s not something you can do just once. As with any relationship, it’s an ongoing thing that needs to be nurtured—and that’s where new technology can help.
Embrace Change
As Vince Lombardi would say, change is not a sometime thing, it’s an all-the-time thing—at least in the digital marketplace. But this one is especially difficult for legacy companies where siloes and red tape reign supreme. The truth is that your company must make change as easy as possible if you want to keep up in the digital age. A Gartner study showed that half of CEOs surveyed “expected the digital transformation to render their industries unrecognizable in the next five years.” If your company isn’t changing fast enough, it will simply disappear.
Make Customers A Part Of Your Culture
We talk a lot about CX these days, and for good reason. But while many companies are still struggling to become “customer-aware” or “customer-led”—others are already verging on “customer obsessed,” truly evolving and innovating their offerings to anticipate their customers’ every need. This is true for companies like CVS, which is already using tech to text prescription updates, scan healthcare cards, and offer curbside pickup—in essence, making life easier for those they serve. They didn’t wait to see what their competitors would do—they thought strategically about what tech was available, and to evolve it to fit their customers’ growing needs
Recognize There Is No Magic Bullet
Per one writer, customer journeys don’t come in a box. In fact, a recent study commissioned by Appian showed most executives felt pre-packaged vendor solutions had “limited benefits." Instead, the best solutions will come from your team—from your brainstorming sessions—from listening in your customer feedback sessions and constantly thinking of new ways to answer customer complaints and requests.
Hand Over The Reigns But Don't Stop Leading
It does not matter if you have a CMO, CDO, CAO or CIO—these leaders need to work together to harness the immense amount of data available to you, and to create solutions that will have a meaningful impact on your customers’ lives. Whether you are utilizing data, analytics, social media, or deep learning, be prepared to hand the reigns over to those who know it best, and work with them to communicate that knowledge to the rest of your company. Having said that, the CEO must stay connected to the organizations digital transformation. Early insights from a recent study we did at Futurum Research found that many companies had technology leaders (CIO, CTO) that lacked knowledge and familiarity of emerging technologies. Given that the CEO is a key decision maker in appointing top organizational leaders, it is important that they find leaders that understand what is possible with technology so they can hire the right people to drive the organization forward.
At the end of the day, your talent can only meet your customers’ needs if your company both encourages and allows it. It’s time to ask yourself: what kind of company am I building? And do I want it to be around in the next five years? If the answer is “yes,” you’ll need to embrace your customer as the most important ingredient to your success.
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