Stop living in a digital denial - Non-acceptance of digital transformation is still a rampant phenomenon

1. Stop living in
Digital Denial
Non-acceptance of digital transformation
is still a rampant phenomenon
KAZI MONIRUL KABIR
Marketer - Innovation Strategist
Digital Transformation Evangelist – Entrepreneur
@monirul

2. ‘Going digital is the only way forward,’
tech gurus often say. And this is not just
an inspirational tech rhetoric! It is a
warning for the companies or executives
that are not heeding this advice and
living in ‘digital denial’.
For every tech visionary leader that
understands the need to go digital, there
are 10 naysayers that are still living in total
denial about the looming technology shift
in the world.

3. Survey on
‘Digital Denial’
• In May 2016, Progress, a digital solutions
provider firm, conducted an interesting survey on
whether Businesses are Really Digitally
Transforming or Living in Digital Denial.
• This was a global survey of more than 700 digital
decision makers and was conducted by Loud
house, the specialist research division of Octopus
Group, in conjunction with Progress.

4. The Findings
• Of those surveyed, 96 per cent of organizations
saw digital transformation as critical, yet 48 per
cent of those said that it was not a top priority.
• Resistance to change and denial happens when
a shift seems unwanted in a person’s limited
perspective.

5. The reasons:The Progress survey lists the main reasons for ‘denial’:
• Many organizations are worried might have lost to
their peers who have already pioneered in the digital
field.
• Some believe they have one or two years at best to
bring about digital transformation before they suffer
financially and competitively.
• The digital strategy for the organization is not defined
very well and therefore there is hesitation about
transforming their organizations.
• IT dept. and marketing departments are not properly
aligned for the digital initiatives. Usually the digital
shift is more likely to be driven by the IT department
than marketing side and this is a faulty mindset.
• Digital is seen as proxy for website content, e-
commerce, social media, mobile and email marketing.
Very few firms view themselves as effective in
managing and utilizing digital content and channels.

6. Go ‘digital’
before it’s too late!
Company decision makers and leaders must
objectively identify and dissect the internal
employee resistance for what it is. Most often,
doubt, denial and resistance are typical human
reactions to any change, as people fear stepping
out of their comfort zone.

7. The Digital Shift is
not an option, any more
Agreed, we should consider all aspects of any
change before we adopt it. But the different factor
at play here is that digital transformation is not an
‘optional’ but an ‘unavoidable’ change.

8. NOW is the right
time to embrace
Digitization!
• Welcome digitization with open arms as a
leader and let every naysayer know that the
decision to shift is totally non-negotiable.
• Once the employees are past the initial
reluctant adjustment phase, they’ll begin to
actually love the learning that comes with this
‘change’.

9. THANK YOU