From being merely a boardroom buzzword, the term digital transformation is now a part – and priority – of every business strategy. But with digital transformation still developing and continuing to be a rather alien concept to many businesses, we’re looking at the top 10 digital transformation trends every business should know about. These trends will determine the future of digital transformation.
So, without further adieu, what are the top 10 digital transformation trends in 2023—and why are they valuable?
Trend 1. More investments will be made in digital transformation
According to the IDC, the money spent on digital transformation globally will grow 17.1% per year and reach $2.3 trillion by 2023. The countries and continents investing most in digital transformation will be the US, Europe and China.
The financial sector, including banking, insurance, security and investment, is expected to make the most investments in digital transformation technology. However, the finance industry is closely followed by the robotic manufacturing industry, whose spending is forecasted to double over the next three years.
Trend 2. The expected move from B2B to B2B2C
We’ll see a growing number of B2B organisations moving to a B2B2C model (Business-to-Business-to-Customer), offering clients customised experiences and specific products. Customers in the B2B environment will start to expect the same level of customer experience as in the B2C space. Through B2B2C sales, B2B enterprises will be able to offer customer experiences that correspond to Amazon standards.
At Intergence, we specialise in helping companies along their digital transformation journey and can support you in moving to a B2B2C model. We use Stratiam, our data aggregation and visualisation tool, which helps businesses visualise all their data in one tool. Learn more about digital transformation guiding principles and how we can help when you download our eBook.
Trend 3. IoT will offer several opportunities
According to McKinsey, IoT-connected devices will increase by 43 billion by 2023. This increase, being the result of lower sensor technology prices, offers a great opportunity for manufacturers as production flows. Supply chains and remote operations are also expected to see a boost.
Trend 4. The focus will be on people, not technology
You might think that technology is at the centre of digital transformation, but it’s more about the people. However, that’s where problems arise, since we’re seeing a lack of people with the right skill- and mindset to leverage the potential of digital transformation.
Gartner suggests that 64% of managers believe that the digital future will massively challenge their team. The lack of skills will be one of the main challenges that digital transformation poses to large enterprises.
Trend 5. AI will play an essential role in the manufacturing industry
Statistics show that AI and machine learning will play a significant role in the manufacturing industry. The Accenture report suggests that AI will help increase productivity within the manufacturing business by 40%. However, there’s a gap between reality and wishful thinking, with 92% of manufacturers assuming that smart factory technologies will allow them to enhance productivity, but only 12% of manufacturers actually using AI-empowered technology.
Trend 6. XaaS will continue to be the top in-house solution
Instead of investing in recruitment and training of current workforces, enterprises will try to use cloud-based applications and services from third-party providers to get jobs done. This approach, called XaaS (Everything as a Service), provides businesses with cost-effective, productivity-enhancing, highly secure and more agile capabilities without having to manage on-premises solutions.
Trend 7. 5G will drive digital transformation
Although 5G is only available in select areas at the moment, once it has been fully rolled out it is expected to greatly impact digital transformation, empowering new technologies such as smart cities, vehicles, manufacturing and other internet-connected technology with its unprecedented high-speed connectivity.
Trend 8. AI will take over and solve the skill gap problem
According to a survey carried out in 2019, 40% of employers believe that artificial intelligence will be used to overcome the challenge of the lack in skillset. While the costs of a barista for Starbucks lie around $20,000, a robotic barista arm would cost them $25,000, without the need for sick or annual leave pay and the robot operating 24/7. This makes enterprises more likely to choose the robot over an actual barista.
One great example of AI replacing digital experts is Google Brain, an AI research team developing software that can build machine learning software. Milestones like these take away the need of employing a large number of developers and recruit a smaller team that can primarily concentrate on essential strategic challenges instead of losing valuable time on coding.
Trend 9. Reputations will be at stake due to privacy concerns
Every enterprise trying to profit from digital transformation will have to deal with privacy concerns. 5G and IoT devices will only add to those concerns, increasing the risk of data breaches.
Businesses of all sizes will be confronted by public privacy expectations at some point and might walk away with their reputations damaged. Investing in cybersecurity as well as communicating the implemented security measures and privacy policies to customers will give businesses a competitive advantage.
Trend 10. Digital Transformation will follow a more pragmatic approach
Many enterprises believe that investing in hot new technology will make them more innovative. However, sometimes they can confuse digital change with digital transformation. Before investing, businesses need to consider the implications and the effect it can have on their bottom line to figure out whether this money is well-invested.
This is the reason why CIOs go back to developing concepts and strategies that are based on strong foundations and focus on achieving business objectives rather than using fancy new technology.
How these trends drive digital progress
Digital transformation is not going to stop for anyone, so it’s essential to stay agile enough to adapt in order for businesses to remain competitive and profitable. Our list of 10 trends clearly exemplifies that the key to success lies in technology, but how exactly can adapting the right tools create corporate advantages?
- By enabling business growth. Adapting the right tools helps your scale your business much faster and more efficiently than legacy technology. Increased flexibility and the ability to automate certain tasks will allow you to work faster and more effectively, which drives more revenue and cuts down expenses.
- By increasing your data security. The world has gone digital, and nowadays the security standards (if employed correctly or by relying on a managed cyber security provider) for cloud services are higher than those of legacy on-premises solutions. Ensuring your data is as secure as possible and having backups in place that can easily be recovered doesn’t just increase your potential downtime, it will also increase your customers’ trust.
- By boosting employee productivity. Digital solutions enable your employees to collaborate more effectively, at any time, wherever they are. This global interconnection combined with the potential to automate will streamline your business activities and unleash your team to get more work done in the same (or less) time.
The Intergence Way to Digital Transformation
At Intergence, we have a plethora of experience in supporting our clients on their digital transformation journey. We believe in developing a collaborative relationship to ensure our customers have all the tools that they need, and only the tools that they need, and set them up for success. In order to do this, we have developed 7 steps outline to lay the foundation for your digital transformation:
- A solid foundation. Before we do anything else, we assess your IT infrastructure so that we can recommend solutions that are individually tailored to your requirements.
- A cloud-first approach. Our blog already showed you why the future of business is digital. We now provide you with the integral first step towards cloud migration.
- A self-serve strategy. We believe in collaboration. Our end goal is it to empower you to take your business processes into your own hands, and do so in a safe, secure and efficient manner.
- An automated future. We enable you to boost your employees’ productivity by leveraging your technology to automate where possible.
- An optimised customer journey. Technology helps you to find your target audience more easily and to create faster and better customer experiences. We help you leverage it.
- Data designation. No more clutter–we help you collate all your data into one holistic view with our Stratiam solution.
- Managed services. Our industry experts ensure that your technology is managed and monitored.
Is your business keeping pace with digital transformation?
With brand-new technologies continuously emerging, it can be hard stay on top of things and keep a competitive edge. Intergence can help you take the first steps towards digital growth by staying up to date, forward-thinking and being ready for anything. Get in touch today to speak to one of our digital transformation experts.
