EXPLORING
DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
We are all at different stages of our business and as a result you might be at a different starting point to anyone else. Where you start might depend on:
– Commitment To Change
– Who you know
– Prior work experience
– Knowledge of available systems and software in the market place
– The budget you have to implement a system
Your business strategy will determine the direction you would like to take in your business. This is therefore one of the best places to start when choosing a digital business coach or digital business solution.
An organisational structure provides a good indication of required user access controls, responsibilities and reports.
System workflows are a great resource for business transformation as they assist in identifying key deliverables, user responsibilities, touch points with customers/suppliers, required user access controls and performance measures.
Existing checklists and online forms are a great way to identify input collection points or quality control checks in the business. Consider your existing checklists and online forms and how these will be incorporated into your new system.
Consider existing performance measures and reports and whether these effectively meet the requirements of the business. Also consider how these performance measures and reports will be incorporated into your new system
Your customer will engage with you during various stages e.g. from lead generation to service delivery on an order. These customer touch points might involve access to or an experience of your systems. It is therefore important to obtain their input during any planned system changes.
User testing is an important element of obtaining input and acceptance of change throughout the implementation process. It can also help identify and eliminate any bugs before wider implementation. User training materials can be made available in a range of different formats depending on a user’s preference. Their effectiveness can also be tested as part of the “User Testing” process.
Decisions on hardware are just as important as the decisions you make on software.
Before implementing a software system, it is important to consider whether your existing hardware can support the systems that will be implemented.
Your system must have adequate security to protect the data the system is entrusted to process and use. Data leaks and security breaches threaten the ability of customers to trust businesses and their products.
You should consider the Data Privacy Act requirements in Australia before deciding to store personal information. You should also establish a Privacy Policy and make this available to any system users or customers who will have their personal information stored on your system.
Regular backups are a start to effective data recovery management but you should consider where these backups are stored and how quickly they can be retrieved in different scenarios. You should also ensure that responsibility is assigned for this process.