Understanding Digital Transformation UKFast Round Table Part 2.
This week’s attendees were:
• Farooq Ansari, Business Development Director & Digital Consultant, Reading Room
• Jonathan Bowers, Managing Director, UKFast
• Bill Carr, Managing Director, Carpe Diem
• Matt Cockayne, Managing Director, Zucchi
• Nina Mack, Managing Director, Worship Digital
• John Pinnington, Ecommerce Consultant, BMCM Group Ltd
• Jonathan Whiteside, Principle Consultant, Building Blocks
Jonathan Whiteside, Principle Consultant of Building Blocks: “For me, digital transformation is about modernisation and innovation. It is a way of differentiating an organisation from its competitors, or appear different to how it used to be.
“There is a strong focus on the customer and their experience — how can we transform our business to make it more relevant to the customer and make their experience much better?”
Nina Mack, Managing Director of Worship Digital, said: “Something that we found when working with SMEs is that their digital transformation has to almost be a shift in not just their processes and the way they handle stuff, but their whole business model.
“Shifting your business model when you are not an SME is very hard, so SMEs are much more agile in that respect, so they should be able to pivot and react to the new technologies to which they have access.”
Carpe Diem Managing Director Bill Carr said: “I think that’s where some of the expertise lies with the agencies which have set up to specifically look at that transition.
“There’s sometimes a fear factor or resistance which leads to questions like: ‘if I adopt that system what will happen?’ But they can be educated in the process by a digital transformation agency and find out what it would entail.”
Reading Room’s Business Development Director and Digital Consultant, Farooq Ansari, said: “The optimal solution for the client and the agency is to be able to go in there and advise on the wider aspects of digital transformation whilst also doing the bread and butter stuff that agencies do.
“Digital transformation has been good for agencies because it has allowed us to focus a bit more on that particular aspect of operations.”
John Pinnington, Ecommerce Consultant at BMCM Group Ltd, said: “I think it’s all about understanding who the people touching your business are, be they customers, suppliers or whoever.
“You need to understand those personas and their interactions with your business. Then you can comprehend what the business needs to do to deliver innovation.”
Matt Cockayne, Managing Director of Zucchi, said: “It is key that when someone is embarking on a digital transformation they are quite honest about where they currently are, not just from a technology point of view but from an organisational point of view.
“If a transformation is to take place, what are all the things that need to be done and what is the starting position? Okay, there’s a business strategy and the business model can support it, but let’s be open about where we are and not try to run before we can walk.”
Duration: 2:46
Publisher: UKFast
You can watch this video also at the source.
