They had had it all figured out; simple tasks would be automated, information would be digitized, processes would be optimized and the human touch would be minimized. On PowerPoint it looked brilliant, innovative and made perfect sense.
In reality; not so much.
Two years after ‘Project Digitization’ was launched, little had changed. Technologies were available, the launch-party had been grand, training classes were extensive, and the message from leadership had been loud and clear; everything would change.
Yet; not much did.
Leadership’s eager ambition of impressing the board with their ’digital transformation agenda’, followed by rapid implementation, had missed a ‘tiny little detail’ in their strategy.
A ‘tiny little detail’ with huge implications. They had forgotten – or simply ignored – that they were not only dealing with technology here, they were also dealing with… people.
Human emotions in ‘The Digital Age’.
The ‘annoying’ thing with people is that we are not machines or robots, we are humans. This means that we cannot be programmed, handled, implemented or even ‘managed’ to change. To willingly and effectively change, we need to understand and feel. Understand the rationale behind it and feel inspired to be part of it.
Running transformational projects based on the idea that people are machines without thoughts and emotions, is planning for failure.
Approaching transformational projects with curiosity and willingness to explore human nature, try to understand their hopes and fears, and involve and engage them along the way, hugely increases the chances for a positive outcome.
And then there is some…
Deloitte Human Capital Trends 2016, a report based on 7000+ surveyed companies in over 130 countries, concludes that there are 3 great challenges that businesses are facing in today’s digital world of work, and that is organizational design, leadership gaps and culture.
