In these times of COVID 19 pandemic everything is uncertain. Many people have lost their jobs, many businesses have closed, and those who still have their jobs and businesses fear for their job and financial security.
The situation at times seems to improve, then some new risk appears, a new restriction; we go back and forth constantly. In this new reality, those who have stayed afloat, or even increased their profits, are those who have been able to adapt their business to the circumstances through technology. Technology along with flexibility for change are, today more than ever, not only the keys to success, but to survival itself. This has become evident from small companies to large multinationals, from government services to independent professionals, in short, for all types of businesses.
It is no secret to anyone that the technology of the last 50 years has surpassed in quantity and speed the advances of all previous centuries. What was new yesterday is the norm today, and tomorrow may already be obsolete. Advances surpass our imagination, and we cannot afford to be left behind, we must stay up to date to stay current. Technology and flexibility.
Within this context is where we find the relevance of digital transformation, which goes far beyond being a competitive advantage, it is a necessity. Digital transformation today is not just about having digital platforms for our businesses, it is a way of organizing work and processes, and the human factor is fundamental for defining such organization and processes.
The situation cannot be solved by telling the staff that they are now going to work in this or that way. They are the ones who know from their own experience how things can be done, and who may find out possible improvements, since they are the ones who have had to adapt to a new way of working, organizing their time, their physical space, and even their relationships with their bosses and collaborators. This implies a new organizational culture, which includes efficient communication with both clients and employees, and empathy with their new circumstances, needs, and adaptation processes. All this is also part of the transformation.
Implementing changes from above without having previously explained the reasons and benefits that will be obtained, generates resistance to change, which very possibly leads to management failure. When changes are constant and without consulting those who actually do the work, they are conceived as a trial-and-error test, and not taken seriously, or worse yet, they increase the uncertainty generated by the current pandemic.
Organizations now must constantly change to adapt to their environment, and to continue to meet their objectives in this changing world, and the need to do so through technology has become evident in the current emergency. Digital transformation is today more than ever a survival necessity. But organizations do not change simply by incorporating new technologies, establishing new processes or structures. They change when the people involved are able to adapt to these changes, assume them, and evolve with them. To achieve this, you must eliminate, or at least try to minimize, the stress generated by change.
Today we can see how for most young people - for whom change is a constant, even more in the field of technology - flexibility has become essential. Uncertainty has been incorporated into their work lives, developing a new way of thinking, and living, which they assume and know how to face. Likewise, companies must assume uncertainty and face it with flexibility when seeking continuous improvement through their digital transformation process and do so in conjunction with their human factor for greater chances of success.
