While leading a Digital transformation How Leaders can handle the changing scenario effectively, Let us know
Need of the hour for almost every business set-up is to go digital. However, going digital isn’t just about being on social media or creating a mobile app, it requires a lot. Digital transformation involves significant organizational changes at the people and process levels. It is the integration of digital technology into all areas of a business for its growth and expansion, fundamentally changing how you operate and deliver value to customers. It’s also a cultural change that requires organizations to continually challenge the status quo, experiment, and get comfortable with changing scenarios.
The role of a Leader is crucial when the organization goes through any change or takes up any new initiative. Only the leadership of a competent leader can ensure a smooth transition. Leading a Digital Transformation initiative comes with a whole new set of challenges and leadership challenges as well.
Leaders have a crucial role to play in steering an organization towards technology based transformation. They act as an intermediary between the employees and the management, create new goals, delegate responsibilities, and tackle the challenges. This involves significant organizational changes at the people and process levels. In the case of the employees, you need to deploy them with the right skillset and make them adaptable to the changes. Also, organizational processes need a rework and realignment towards the company goals.
For the organization as well as the leader, navigating through the shift involves a lot of blockages, hurdles and challenges like employee resistance, budgetary constraints, and lack of expertise among others. Let’s know the challenges leaders and the employees face while leading a digital transformation initiative and how well they can handle the same.
Adaptable Work Environment
Humans, by their very basic nature, are resistant to change. Employees are used to doing a task in a particular manner. Digital transformation requires them to upskill and be well-versed digitally. Not every employee will be ready to undergo the change or a rigorous training program. In this case, it becomes challenging for leaders to motivate the employees and push them to adopt new processes and digital technologies. So the set-up must include efforts from human resources who are both capable of operating, as well as imagining and accepting change as it comes.
Identifying Skills
Identifying talent and required skills is inevitable. Also, motivating and empowering people who have the knowledge needed to streamline changes as they surface and bringing in external talent to augment internal capabilities is a must.
Making the Leadership role clear
It must be made clear to the entire enterprise who the owner of the digital transformation at hand is: the CEO. From there, the CEO must act as the leader of the digital transformation at hand and encourage its role in day-to-day operations.
Involve and Update Other Leaders on Board
Are you a team player? Are you working together with the other leaders in leading the digital transformation? If this is so, digital transformation in your organization will go on smoothly. Always keep other leaders updated about an organizational change. They can give you suggestions to carry forward the shift better. Also, the other leaders can motivate their team members in leading the technology based transformation.
Handling Budget Constraints
It’s your responsibility as a leader to make the best use of the financial resources and achieve the above aim. At times, leaders have to find a way to tackle the scenario despite minimum budget allocation. You may also require multiple rounds of financial availability.
Be the First to Assimilate the Change
As a leader, you must lead from the front and be adept in what you preach. Learn about the new digital tools and encourage your employees to follow suit. If you want employees to embrace the digital transformation, you’ll have to lead the change. Let’s say, your organization is planning to shift to the cloud. Before asking your employees to use digital tools, you need to be well-versed in the same. Also, take some time to learn the collaboration, communication, and project management tools.
Role of a leader is to lead from the front. Here we discussed and understood in detail what it means to lead digital transformation as a leader of an organization.
Bhushan Parikh, Forbes Councils Member, in an article of his addressing leaders has aptly written-
“Transforming into a digital enterprise is not a one-off project; instead, it is a journey. This journey has no finish line. The changes you will address span across people, processes and technology. These three pillars require transformation, but they must also support the transformation as it comes. Without their involvement, you will not be successful in your transformation”.
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