6 reasons why digital initiatives fail and the ways to achieve seamless digital transformation

Organizations are striving hard to achieve operational efficiency and reengineer their business models using digital technologies such as cloud, big data, analytics, social, and mobility. However, not all of them are able to successfully leverage these technologies and achieve seamless digital transformation.

According to a research and survey by Genpact “two-third of digital transformation projects fail.”

There are multiple reasons for a digital initiative to fail, but most of these transformation initiatives fail as organizations focus a lot on technology and miss out totally on processes and human resources.

Outlined below are some of the key reasons why digital initiatives fail and the ways to make the transformation program impregnable.

1. No clear roadmap and lack of vision

Transformation initiatives follow a top-down approach and therefore, having a strong leadership with compelling vision is a must. According a survey from Deloitte, digital strategy drives digital maturity. The survey mentions that only 15% of respondents from companies in their early stage of digital maturity have a clear and coherent digital strategy. Scope, objectives and goals are the key enablers of an effective digital strategy.

There is a clear shortage of digital workforce, workforce that is digitally skilled and has an ability to use digital technologies in routine work. According to the burning glass survey, nearly eight in 10 middle-skill jobs require digital skills however, a survey from Capgemini uncovered that only 46% of digital companies are investing in the development of these skills. Clearly, tolerating skill gaps is a roadblock. Companies can overcome such a roadmap by conducting training programs or employee exchange programs with technology companies.

According to Capgemini’s “The Digital Talent Gap – Developing Skills for Today’s Digital Organizations Report” below are some of the best practices and examples of how brands are conduct training programs to address skill gaps:

The CEO is busy, a few consultants are on board and no one is clear about the responsibilities and deliverables, that’s enough to fail it completely! Lack of senior buy-in can be a big bottleneck and hamper transformation.