How to succeed at digital transformation

How to succeed at digital transformation

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Enterprises that are harnessing the power of Business 4.0 to accelerate their digital transformation journeys are succeeding in driving growth and profitability, according to a new study.

With the rapidly evolving business landscape and increasingly sophisticated customer expectations, organisations are facing constant challenges to quickly adapt and stay ahead.

The research, commissioned by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), has found that six out of 10 companies globally – which have adopted the full range of business behaviours needed to thrive in a Business 4.0 world – expect double digit growth over the next three years.

TCS’ global study, Winning in a Business 4.0 World, surveyed 1,231 senior executives from more than 1,200 large enterprises spanning 11 industries and 18 countries.

A risk-averse and non-collaborative, command-and-control style leader could fight against some of the business behaviours that are proven to be vital for organisations to gain competitive edge

The study benchmarks large companies in their Business 4.0 growth and transformation journeys, by mapping their adoption of four critical business behaviours: driving mass personalisation; creating exponential value; leveraging ecosystems; and embracing risk.

The study showed that:

• One in 10 survey participants or ‘leaders’ (9 per cent) have adopted all four behaviours
• Four-fifths of companies or ‘early adopters’ (82 per cent) have embraced one- to three of the behaviours, with mass personalisation being the most prevalent (78 per cent)
• European businesses accounted for the greatest number of leaders, followed by Asia Pacific and North America
• Leaders are three times more likely than ‘followers’ – 9 per cent of participants that have not yet adopted any of the Business 4.0 behaviours – to have embraced artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain and IoT technologies, and twice as likely to have embraced automation.

“The study reveals a strong link between Business 4.0 maturity and technology adoption. Leaders are more likely than other participating companies to have driven digital growth and realised double digit revenue gains,” said K Ananth Krishnan, chief technology officer, TCS.

“Agile methodologies, cloud, automation, and AI are examples of tech pillars that enable leaders to change course and adapt to shifting market dynamics much better than companies with inflexible ‘idea to execution’ timelines of months or years.”

Commenting on the findings, Richard Chiumento, director of Rialto Consultancy, stressed this was a call to action for leaders who haven’t considered whether their organisations’ behaviours are suitably aligned to the demands of today’s business environment. But he cautioned that they shouldn’t overlook the inherent personal challenge that may exist in such an assessment.

“The behaviours required to lead organisations today have changed radically,” he continued. “For example, a risk-averse and non-collaborative, command-and-control style leader could fight against some of the business behaviours that are proven to be vital for organisations to gain competitive edge.”