3 ways to invest in people for a successful digital ... · today, we know that successful digital...

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3 ways to invest in people for a successful digital transformation

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Digital transformation is about more than finding the right technology

Putting people at the center of digital transformation

3 ways to invest in people for a successful digital transformation

Success stories: How real organizations are solving their digital transformation challenges by investing in people first

Start investing in your people today with Cornerstone

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Contents

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Digital transformation is about more than finding the right technology In the past, discussions about digital transformation began and ended with technology. In 2014, an analysis in the MIT Sloan Management Review defined digital transformation as “the use of technology to radically improve performance.”1 For McKinsey’s Paul Willmott, then a director in the company’s London office, “digital winners” in 2014 were those who could “[create] the right scale of investment in the IT infrastructure.”2 And in 2016, 68% of respondents to a McKinsey study believe that one of the most important steps in digital transformation was “adopting new technologies.” 3

Today, we know that successful digital transformation doesn’t start with finding and implementing the right technology. It starts with people. “Technology is not the most important nor the most difficult part of digital transformation,” say the authors of The Technology Fallacy: How People Are the Real Key to Digital Transformation. “Instead, the more pressing issue is how an organization adapts its culture, strategy, leadership, and talent to operate effectively in a digital world.”4

In 2016, 68% of respondents to a McKinsey study believe that one of the most important steps in digital transformation was “adopting new technologies.” 3

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Putting people at the center of digital transformationThis isn’t to say that systems and processes aren’t important; having the right tools matters immensely, whether you’re building a house or creating a collaborative learning program for 100,000 employees. But while organizations can invest billions in new technologies, according to Accenture, it’s human beings “who bring those investments to life.”5 Recently, The Harvard Business Review reminded leaders that digital technologies only lead to improvement—increased efficiency, greater collaboration—when people have the “right mindset.” Without employee buy-in, digital transformation only serves to shine a spotlight on an organization’s existing weaknesses.6 In short, despite the remarkable power of artificial intelligence (AI) and other new capabilities, technology is still “fairly straightforward,” according to future of work expert Cheryl Cran. “It’s the people who are complex and that potentially slow down transformation.”7

How then can organizations put people at the center of digital transformation? By investing in them. When organizations invest in people, they enable more than just effective change—they enable true transformation. In an age of constant disruption, successful organizations are those that can respond rapidly and meaningfully to new competition, new regulations, and more. The key to this proactive response lies in having access to an agile, creative, innovative workforce that can adapt to both changing market conditions and rapidly evolving technology. But this kind of workforce doesn’t just happen: it’s the result of heavy (and ongoing) investments in learning, skills development, engagement, and leadership training. In sum, all of the activities that help human workers adjust, innovate, and thrive in the age of AI.

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Enable continuous learning and career development at every level. According to a recent study by MIT and Deloitte, the most successful, digitally enabled organizations have “transformed the way individuals and organizations learn.”8 Research by McKinsey discovered the same: when it comes to digital transformation, “developing talent and skills throughout the organization…is one of the most important factors for success.”9 McKinsey also found that organizations that have made successful digital transformations “have a better funded and more robust approach to talent than others.”10

In the context of digital transformation, learning does double-duty: it both prepares workers for a rapidly changing future and drives engagement (key to keeping those newly skilled employees). By infusing learning into every activity and making development opportunities accessible to every worker, at every level, organizations can create an agile, ready-to-learn workforce ideal for transitioning into the new digital reality.

3 ways to invest in people for a successful digital transformation Here are 3 meaningful ways organizations can invest in people today to enable a successful digital transformation tomorrow:

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Create a culture that empowers workers. Gartner calls culture the “biggest brick in [the] wall” for those who have do achieve digital transformation.11 For McKinsey, an empowering culture supports and nurtures change by “[challenging] old ways of working”;12 employees are encouraged to take calculated risks and increase collaboration,13 as well as to play key roles in the transformation.14

Organizations can begin building a culture that empowers workers by giving them choices (e.g., enabling employees to drive their own learning and career paths), allowing reasonable risk-taking, and encouraging (and not penalizing) the possibility of failure. Innovation and increased creativity—powerful competitive differentiators in a time of continuous disruption—come from encouraging workers to think outside the proverbial box and try new approaches, even if the results aren’t perfect the first time.

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Keep employees informed.15 A successful digital transformation depends on employee buy-in—and buy-in depends on the power of story. Organizations must communicate the story of digital transformation long before transitioning employees. Employees will want to know, Why is this transformation necessary? How does it affect me? Will my role change? What do I need to learn to stay relevant— and employed?

Communicating honestly and frequently can allay many of these concerns and nurture excitement (instead of dread) about the transformation. Involving employees in the transformation directly—as beta testers, committee members, or power users—also increases buy-in and fosters a sense of belonging and accountability.

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Success stories: How real organizations are solving their digital transformation challenges by investing in people firstDespite an estimated $1.3 trillion invested in digital transformation in 2018 in the United States alone, it’s estimated that 70% of these digital transformation endeavors fail.16 Yet those that do succeed have something crucial in common: they’ve all invested heavily in people—giving them opportunities to build new skills, empowering them to make individual choices, and ensuring that they understand the need for organizational transformation via transparent and inclusive communication.

Here are 3 real-life companies who are succeeding in their digital transformations by enabling continuous learning and development, employee empowerment, and ensuring transparent communication.

Despite an estimated $1.3 trillion invested in digital transformation in 2018 in the United States alone, it’s estimated that 70% of these digital transformation endeavors fail.

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Enabling employees to drive their own training and developmentFounded 1988 and the nation’s leading producer of organic dairy, Organic Valley is a cooperative of farmers producing award-winning organic milk, cheese, butter, produce, healthy snacks, and more. While rapid growth helped the company capitalize on rising consumer demand for organic foods, Organic Valley’s manual talent management system saw HR spending more time on paperwork than on people. Tracking training completions by spreadsheet kept employees in the dark as to their progress; employees also had little visibility into new learning opportunities.

Organic Valley invested in people by making training engaging, transparent, and readily available, thus enabling employees to have a say in how and what they learn. Employees, managers, and leadership now use a cloud-based, configurable learning platform internally branded as “The Tool Shed.” Within “The Tool Shed,” employees can sign up for courses, track what they’ve completed, and engage in new learning opportunities. The platform also helps employees retain and build on the knowledge they’ve learned; within the company’s Continuum of Learning Program, key lessons are automatically delivered in 7-, 14-, and 30-day intervals.

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Empowering employees and external learnersFounded in 1794, the University of Tennessee serves about 50,000 students on five campuses across the state and has a presence in all 95 counties through the UT Institute of Agriculture (UTIA) and the Institute for Public Service (IPS). For three UT entities—IPS, UTIA, and UT System Administration—a reliance on three different learning management systems made finding, enrolling, and tracking course completions difficult for users. This siloed approach to development hampered the creation of a culture of empowerment for employees and external learners; both course choices and collaboration opportunities were limited due to enrollment and access challenges.

To model the kind of collaboration they wanted to see from the UT workforce as a whole, IPS, UTIA, and System Administration worked together to implement a single, shared learning management system. While the LMS is shared between all three entities, portals and learning opportunities are configured for each group. Employees and external customers have visibility into both compliance-based and optional courses, empowering learners to enroll in and complete courses at will.

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Keeping employees informed with transparent talent managementCanon Europe has more than 18,000 employees working across 22 regional offices. Yet a highly manual talent management process meant both managers and employees had little visibility into requirements, expectations, and opportunities. As a result, despite investing significantly in talent and learning activities, the company’s attrition rate remained high.

Canon Europe invested in people by making talent management processes and career and learning opportunities transparent to employees via a cloud-based talent management platform. All 18,000 employees, from the CEO down, are evaluated according to standardized—and completely visible—performance criteria. Company priorities are also completely transparent; as a result, 60% of employees now see a clear link between Canon Europe’s vision and their own work.

Company priorities are also completely transparent; as a result, 60% of employees now see a clear link between Canon Europe’s vision and their own work.

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1 George Westerman, Didier Bonnet, and Andrew McAfee “The Nine Elements of Digital

Transformation: In-depth research with executives at a wide range of companies shows how

managers can use technology to redefine their businesses.” MIT Sloan Management Review.

January 7, 2014. Accessible at https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/the-nine-elements-of-digital-

transformation/

2 “Digital strategy.” McKinsey Digital. May 2014. Accessible at https://www.mckinsey.com/business-

functions/mckinsey-digital/our-insights/digital-strategy

3 “Unlocking success in digital transformations.” McKinsey & Company. October 2018. Page

2. Accessible at https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/McKinsey/Business%20Functions/

Organization/Our%20Insights/Unlocking%20success%20in%20digital%20transformations/

Unlocking-success-in-digital-transformations.ashx

4 Gerald C Kane, Anh Nguyen Phillips, Jonathan R Copulsky, Garth R. Andrus. “How People Are

the Real Key to Digital Transformation: A Q&A with the Authors of ‘The Technology Fallacy.’” MIT

Press. April 26, 2019. Accessible at https://mitpress.mit.edu/blog/how-people-are-real-key-digital-

transformation-qa-authors-technology-fallacy

5 “The Post-Digital Era Is Upon Us: Are You Ready for What’s Next?” Accenture Technology Vision

2019. Accenture. Page 45. Accessible at https://www.accenture.com/_acnmedia/pdf-94/accenture-

techvision-2019-tech-trends-report.pdf

6 Behnam Tabrizi, Ed Lam, Kirk Girard, Vernon Irvin. “Digital Transformation Is Not About Technology.”

Harvard Business Review. March 13, 2019. Accessible at https://hbr.org/2019/03/digital-

transformation-is-not-about-technology

7 Charles Coy. “Take It from a Futurist: Your Digital Transformation Is Only as Good as Your

People Transformation.” ReWork. Cornerstone. February 3, 2019. Accessible at https://www.

cornerstoneondemand.com/rework/take-it-futurist-your-digital-transformation-only-good-your-

people-transformation

8 Josh Bersin. “New Research Shows ‘Heavy Learners’ More Confident, Successful, and Happy at

Work.” LinkedIn. November 9, 2018. Accessible at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/want-happy-

work-spend-time-learning-josh-bersin/









11 “Gartner Survey of More Than 3,000 CIOs Confirms the Changing Role of the Chief Information

Officer.” Press Release. Gartner. Orlando, FL. October 2, 2017. Accessible at https://www.gartner.

com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2017-10-02-gartner-survey-of-more-than-3000-cios-confirms-

the-changing-role-of-the-chief-information-officer

















16 Steven ZoBell. “Why Digital Transformations Fail: Closing the $900 Billion Hole in

Enterprise Strategy.” Forbes. March 13, 2018. Accessible at https://www.forbes.com/sites/

forbestechcouncil/2018/03/13/why-digital-transformations-fail-closing-the-900-billion-hole-in-

enterprise-strategy/#1ea840277b8b

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Learn more about how we can support your digital transformation at csod.com/transformation

or arrange a 1:1 consultation at csod.com/lets-talk

Start investing in your people today with CornerstoneCornerstone OnDemand helps organizations in every industry create successful digital transformations by investing in people first. For 20 years, we have fiercely focused on people, grounded in our commitment to unlocking potential through learning and development. To thrive in times of disruption, organizations must be able to find, develop and motivate the right people, and provide them with the right training at the right time.

http://csod.com/transformation

http://csod.com/lets-talk

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