As the majority of enterprises undergo digital transformation, it's easy to turn to buzzy technology solutions involving big data and machine learning to get you to your digital goals. However, digital transformation is the destination, and these technologies are just tools to help companies along the journey, according to Anthony Juliano, general partner and chief technology officer at Landmark Ventures.
At the 2017 Landmark CIO Summit in New York City on Thursday, Juliano explained the five key pillars of digital transformation that can set businesses up to become disruptors, and for new opportunities for the future.
CIOs can bring context to digital transformation strategies, Juliano said. "Talk about these pillars and strategies for transformation, rather than talking about technology," he added. "Let's talk about business, and see where this all leads."
"It's not about big data or machine learning, but the concept of, 'How do we make real-time decisions across the organization, synthesizing every component possible to make the most informed decision for our business to set ourselves up for success?'" Juliano said. While those technologies play a role in automating processes and analyzing data, the real-time decision making is the fundamental capability your organization needs, he added.
This taps into the idea that business should be accessible everywhere, at all times. It should be possible for a CIO to open their laptop and work from a beach in Tahiti, or to check their email on their phone at the movie theater, Juliano said (though he does not recommend doing either, he added).
"You should be able to work anywhere at any time, and be able to scale up and down quickly and effectively so the organization is always at the right size," he said. Cloud and mobile technologies can enable this goal, but they are simply the means to an end, Juliano said.
