Back in 2019, (can anyone actually remember what the world looked like pre-Covid?) few would have predicted the way in which the pandemic has accelerated our adoption of technology.
A sudden need to adjust business models and instil flexible and remote working represented a catalyst for digital transformation initiatives across organisations of all sizes, in all industry sectors.
And with 2023 bringing a new raft of challenges with it, from inflationary pressures, potential recession, labour shortages and ongoing supply chain volatility, it’s abundantly clear that digital transformation will continue to evolve and shape the way in which businesses adapt to an economic landscape where change is the only constant.
While industries are launching transformational initiatives at different speeds depending on their digital maturity, there are a number of common priorities when evaluating options for investment over the year ahead. Programmes which deliver risk reduction, cost savings, and agility will dominate spending, while leaders can’t afford to take their foot of the pedal when it comes to initiatives focused on customer experience and innovation. Cloud migration will continue, with machine learning and AI commanding increasing amounts of attention as the value of the intelligence and insights they bring is recognised as a key source of competitive advantage.
However, when it comes to the longer-term role of digital transformation, it’s important to consider that as a concept, it’s more than a one-off event, or indeed, series of events.
Winston Churchill once said that “to improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often”. While these words came from a different era, the sentiment has never been truer than for industry in 2023.
To create the kind of digital culture necessary to thrive in the modern economy, transformation must be perpetual, with a focus on maintaining a true digital environment which has the resilience, scale and flexibility to navigate market uncertainty.
This is only possible through having the right enterprise platform in place. Capitalising on cloud as a deployment model for scale, low TCO and ease, and leveraging API—led integration technologies to foster collaboration and visibility, modern ERP represents a step change in what is possible, and is the foundation of a long-term strategy centred around digital transformation.
Systems such as Pegasus’ Opera 3 SQL SE bring together all areas of an organisation, from Finance, Payroll and HR, to CRM, Supply Chain Management and Manufacturing, to seamlessly integrate processes and facilitate a unified view of operations. With business intelligence to deliver valuable insights, it allows quick and easy access to information from which to expedite and inform decision-making.
Through having an infrastructure which is able to deliver live, accurate insights on business operations and performance, enterprises are able to continuously explore new business models and channels, identify alternative avenues and ways to drive innovation, and be ready to divert resources into areas which are presenting new challenges or opportunities.
With this kind of infrastructure in place, organisations can foster a culture built around digital transformation, and in doing so, maintain market relevance, adapt to change and expand market share.
Posted On: January 11, 2023
