Digital transformation can be defined as any change made to a company’s internal processes in which digital functions are strategically exploited.
For example, we have simple cases in which companies use computers to register, store and analyze financial data and more complex and comprehensive cases, such as cloud computing and SaaS platforms (Software as a Service).
Some companies, mainly startups, already operate entirely in the cloud, such as iFood and Uber, adding the advantage of mobility to business.
In addition, there is also the issue of the Internet of Things (IoT), which works by integrating applications with digital platforms. Here, we can also give examples. Imagine a refrigerator that has wireless communication. You can shop for what you need by checking what’s missing through the app and programming and monitoring the appliance’s vital functions from a distance using your cell phone.
How Has It Influenced Organizations?
With such a significant change in how we operate, it is natural that the impact on organizations and consumers will be strong. What stands out most about digital transformation is that it:
Record Greater Demand For Cloud Resources
A large number of companies still maintain their own data centre. They even manage to meet specific demands, such as corporate e-mail and the ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system, but when they need to go further and scale services, investing in their infrastructure is very expensive and often inefficient.
This has forced companies to consume more cloud resources. To extend your workforce beyond your organization’s walls, you’ll need the mobility delivered by cloud computing and applications.
That is, digital transformation paves the way for companies to move from more traditional and local environments to cloud environments, having a workspace with greater availability and performance for the business.
Generates New Experiences For The Final Consumer
The great highlight of digital transformation is the ease it promotes in interacting with your needs with the solutions using a mobile application. All are structured on SaaS and IoT platforms. These platforms can be extended to different market segments and sectors of the company, increasing the range of business opportunities.
This allows companies to participate more in their consumers’ daily lives, as has been the case for years with storage technology; for example: imagine that the client has a burnt disc inside his storage device. When it burns out, a notification is sent directly to the part supplier requesting a replacement. This logic can be extended to virtually all existing services, directly integrating services and providers.
Drives The Rise Of Bimodal IT
The thinking of many managers, especially large corporations, is still very conservative about Information Technology. However, digital transformation is influencing changes in this regard.
The view that the company needs to keep everything (data, systems and servers) at home is changing, and we are experiencing a transition in the sector, in which more traditional companies are migrating their data centers to the cloud in search of operational optimization. Lower costs and higher performance are the main advantages.
Today, with digital transformation, many professionals say that IT is divided into two specific areas: the traditional and the innovative. The first is more cautious and focused on solving internal problems. The second aims at more agile deliveries and implementing process improvements, even if they need to escape conventional.
There is a saying that “if you see every problem as a nail, the only solution is a hammer”. This statement demonstrates our need for more ability to see challenges from other angles. Each need must be analyzed carefully to find the right solution tools.
Promotes Consumption On Demand
When the company often intends to set up its own infrastructure, managers dedicate themselves to planning and estimating the investments needed to complete the project. The problem is that the investment is only sometimes 100% in line with consumption.
If the company invests more than it needs, it builds an infrastructure beyond its needs, keeping idle IT capacity until the business expands. This can be costly and unnecessarily resource-consuming. The solution has been the migration to the cloud, as it allows for on-demand consumption.
But to succeed here, taking inventory and current consumption is important. Thus, you hire the resources, tools and services you need properly, paying a fair price. This is a one-stop trend for the IT industry.
How Should IT Leaders And Managers Prepare?
The first step is to choose a partner that can follow the entire transition process and is a specialist in cloud computing. We can cite, as an example, companies that provide infrastructure for data centers in the cloud and cloud brokers. The latter stands out as a company that will guide the traditional IT team throughout the transition process.
The second step is to understand how a cloud operation works before migrating. Even with a specialized partner and a cloud broker closely monitoring everything, having a knowledge base is important for you to identify what is being done at every moment and know when something is wrong.
Finally, IT professionals need to know what to move to the cloud. The transition can be done in stages, with less sensitive data and systems heading the list in the first phase.
Digital transformation is here to stay. It is just the initial step in a promising evolution in the IT sector, as it will pave the way for IoT and the application of artificial intelligence to business.
