What career accomplishments make you most proud in the role of Business Transformation Manager?
When leading Business Transformation, the thing that makes me most proud is when I, with my stakeholders, start co-creating strategies and solutions for getting to our desired future state. Indeed, I believe that co-creation is the essential element in any business transformation initiative. Thus, I always become proud anytime I successfully co-create any relevant solutions with my stakeholders.
What was the negative elements or challenge you faced in your experience?
In my experience, the element that can have the most negative effect on any transformation initiative is a limited alignment between upper management’s strategic goals and vision, and the organisation’s current capabilities, availability, and capacity. Limited strategic alignment (organisation structure, culture, and resources) can bring important transformation initiatives to a stop before they have achieved significant results. Thus, if upper management is unclear in their priorities and does not allocate the necessary resources, it will have a negative effect.
What are the top digital transformation trends every business should look out for in 2022?
While Artificial Intelligence (machine learning/deep learning) are not new, it seems that they are becoming even more prominent. Thus, AI is becoming increasingly available and utilised in the industrial sector. Another trend that I am aware of is the utilisation of Microsoft Power Platform (Power apps, Power Automate, etc.) and increased use of Business Intelligence tools. These new platforms and software make it easy for workers with limited or no coding capabilities to create valuable apps in a relatively short time.
What are the three most effective ways to overcome digital transformation difficulties or inconveniences?
- 1. Plan and allocate the necessary time, finance, and organisational resources for before, during, and after the implementation of the new digital technologies
- 2. Engage with, and communicate the company strategy, value proposition, and vision to all relevant stakeholders on all organisational levels regularly, before, during, and after the implementation of any new digital solution
- 3. Ensure inclusiveness and physical, cognitive, and sensorial compatibility by designing user-friendly human-technology interfaces and interactions by fitting the new technologies to the workers instead of the other way around.
What do you think are the main drivers of business transformation these days?
Based on regular interaction with relevant people in my network, the main driver for business transformation (especially digital transformation) is the ability to hire qualified workers. This challenge is one of the main drivers in the industrial sector. Most manufacturing companies are struggling with finding and hiring blue-collar workers.
How have digital transformation strategies changed over the last years?
I believe that the availability and affordability of new digital and automation technologies have lowered the entry barrier for many companies. Thus, most companies have included digitalisation in some way in their strategy. Also, 10-20 years ago, most digitalisation efforts were mostly limited to offices and supporting functions; these days, digitalisation efforts also focus on operations on the shopfloors.
What are some of the latest tools, techniques or methods you’ve implemented into a digital transformation strategy to benefit a company?
I believe one of the most vital tools I have applied is simple yet informative Power Bi dashboards to keep track of project portfolios and provide critical information to different layers and parts of organisations. BI tools are simple to use and can create a lot of value when used correctly and in the right circumstances.
How do you apply Human-Centered Design to meet the needs of a company and target its best result?
I usually apply Human-Centered Design (HCD) by following a systems approach. Before using an HCD, you must understand the surrounding and connected elements of the system you want to design. Without this understanding, it will be very challenging to understand the human participants’ needs. Also, I usually follow a general design approach (e.g., the double diamond approach) where I spend a great deal of energy understanding the current situation and finding the right challenges to focus on before jumping into finding solutions. Finally, yet most importantly, I involve and co-create with the people I’m designing for.
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