Digitalization Is Not an IT Project
Digitalization is not an IT task, but an entrepreneurial mission that requires the ability to embrace changes in society and markets.
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I originally wrote this article in April 2020. The core message—that transformation is about the right mindset and not just technology—is more relevant today than ever. Back then, it was digitalization; today, it’s AI. The principles for successful business implementation remain the same. This text is proof of my conviction that strategy and people always come before tools.
When we talk about digitalization these days, we first think of technology. We think about how technology is entering our lives, automating processes and work, connecting everything with everything, and how all devices are always online. We think of limitless data collection and information that is always and everywhere available.
Of course, it’s true that technological development makes digitalization possible in the first place, and that examples of digitalization are seen in technology topics. But it would be wrong to view digitalization only as an IT project.
Digitalization is much more. It is a fundamental, profound change in social, geopolitical, and entrepreneurial behavior patterns.
Why does digitalization affect all companies that deal with people, and why might it be necessary to completely question your own company? I’d like to elaborate on that below.
Digitalization Changes Media Usage
Digitalization, for example, changes media usage and information consumption. Due to the increased demands on our attention, it affects not only our concentration but our entire cognitive performance. It also changes learning and the available learning concepts. If I want to know something today, a wealth of information on my topic is almost always available. If I need information quickly and successfully, it’s less about remembering things or searching for them for a long time. It’s much more important to be able to quickly filter out relevant information from the abundance and assess its usefulness.
Most people still remember the times of TV guides and planning to record shows. Try explaining to a child today that they can’t watch a certain show because it’s not on TV right now or you forgot to program the recording. The concept of linear TV is simply unknown to many children today. Similar examples could be continued endlessly.
Digitalization Also Happens at Home
The examples above refer primarily to our private lives, but of course, they affect companies and their necessary business strategies just as much.
Companies and industries are usually not as flexible as private households. If you switch to a streaming service like Netflix with your new TV, you simply get rid of your DVD player. Maybe you still have a box of DVDs that you give away or sell. It’s a pity. But before the end of the free trial month, the private digital transformation in entertainment is complete.
Introducing new software in a company, which means some employees are no longer needed, is a completely different challenge—entrepreneurially, morally, and socio-politically.
Digitalization Affects Everyone Who Works with People
But even if I think digitalization doesn’t matter for my company or industry, my employees and probably most of my customers have one thing in common. That’s right—they are people. And as people, they are exposed to the influences and changes mentioned above in their social structures and networks. Some more, some less. I don’t even want to go into the requirements of young employees from Generations V and Z here, but as soon as we deal with people in our company, the circle closes and the digitalization ball is back in our court.