5 Technology Trends in Digital Transformation that Every Business Needs to Watch Out for
Digital transformation has today moved from board room drawing boards to the CFO’s budget presentations yearly. This is true for almost every industry we examine as pointed out by IDG in their 2018 study wherein 89% of business leaders have already adopted or are in the process of adopting a digital business strategy in their organization. Going digital is no longer a challenge that is handled by the IT department of a business but a cultural shift that is needed across the entire organization and covers all workforce hierarchies. Competition is fierce and hence business leaders need to make decisions on investing in digital faster. But the key problem lies in choosing the solutions they have to on-board to reap success in the digital front.
To solve this puzzling dilemma, we are rounding up the top 5 trends that will drive digital transformation in the coming years.
1. Intelligent Automation
From reducing manual workloads, improving turn-around time for repetitive data management tasks and lowering operational costs, solutions like Robotic Process Automation (RPA) have become a mainstay in several industries. Now it is time to propel them to the next level with added intelligence. By integrating artificial intelligence, RPA led business operations become equipped with autonomous decision making capability as well. More key business processes can be handled by automated bots without human intervention thereby allowing human resources to be allocated for more complex and higher value jobs.
2. Predictive Big Data Analytics
As far as business decisions are concerned, more the accuracy of insights, greater will be the efficiency and reliability of the predictive decisions made on the basis of these insights. This is where big data analytics can be a game changer for decision makers. By harnessing the huge gamut of data that is flourishing across business ranging from customer behavior, market conditions, internal operational metrics, and workforce data, leaders can predict how their business needs to respond dynamically to changing customer expectations. A likely example would be stocking up items for an upcoming seasonal shopping experience after analyzing data related to previous shopping patterns, demographic and socio-political changes among consumers and market conditions.
3. Conversational Bots
Industry research giants like Gartner predict that by 2020, nearly 85% of all customer service interactions will be managed by intelligent chatbots without any need for human intervention. From websites to social media like Facebook and even WhatsApp, businesses will invest in deploying conversational bots that will interact with their existing and potential customers to nurture healthier relationships. The key takeaways from such exercises will be lowered manual workforce requirements, reduced errors in the information exchanged with customers and 24 X 7 availability for global business aspirations.
4. The Connected Customer
The growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the increased penetration of smart AI powered virtual assistants make for a formidable combination in creating new customer experiences today. From fitness tracking bands to sensors that detect presence in an environment, there is a massive influx of data pertaining to a consumer’s surrounding environment that businesses can utilize to offer personalized services. Smart marketing using a combination of digital and physical wearable devices can be used to improve lead generation like for example live notifications based on presence within a mall or shopping destination. The possibilities are limitless.
5. Cybersecurity
If all of the above trends we covered were aimed at improving customer experiences in the digital age, cybersecurity is the assurance that businesses can offer to their digital savvy consumers that their interactions with the business in no way compromises their digital identity and expose confidential information to folks engaged in new age cybercrimes. Organizations need to invest and monitor their digital data security infrastructure continuously to ensure that their digital business model handles sensitive information securely and uses it only for the customer’s best interests. The 2017 Equifax data breach is a prime example of how weak cybersecurity measures resulted in sensitive financial and social security data of around 150 million US citizens were leaked into the open internet. The damages caused can be catastrophic if more such breaches occur.
Conclusion
Digital transformation is here to stay and grow. Organizations that accept and act on this fact will reap the most value from their digital investments. It takes a great amount of decision making and practical implementation time to get your digital investments to a point where they deliver instant value. This is where you need a comprehensive advisory support on best practices in digital transformations.
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