I was recently invited to open an internal IT leaders conference for Manitoba Public Insurance by their CITO, Siddhartha Parti. He very kindly asked for us to share our experiences of digital transformation. It would have been great to travel the 3000 miles to speak in person, but not really feasible for an hour. I’ll definitely visit such a wonderful country at some point though!

The fact we did this (effectively) over a well-known video platform, is a sign of the power of digital I suppose. And I’m grateful that I didn’t need to be subtitled (something that happened to a family member appearing on TV a few years back!). At least I don’t think I did.

From a personal viewpoint it feels like we are in a world where uncertainty is increasing, complexity is a way of life and the pace of change continues to get faster. Transformation, be it digital, agility or cloud have been a way of life for quite a while. The waves of change are definitely coming faster and seem higher!

What did I share and talk about? Here is a flavour.

Firstly, define what digital actually means for you and what you are trying to achieve. Sounds simple. In our experience, it’s not always as easy as it sounds! Partly because digital means so many different things to different people, even in the same organisation. Marketing, IT, Finance and Customer Service will all have views. And that’s before we start talking about digital in support of the organisation’s raison d’etre and ambition.

This can be deep cultural change. Set up to recognise this from the outset and throughout the journey. Change adoption is an invaluable skillset and experience to have in your locker (yeah, I know, really mixing my metaphors on this post).

Prepare to adapt as you learn. This is always a journey with twists. It’s not a Roman road. Digital means learning. You can’t know it all in advance.

I’ve reflected over the last few years about the differences between agility and digital transformation. There are many cross overs. Digital for me demands a dial up on the creativity. Wowing customers is only possible when the ‘creatives’ and ‘engineers’ really collaborate to create something special (my favourite example is Toy Story). Creating the space to achieve this is not straight forward. The benefits are worth the effort.

From personal experience, make sure your IT Engineering (including DevSecOps) is ahead of where the transformation needs it to be. This allows you to operate at pace, with stability and safety. Everyone, including your risk specialists, will appreciate that!

Do you know the types and amount of technical and digital debt in your organisation? Knowing this allows you to prioritise, manage expectations and shape the transformations. We’re not saying these are easy conversations, just crucial ones. This has been important for many years, the ‘digital surge’ as McKinsey terms it (the acceleration of digital in response to the pandemic), means more so now than ever, the consequences of not facing into these conversations…

My last thought on this one. Like it or not, navigating the digital transformation journey is a capability your organisation needs…are you ready?

-Ali Law, Managing Partner