Like most transformations, a business does not simply become a digital powerhouse overnight. It takes commitment, planning, teamwork, and time — sometimes several years — to evolve into a truly digital-first organization.
But what exactly is a digital transformation?
If you ask 10 business leaders this question, you’ll likely get 10 different answers. At its core, a digital transformation means taking full advantage of modern technologies to improve the way an organization conducts business and maintaining an open mindset for continued change and improvement. At the risk of sounding like a motivational poster, it’s not a destination, but a way of thinking and approaching all business decisions and processes.
This year, 40% of organizations’ technology spending went toward digital transformations — upwards of $2 trillion. And as we head into the new year (and a new decade), with renewed focus on business goals and strategy, there’s never been a better time to recommit to that digital-first mentality.
The cloud has made digital transformation goals more attainable than ever, making it simpler for businesses of all sizes to compete and keep up with ongoing advances in technology. In fact, a study by McKinsey & Company found 81% of organizations who underwent successful digital transformations use cloud-based services.
By moving your ERP solution, whether it’s a cloud-native solution like NetSuite or a cloud migration like JD Edwards, along with other vital business apps to the cloud, you expedite your digital transformation process and open up a world of new opportunities, allowing you to:
Know more with more precise, timely data.
The modern business is data-driven. Real-time visibility anytime, anywhere, across geographies, departments and subsidiaries is a necessity. This data-first mentality touches all parts of a business, from the CIO looking to predict technology needs down the road, to the CMO looking for insightful customer analytics, to HR anticipating hiring needs, to the CFO combining past sales numbers with sales forecasts to get ahead of future needs.
Data touches everything, and a commitment to efficient and integrated data collection and analysis can aid organizations in marketing and growth efforts. And companies who implemented digital tools that made data and information more accessible across the organization were twice as likely to report successful digital transformations.With data driving key business decisions, it needs to be timely and reliable. Cloud ERP solutions like NetSuite break down data silos and give you easy access to key organizational data in real-time enabling you to make better, faster decisions. The speed of the cloud, combined with user-friendly formats makes being a data-driven organization easier than ever.
Do more through optimization and greater flexibility.
The ability to turn on a dime is vital to keep the modern business competitive and advancing against its business goals. The cloud opens up exciting new possibilities for CIOs and CFOs to think differently about IT and increase flexibility and agility in support of a modern, innovative, digital business.
When it comes to business functions and applications, nothing can give you more nimbleness than the cloud. This flexibility allows your technology (ERP, database, CRM, etc.) to grow with you and truly scale because it’s not restricted by outdated hardware and/or legacy systems.
The digital-first move to the cloud can save you money and time by expediting and streamlining processes as modern cloud systems use AI and machine learning to handle routine management tasks.
Rather than spend hours each week completing administrative tasks, cloud managers and administrators can take on a more pragmatic roles as data architects. This allows them to use their deep knowledge of your organization’s data and systems to more effectively organize and utilize the wealth of data collected.
The cloud can give your accessibility extra flexibility as well by improving your mobile and Internet of Things initiatives. Having the right technology in place, like NetSuite Cloud Services or JD Edwards in the Cloud can make mobility simple.
And finally, shifting the ongoing maintenance of your software to the cloud also enables CIOs to optimize the use of their IT teams by giving them more time to focus on strategic projects that have a greater impact on your business.
Having a managed service provider on your team can help you take those cloud advantages even further; by truly optimizing these business-critical investments to do the most for your business. Call today to learn how you can get the most out of the business-critical investment: Schedule your ManageForce Consultation.
And if you’re ready to learn more about how your organization can leverage the power of the cloud in 2020 and beyond, give us a call. We’re here to answer all your cloud operations questions.
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