Delivering a customer focused digital transformation

SEYMOUR SLOANIDEAS THAT MATTER

DELIVERING A CUSTOMER-FOCUSED DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION: WORkING FROM FRONT TO BACk

In a rapidly changing market, companies cannot avoid digital transformation. However, the trans-formation must be shaped by the needs of the customer and how to increase satisfaction.Many companies understand the power of digital, but we find many struggle to build technology platforms that lease both customers and employees - the key stakeholders.

Executives understand that, “going digital,” requires going far beyond marketing strategy changes and social media to delivering a customer-focused digital transformation. They are acutely aware that it is digital transformation that will rapidly improve performance.

At the hear of their thinking must be an understanding that customer expectation drives the trans-formation journey. From this point, they must work backwards, aligning systems and processes towards achieving customer delight.

Market leaders are already rebuilding customer engagement frameworks, with a strong focus on digital. For example:

• Delivering rich experiences in native languages has helped Marriott to achieve £5bn in annual sales online• Through building a seamless omni-channel e-commerce platform, Nespresso can now offer a more personalised and rich customer experience across 40 countries

Such initiatives are the bedrock in building a customer-focused digital business and are no longer elective. Instead, they are essentials, as digital transformation can directly and indirectly impact:

• Brand recognition • Share price performance • Customer loyalty and• Investment potential

The Pillars of Customer Delight

Realising these benefits requires acceptance that embracing digital demands a company think, re-think, and think again about its relevance to existing and future customers—from developing new engagement and service models to transforming business architecture.

Digital is about continually identifying, understanding and responding to the ways that technolo-gy is reshaping our world and how customers respond to that change. We identified the following factors that we believe shape the digital debate:

Customers are better informed now, and fully empowered at every stage of engagementThe digital world has given rise to the non-stop customer. Consideration and engagement are now mostly on their terms and organisations must adapt to this.

Competition has changed, both in source and in natureDigital is changing the competitive landscape. Across industries, traditional players are exploring new identities and new entrants are broadening the landscape of ‘the possible’ through delvering innovative products and services.

While technology empowers individual customers, it is disrupting markets and businesses The volume and pace of technology and device innovation is unprecedented. And, most compa-nies are struggling to keep pace with the multitude of new platforms and solutions available. Those that elected to ‘wait and see’ have fallen behind or gone out of business.

Digital has unlocked new avenues and opportunities to delight customers and increasing their own relevance. Maximising these opportunities requires a “front to back” approach to delivering endur-ing customer satisfaction and engagement at varying levels of scale.

The start point must be identifying the parts of the business visible to customers and then assess-ing internal operations and technology infrastructure against customer requirements. There are three fundamental elements to delivering a customer-centric digital transformation.

Guarantee satisfied customersCompanies must understand their customers in order to design excellent omni-channel experienc-es and engagement. Customer systems should be relevant, simple and elegant.

Refocus the business towards the customerCompanies must focus brand management and the operating model toward customer-centricity and agility, while embedding feedback and analytics into the business infrastructure. Business systems should be effective, efficient and deliver strong returns on investment. Create a flexible and agile businessOptimising the marketing, content and commerce technology infrastructure—while responding to changing customer needs—enhances customer experiences and business operations. Systems should be robust, scalable and capable of rapid deployment.

Succeeding with a digital transformation requires combining and executing these elements togeth-er, even across varying maturities. The outcome can be breakthrough performance. This can be accelerated effectiveness and efficiency of the current business, driving growth. In addition, it can be a differentiator in the market through launching new products or services that delight custom-ers. The ultimate reward is becoming a digital disruptor, setting the standard for the market.

There are actions that organisations can undertake today, that will ensure their business remains focused on the customer and in turn, provide a competitive advantage:

Look beyond the narrow definition of digitalMost executives tend to be swayed by technological tools and platforms, seeking to find uses for them within their business. Rather, it is the focus on business and customer objectives that un-leashes the power of technology to improve performance. Starting with the customer ensures the relevant digital solutions are incorporated.

Understand exactly how the customer feels With companies at differing stages of digital maturity, traditional benchmarking can be an exercise in comparing apples with oranges, that delivers few actionable insights. Companies should aug-ment traditional benchmarking practices with data that measures customer satisfaction and feed-back.

Digital leadership must come from the top Digital transformation must be led from the top of the organization and cascade through it. The entire C-suite must be committed and work in a highly collaborative manner toward shared goals. In fact, they must be both customer and digital champions to maximise value.

Sell the power of digital to the organisationIn many organizations, digital expertise is held by a select few. Moving forward, it is imperative that digital knowledge goes beyond existing silos to become embraced and embedded throughout the organisation.

Make the entire business accountable for digital success To avoid challenges in implementation, organisations can implement digital performance objec-tives across departments. This ensures all staff share in the success and are accountable for the outcome.

Refuse to be satisfiedTruly owning the mantle of digital leader means always being willing to think and work like the best of them. Throughout the digital transformation, companies can ask themselves, “What would Apple or Google do in this situation?” In broader terms, it is vital to challenge progress from the view of the customer.

Invest in the future todayDigital results are not necessarily instant. Companies must be patient, pursuing digital transforma-tion as part of a long-term vision for change, making long-term investments rather than focusing only on point solutions that promise an immediate payoff.

The business imperative for all is to achieve enduring customer relevance at scale through a cus-tomer-focused digital transformation. Whether companies perceive digital as a threat, a challenge or an opportunity, those that ignore it do so at their own peril.

SEYMOUR SLOAN

Seymour Sloan deliver great ideas that drive progress. We help companies do things differently, delivering market changing solutions.

We use the brightest and bravest minds to challenge convention and successfully deliver innovative solutions. We believe in short-term engagement and long-term support. This is cost-effective for our clients and serves as a basis for their continued growth.

© SEYMOUR SLOAN 2014

IDEAS THAT MATTER

SEYMOUR SLOAN