How has COVID Accelerated the Digital Transformation?

Digital transformation refers to the way that businesses are adopting digital technology to change services, usually by replacing manual or non-digital processes or replacing older technology with newer, more relevant technology.

This can look like:

• Going “paperless” and sending invoices via email instead of through the mail.
• Converting to cloud computing to reduce reliance on physical hardware or traditional software; many businesses have adopted using Google Docs or other cloud-based systems to store and organize data and documents.
• Using chat software to communicate to a group instead of texting or email; this is an example of digital transformation – finding ways to tackle existing processes with better technology for the situation.

COVID-19 has drastically accelerated how businesses are handling their digital transformation. Organizations who weren’t set up to easily transition to widespread work-from-home guidelines scrambled to find digital solutions to enable them to stay open and operational. Certain industries – auto dealers, medical offices, schools and universities, and retail locations – had to figure out how to do business in ways that their industry was not designed to function in.

• Organizations with employees who didn’t have assigned laptops struggled to equip their teams to effectively work from home and had to scramble to find equipment and set up remote systems access.
• Companies found that they lacked software subscriptions – such as video conferencing software and project and communication tools like Slack – to make off-site collaboration effective.
• Businesses discovered that their networks or data servers weren’t capable of handling off-site access safely and effectively.
• Organizations needed figure out how to transition their scheduled in-person, instructor-led training to digital online formats.

In addition to discovering a lack of infrastructure, employers also found out that rolling out new technology needed to transition on a large scale involved a lot of rushed, ad hoc training to get employees up to speed.

How Does the Acceleration of the Digital Transformation Impact L&D?

Digital transformation efforts can increase efficiency, innovation, and creativity. Instead of just supporting the current state of things, digital transformation can improve processes in a significant way.

The importance of an organization being prepared for the unexpected has never been more apparent, and one of the most significant ways to stay competitive and connected is making digital transformation a priority. More than just having the “newest” technology, digital transformation is a way to more effectively serve both your customers and your employees.

Whether you’ve been steadily transitioning your processes to digital, or you’ve been in a full sprint to catch up due to COVID, we can help you assess the gaps between your goals and your current situation. We can then develop the curriculum that will enable and prepare your workforce to handle the changes that are necessary to be successful now and in the future.