Digital transformation: realising the future together

Fyodor Dostoevsky: “Times of crisis, of disruption of constructive change, are not only predictable, but desirable. They mean growth. Taking a new step, uttering a new word, what people fear most.”

In July 2019 I wrote about the role of the board in a digital transformation and in a section entitled ‘Preparing for the Future’ I predicted, “In a way, digital transformation is the perfect storm calling boards to reinvent themselves while companies reflect on their own new identities.”

In fact, another set of circumstances – the global pandemic –was a major catalyst that nobody could have predicted which forced whole companies, not just the board, to reinvent themselves! Covid19 accelerated the digital transformation of companies across industries as well as the public sector from a steady evolution of years to a hyperjump of days and weeks! Think of all the schools, corporations and institutions who had to learn to operate remotely in March 2020. 

Microsoft’s own digital transformation journey and our purpose – to empower every person and every organisation on the planet to achieve more – meant we were ready to react and partner, helping others to move a lot faster as they transitioned. Our technology supported customers, suppliers, and our own employees to switch to full-time remote work without missing a beat. We were there as frontline workers switched to mobile shift management, teachers switched to remote learning and government leaders ran countries virtually using technology. 

The disruption to our old ways of working, shopping and interacting with fellow humans precipitated a massive shift as organisations had to move quickly to survive in the new normal. The Chateau St Michelle winery is an example of a successful and rapid customer transition. Within a matter of days, it was able to move 90 percent of all sales to its e-commerce channel with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce.

Fifteen months further on, what have we learned that helps us to thrive?  

Digital engagement – the changing expectations of stakeholders

People, whether customers, suppliers or employees, and data are now at the centre of the connected experience. Artificial intelligence (AI), agile processes and the ability to rapidly adapt to change, combined with end-to-end digital tools have empowered people and organisations to collaborate, engage with customers, transform products and connect insights to optimise operations. In the annual Gartner 2021 CEO Survey, digital capabilities was the only category in which CEOs intended to increase investment in 2021 and when it comes to specific technologies, respondents see AI as the most impactful and relevant to their long-term business plans.

Levelling the playing field

Empowering employees is another key strategic win for organisations during the pandemic. And it makes total sense as they are closest to customers! Working from home has also meant that the sense of ‘them and us’ was removed as hierarchal barriers have been eroded. We got to see into each other’s homes, empathise with the pain of sharing broadband with family members and have the pleasure of meeting our colleagues’ children as they wander into Teams calls requesting snacks. Research carried out at the end of 2020 by Microsoft Surface in conjunction with CIPD found that this new way of working has provided people with an opportunity to live life to a different rhythm with 79 percent better able to balance running their households with work. Everybody has had to juggle their commitments during the pandemic and there is now increased equity in conversations which was such a positive outcome from a difficult time. Leading with empathy is now an inherent part of our culture.  

Always learning and developing

Pivot. Reimagine. Respond. Recover. Words that became more frequently used in 2020. In order to do all that though, there was a need to learn. Rapidly. Events were digitised, people “stepped up to the plate” but ultimately, what emerged was the necessity to learn – first to survive and then to thrive. In the words of Aristotle, “for the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them.”

The crisis pushed us to keep transforming our products such as Teams and Windows virtual desktop, to better serve our customers. Our technology helped senior doctors at Tel Aviv Hospital who were confined at home use augmented virtual reality to guide early-in-career medics. And at Duke University, as the pandemic spread, Professor Randles and her team partnered with Microsoft AI for Health to transform the scarce resource of a ventilator to share it between two patients, taking just 36 hours to build a life-saving solution that would normally take 800,000 computer hours.

The best way to ensure we are ready for whatever the future has in store for us is to embrace a growth mindset and foster a love to learn!