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More Chinakidzwa Correspondent
The world is changing on a daily basis and one of the main drivers of this change is technology especially information communication technologies (ICTs) which have brought increased connectivity.

Increased connectivity has led to interconnectedness of people, organisations and machines. This hyper-connectivity has had a huge impact in the conduct of business in developing countries.

As such, digital transformation has become the centre of business activities and processes in the developing world. Digital transformation is not about the internet only, but using latest technologies to do what you do better.

If we manage to tap into these billions of online connections among people, organisations, machines, data and processes for economic activity, then we can surely take our businesses to the next level.

The digital economy is taking shape and transforming conventional thinking about how business is done – interaction processes, service delivery, data usage and products. As such, it requires new capabilities in handling customers, data, management, innovations and the new challenges in general.

Below are five (5) factors that I consider to be key for success in the digital economy.

However ,it is important to note that having a key success factor does not mean an organisation will do better than its competitors. These are requirements for any organisation to survive in this new environment- just like low labour costs in an industry that is labour intensive.

1. Organisational leadership and culture

Organisations must reconfigure their structures to better deal with the much demanding electronic environment and business models.

Organisational structures are important as they control the flow of information and decision making in an organisation. Certain structures that worked in the Industry 1.0 era will certainly not work in the fast changing digital economy where agility is a prerequisite for success. Organisations that are more able to change course of action in the shortest possible time will outperform those that spend most of their times in boardrooms seeking approvals. The digital economy require companies to be highly proactive, agile and culturally adaptive. Culturally adaptive organisations do not look only at the much visible things such as language, business customs and procedures but also internally to how things are done within the organisation. Organisations that for example shift to data based decisions will certainly outperform those that place heavy reliance on opinion and experience – based decisions from senior executives.

It is not wrong to use experience and opinions from senior executives, but caution should always be taken to avoid poor decisions from frequently wrong opinions.

Instead there is a growing need to rely more on data, as such organisations need data scientists to enhance organisational learning. Data is the lifeblood of digital, so you can’t survive in the digital economy without this capability.

There is need for a cultural shift to vest more power to people who are able to make data-based decisions as opposed to experience and opinions. It is the ability to make sense out of the vast sources of data available that is now required more than executive opinions. Whoever has the data and can make sense out of it has the power to make strategic decisions.

Organisations that embrace a culture of data-based decisions and leadership will most likely be in strong positions to make the most out of the digital world. This is so because digital technologies are rapidly transforming every aspect of our lives and are integral to the future of innovation driven economies.

However the rapid advancement in technology is creating a huge gap between human skills and technology. Human capital development is going slower than technological developments and as such, organisational leadership is required to move with the times.

A new wave of leadership is required that is innovative and disruptive, ready to cut through bureaucracy and through bold leadership and determination;- be able to take initiatives, test limits and adapt to changing environments. There is often a misconception that those in “leadership positions” must lead, a misconception that leadership is only for a selected few.

However, the reality is that organisational leadership or any form of leadership is a responsibility for everyone.

If things go wrong, stop the blame game but take the responsibility too.

If ever there is leadership failure you are also a failure as you didn’t lead in your own right. Effective organisations in the digital world are those that have leaders in all aspects driving towards the change and organisation they want.

2. Commitment

Commitment is another key success factor to becoming a fully adept digital organisation.

Commitment must always start at board level and permeate to all the other levels of the organisation. There shouldn’t be any doubt about your commitment to digital transformation. The digital economy requires processes to be transformed to meet the needs of the digital environment.

An organisation cannot claim to be fully committed without reflecting that in its structures and processes. For example, digital should be built in the core strategy, systems and processes of the organisation.

This can be seen by the recruitment of people like digital directors at board level. For Zimbabwean firms, it is crucial to have these new posts so that there are people ready and tasked to drive change.

Without proper commitment, organisations run the risk of simply translating business models into the digital era. This is surely a recipe for failure. Commitment can be shown by deployment of resources such creation of new posts to specifically deal with digital transformation. Most organisations in Zimbabwe need this as they still have the same traditional structures, ways of doing business and thinking.

The creation of catalytic roles such as bringing new employees often disrupts traditional business models and thinking.

This must be done immediately after redefining the structure and culture required in the organisation or vice versa. The trend nowadays is to have positions such as chief digital officer (CDO) and chief customer officer (CSO) who are tasked with driving growth, combining strategy, development and operations.

However, catalytic roles must have the right person who is well positioned to be effective. The person must be at the appropriate level, with sufficient scope, influence and support to bring the required transformation.

3. Customer expectations and experience

Today’s customers are more empowered, demanding, and knowledgeable and can easily change suppliers, complain and can make and discontent go viral with the flash of a second.

The hyper-connectivity of the digital economy means customers have access to wider markets, product choices and experiences. As much as this is good, it is posing a major challenge to marketing in the market space.

Meeting expectations of these digitally empowered customers is the biggest challenge for modern day marketers.

It is getting more difficult to give outstanding customer experience that can lead to repeat business, loyalty and probably build advocates for the organisation as the customers increasingly get savvy, inconsistent and difficult to please.

Customer expectations are going beyond the traditional ease of use to more proactive experiences driven by big data. Organisations that are able to effectively use data have better chances of creating proactive experiences for their customers.

In the digital economy, all customers want to interact with the business conveniently, customers also prefer engagement through experiences that are seamless, direct, contextual, customised and omni-channelled.

Therefore it is always important for organisations to assess the customer experience that they are offering to their customers.

This includes the execution speed of websites, payment options, website layout, visual designs, and links to other sites, interactivity issues, context, content, customisation and user to user interactions.

A quick preview of most websites in Zimbabwe shows that they are still lacking on aspects to do with creating outstanding customer experience. Customer engagements are often one way, with organisations doing most of the communication through social media platforms such as Facebook. Very little conversations on the organisations Facebook pages are initiated by customers, and in some instances responses takes days if not forever to be given. To do well, organisations need to actively engage their customers.

4. Product enhancements

The digital world has brought opportunities to extend and restructure industry boundaries creating new industries in the process.

Related products and services can be integrated into sophisticated industry solutions.

This is the biggest opportunity around product development and enhancement.

The digital nature of the digital economy has also disrupted conventional distribution channels and intermediaries.

New forms of intermediaries are emerging such as price comparison sites and infomediaries. Organisations must constantly look for opportunities to enhance or create new products such as happening with the telecommunication companies that ventured into financial services through mobile money and insurance (life assurance).

The same can be said for companies for example in the insurance sector. Tracking services can be added to vehicle insurance services, by so doing behaviour can be monitored and good driving behaviour rewarded through low premiums.

At the same time, car manufacturers can collect vehicle performance information remotely and analyse it to detect possible service requirements well before they exist.

Repair services can be scheduled well in advance. There are lots of examples how product offerings can be enhanced.

It is important to note that product life cycles are increasingly becoming short as a result of rapid technological advancements. As such, organisations have limited time frames to recoup all research and development costs before a new and probably better product is on the market. To stay relevant, product enhancements become necessary.

5. Collaborative Innovations

The digital world is complicated and multi-faceted. You can’t be everywhere you wish to be and you can’t do everything you desire to do. At the same time, cost pressures continue to increase such that doing everything alone becomes a burden. In view of these challenges, collaborative innovations become key to success. It’s either as an organisation you collaboratively innovate or ‘die’. Innovation enables organisations to better respond to the highly competitive global business environment. Collaboration is crucial for this innovation to take place and this could be within the organisation, outside with other partners, customers, competitors, research institutions and communities.

In Zimbabwe, technology focussed universities are a good starting point for collaborative innovations. Organisations can empower local institutions, students and other researchers to develop industry relevant solutions. In so doing industry benefit from world class solutions at lower costs and short development cycles whilst the institutions quickly make an impact to the society.

In the digital economy, it is important to harness digital networks to build ecosystems such as Amazon and Google. These ecosystems go beyond linear supply chains to collaborate even with competitors and providers of complementary services.

Above all, there is need for collaboration to attain all the key success factors identified before. Offering outstanding customer service that creates memorable experiences require services of other parties such as e-payment service providers, internet service providers, and an efficient distribution system.

In conclusion, it is worth noting that Zimbabwean firms must seriously reconsider their organisational structures, culture and leadership if they are to succeed in the digital economy. It may appear less important today but the wave of digital is catching up faster than expected. Who ever imagined “money” in a mobile phone?

Structures need to reflect the changes in the world economy and the requirements of the digital world. There is also need for serious new thinking in the way business is done. Gone are the days of relying on physical store visits.

Today customers visit your shop or organisation in the comfort of their homes.

A new culture of data based decisions is required. For this transformation to happen, commitment is not an option.

Walk the talk, bring new catalytic roles to disrupt things. Don’t seek to maintain the status quo because the world economy is changing at an unprecedented pace. Always seek to improve customer experience.

Customer expectations are increasingly becoming high and high. Build memorable experiences around all processes.

Also offer great product enhancements.

Remember today’s customers are more fluid than before, they search for information, they compare and they seek global experiences, so be ahead. How? It’s easy, collaborate. Yes collaborate with the customers, co-create products with them.

Engage any other entity around you including that local university, it has your answers.

• More Chinakidzwa is a lecturer in the E-Commerce Department at the Harare Institute of Technology. You can contact him on [email protected]