Where is your business: Transformation or evolution?

My dear friend Selene Diez, Forte Innovation Consulting CEO, has stated in her article “Transformation or Digital Evolution” important issues that have evolved during the pandemic lock down: our future in the digital world. (Full article at the end of this writing).

During the lock down, we had to transform our companies without any question…there were no options. Therefore we must be already into the digital world. That digital transformation would support any kind of business to evolve organically within the challenges of digital world. As Selene stated in her article, we live in  hiper-connected world that let us access to immediate information. Whatever you have in your mind is highly probable that it exists digitally. Decision taking has to get into algorithms to be able to process all that amount of information in minutes (in the past decades that process of information used to take months). However, How to deal with that transformation and evolution into the digital and technological world within mu company?

So, as my ancestors used to say, let´s start from the very beginning. Selene mentioned important aspect to have under consideration by the CEO of any company and one of them is organizational culture and it is in here where I would like to give my personal arguments. Talking about organizational culture in innovation, temptation to ask which was the first, planning or organizational culture arises (which was the first, the egg or the chicken). Since my own point of view, everything comes out from planning! “This is the big picture”  and organizational culture is just a part of it.

Organizational culture must address to the development of competences and skills of innovation, to generate deep changes and different things; which things? Whatever has an impact; where? In all levels of organizational structure; What for? To generate different process, products and services headed for a different world and that will continue to change rapidly.

Innovation culture is the new DNA of any company, integrated with highly qualified people whose most targeted habits should be (juts in case it is not already) ideas generation within the organization. The most impacting ideas within the organization must be selected and implemented and, therefore, getting important impacts in potential customers needs to offer more than what it is already in the market place.

A change in the mindset of ALL within the organization for the innovation culture (shared values and beliefs) is so important to become relevant. In the past, it was so common to have a separated innovation teams in organizations…huge mistake!!  Innovation is not exclusive but inclusive and it must be integrated the length and breadth of the organization. From the top executives and CEO teaching innovation culture to the bottom operators who might need support for mindset change.

It is possible that a call up to become creative and idea generation might become a powerful invitation for people to open their minds without any constrain feeling to be listened and, therefore, an important part of the organization. However, it is also possible that it might not be enough.

Innovation and creativity are quite related to common sense (which is in danger of extinction) and to paradigm change (quite hard for many people) to find a different way to do anything. But, we need to evolve making digital world and technology our most powerful allies to be applied within new process, products and services for a better world. And always keep in mind that the most creative and innovative ideas might come from those we least imagine!

Full text.

https://mexicobusiness.news/tech/news/transformation-or-digital-evolution