Computerworld

Why digital transformation leaders must create “digitally fuelled” visions

Are most business leaders at the opportunistic and repeatable stages of maturity?

Business leaders today need to transform and lead digitally powered organisations that are not only adaptive to change, but able to predict and drive it.

That’s the view of IDC, fresh from unveiling IDC MaturityScape: Leadership Digital Transformation, designed to help business and IT leaders understand the actions needed to realise those opportunities.

Leadership Digital Transformation (DX) is the set of disciplines that enables businesses to develop the vision for digital transformation of products and services that are optimised to deliver value to partners, customers, and employees.

This study identifies the stages, dimensions, outcomes, and actions required for leaders to undertake successful DX initiatives.

“Leadership of digital transformation requires a nuanced set of skills and abilities, some of which may not come naturally to many executives," says Fred Magee and Marc Strohlein, adjunct research advisors within IDC's Research Network.

“Leading DX is inherently multifaceted and multidirectional - DX leaders must have the ability to create digitally fuelled business visions; to attract 'coconspirators' including customers, partners, and competitors to help realise the vision; and finally to orchestrate the myriad components needed to actually execute on the vision.”

IDC believes that most business leaders are at the opportunistic and repeatable stages of maturity.

But according to the analyst firm, most leaders will not and probably cannot have all of the competencies required at the managed and optimised stage, and striving to achieve them is likely an exercise in failure.

Instead, leaders should focus on building teams that bring together the necessary competencies across the five dimensions and then focus on creating a collaborative and cohesive environment for driving DX throughout the enterprise and its ecosystems.