A PASSING PHASE?

Driving digital transformation - Resilient businesses use digital technologies, data, and analytics to create long-term customer value.

- JOERG NIESSING AND FRED GEYER

We are witnessing a profound shift in how customers, organizations, and employees use digital technologies to consume information, engage, and make informed buying decisions.

COVID-19 has accelerated this shift. It will not abate when the pandemic recedes. Although the shift is easy to see, addressing it is not straightforward. Many companies are now forced to speed up their digital transformation, having realised that the new way of working might be the new normal.

Leaders are hitting the fast forward button on technologies that were already in place. From remote working to digital events, digital communication, and virtual reality training facilities, these technologies have now become an essential part of our daily work life. Moreover, they are here to stay.

And these are not just ephemeral changes; they make up a crucial component of many organizations’ ability to create long-term value for customers.

The ongoing crisis has both brought to the forefront and broadened the meaning of digital resilience. This idea emerged in the area of cybersecurity. Originally, it reflected the need to upgrade and maintain IT capabilities to resist cyberattacks. Since the COVID-19 crisis, digital resilience increasingly refers to the strategic use of digital technologies to understand, co-create, deliver, communicate, and capture value. Indeed, some industries—hospitality, higher education, traditional retail, and also particular B2B industries—were hit more than others. The damage was mostly to players who did not embed digital technologies and analytics early enough or did not fully commit.