According to a recent study, as many as 70% of digital transformation efforts are failing.[i]
There are all kinds of reasons for this, including poor planning, siloed initiatives, a failure to train staff on new technology, and even disagreement amongst management as to what is the best direction for the business.
However, in the work we do at Search365, we usually see one common element in all digital failures: information overload.
Ultimately, the goal of digital transformation is about finding smart, new ways to leverage data or information for the good of the business. However, if that data/information isn’t well organised, or people find it hard to access and use, then any initiative won’t succeed. Instead, people will end up frustrated and overwhelmed, and the benefits of tapping into all-important data will be quickly negated.
For instance:
- If an employee can’t easily recover a document that was shared whilst on a video call earlier that day, they’ll soon become frustrated, and their productivity will be adversely affected.
- If information is ‘locked’ in specific emails or ‘chats’, without being more broadly accessible to the wider business, then issues with data accuracy and version control will very quickly start to rear their heads.
- If a person doesn’t have a single mechanism for finding the data or information they need, and instead needs to locate it on an ad-hoc basis, they won’t be working as effectively as they could be – and the transformative benefits of the technology certainly won’t be realised.
How prioritising search can make a difference
A recent article in Forbes[ii] suggests that effective digital transformation essentially comes down to the way the business manages and controls its information:
“[Data management] is in effect the index of your virtual organisation, the way to readily identify where the resources that make your company work are located and defined. That’s what digital transformation is ultimately all about.”
And in reality, while many businesses are implementing collaboration platforms like Microsoft Teams to boost collaboration and productivity, many also aren’t organising their information with any degree of accuracy or process – with the result that it very quickly becomes overwhelming.
Finding data or information needs to be easy, simple, and very straightforward. And this is where prioritising ‘search’ can help.
By implementing a search tool on top of a platform like Microsoft Teams, businesses of all sizes can give their employees a very accurate and fast way to find and use information. Silos are broken down, information is shared equitably, and people can very quickly find what they’re looking for, in a way that’s suited to them and their way of working. To find out more about search and how it may determine your business’ digital transformation initiatives, please get in touch.
[i] CNBC, Here’s why GE and Ford’s digital transformation efforts failed last year, [online], https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/30/heres-why-ge-fords-digital-transformation-programs-failed-last-year.html
[ii] Forbes, Why most digital transformations will fail, [online], https://www.forbes.com/sites/cognitiveworld/2019/01/07/why-most-digital-transformations-will-fail/#40113516520e
