Nine in 10 business leaders report their organisations are executing successfully in line with their digital transformation strategies, a new study finds.
Furthermore, 94 per cent of those surveyed feel their companies were aligned on what “digital transformation” means according to digital services and consultancy firm, Wipro Digital’s 2019 survey.
These findings are in stark contrast to Wipro Digital’s 2017 survey which highlighted a “leadership crisis” in digital transformation. Then, one in four executives noted that a key obstacle to success was lack of shared understanding about their definition of digital transformation.
For this survey, which was conducted by Coleman Parkes Research, 1,400 enterprise C-suite leaders around the world were polled about their company’s digital transformation programmes and barriers to their success.
The study found that digital transformations can seem overwhelming at first to organisations, with personnel issues cited as the biggest barriers.
However, organisations that properly manage people’s expectations, keep senior leaders aligned, and ensure they have the right partners working with them will see success, the report notes.
When asked about their biggest barriers to a transformation’s success, three-fifths of respondents (59 per cent) cited inconsistent sponsorship from senior leadership as one of their top five concerns.
It’s not too late to start a digital transformation programme, but the window of opportunity is closing
Meanwhile, nearly three fifths (56 per cent) selected not being able to train their existing teams to change or use new technology, methods or processes; and 54 per cent indicated needing better alignment with business stakeholders.
Notably, the study found that the longer a company has been undergoing a transformation journey, the less likely it is to experience people-related issues as a barrier to success whereas technology may become a bigger barrier.
Only one in seven executives with journeys less than two years cite technology as the biggest barrier, compared to one quarter (26 per cent) of executives whose journey has lasted two or more years.
“Leaders must align stakeholders and help their business units adapt to and leverage new technology, methods or processes. They need to hold fast and keep their company boards and C-suite informed and comfortable with disruption, new ways of working, and reorient their strategy as new insights and patterns are uncovered,” said Rajan Kohli, president, Wipro Digital.
“This will help senior leadership consistently commit to the necessary sponsorship. The pay-off will come. It’s not too late to start a digital transformation programme, but the window of opportunity is closing.”
