Digital Transformation. That seems to be the latest buzz word -- and everyone from the clerk at the grocery store to the CEOs of the largest Fortune 500 companies is talking about it. Well... ok, maybe not most grocery store clerks, but you get my point.
It's everywhere. That begs the question -- is it just another buzzword created by industry titans to drive business, or does it actually mean something and provide any value?
A survey of analysts and think tanks suggests it might indeed mean something and can provide value. In fact, Deloitte believes the move toward digital could be the reason firms survive in the future:
"The market leaders of tomorrow will not be decided by the amount of technology they deploy, but how they evolve their whole service operation to respond to the changing customer...By developing new capabilities, service teams can create differentiation and competitive advantage companies must review their operations with an open mind accepting that a radically different approach may be needed. All parts of the operating model (i.e. channels, people, process, technology and information) should be reviewed."
And they're not alone. Other thought leaders and tech gurus like Jacob Morgan of Forrester see this move towards digital as key to survival:
Ok, great, but how do we actually drive towards a digital future? How do we, to use Jacob's phrase, "digitize the heart" of our businesses?
While the intention of this blog is not to talk about all aspects of "digitizing" a business, I do intend to focus on one major part of digitizing a business - adopting and moving toward new technologies - fast. And there's no better test case than Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies. Don't think they're ready for prime time? Take a look at AWS IoT, machine learning on AWS, or the suite of cognitive services by Microsoft Azure. These technologies are now available for use - and cheap!
To be able to adopt new technologies in a meaningful way requires two things: being able to connect to them and fold them into standard business processes. Listen to this podcast to hear Brian Mill, VP at Mulesoft join Appian's VP of Product, Malcolm Ross and VP of Product Solutions, Medhat Galal, to discuss what digital transformation means, why it matters, and how organizations can tie these new technologies into their core business processes.
Click the play button below to listen now.
[podcast id="13568545" text="The Need for Digital in Insurance" on Spreaker."]
