Imagining the Future
Despite an incoming recession, digital transformation remains top of mind for many. Here at Olive, we have been keeping an ear to the ground, listening out for what digital transformation trends are coming in 2023. Here’s a summary of digital transformation trends to look out for in 2023.
Olive’s Top Digital Transformation Trends for 2023
1. Acceleration of Digital Transformation
We agree with Bernard Marr’s assessment, that in 2023, we predict to see more enterprise innovations. Companies will continue to invest in technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), the internet of things (IoT), cloud computing, blockchain, and more. Marr states;
“These transformational digital technologies do not exist in isolation from each other, and we will see the boundaries between them blurring. This brings us closer than ever to the point where we are able to create “intelligent enterprises” where systems and processes support each other to complete menial and mundane tasks in the most efficient way possible.”
2. Lean Digital Transformation
With recession 2023 rumors swirling, the ability to deliver business value efficiently and predictably is more important than ever. The benefits of digital transformation can certainly deliver this value; however, the process of finding the right solutions that drive transformation costs time and resources. At Olive, we believe a lean digital transformation strategy can get help organizations reap the benefits of digital transformation, without the hefty monetary or retention costs.
“In uncertain times, digital transformation becomes more, not less, important.”
3. Consolidation of software vendors
With an influx of merger and acquisition activity happening worldwide, we are witnessing private equity buying out big companies – combined with developing technologies – which has resulted in a consolidation of software vendors. Acquisitions of tech providers were briefly impacted in 2020 by the onset of the pandemic, but M&A activity experienced recovery in 2021 as the economy began to bounce back. Consolidation in the technology business is expected to reach new highs in 2022, according to a report by Gartner Inc. By 2022, it is predicted that the level of global mergers and acquisitions activity involving technology providers will surpass previous highs recorded in 2018, according to Gartner.
4. Solutions for hybrid and remote-work
Nearly 40% of workers would consider quitting if their bosses made them return to the office full time, a new survey shows. In America, 4.3 million quit their jobs just in August of 2021.
“Changes to workplace expectations and an increase of remote work opportunities over the past two years is a large factor in this, but other things to consider are generational mindsets, a competitive job market and, of course, the economy.”
Organizations are going to need technologies that seamlessly enable collaboration regardless of location. Businesses will leverage Digital transformation tools to manage work and coordinate with teams and stakeholders that are globally dispersed. According to McKinsey & Company, COVID-19 has sped up the adoption of digital technologies by years across industries. Demand for digital transformation services will also become increasingly prominent in 2022, as remote work takes precedence over onsite collaboration in many industries.
5. AI and hyper-automation
Every day we create roughly 2.5 quintillion bytes of data, and that number is growing at an exponential rate. Remember, data is only as effective as the AI systems we use to manage, regulate, and mine it for insights. The implementation of Artificial Intelligence will become an increasingly vital business function in 2023. It is important to move away from a fear-based approach to AI, which suggests that AI and machine learning will eventually take all of our jobs. This isn’t the case – AI will repurpose human assets – rather than take jobs away. The purpose of harnessing AI is to automate. Hyper Automation is the concept that says: anything that can be automated should be. Essentially, this means that any repetitive task without the need for human supervision should be built into an automated process. Although AI will undeniably continue to result in certain job losses, it’s efficiency may have huge benefits for many employees. Automating menial tasks allows the employer to use the saved resources for more purposeful tasks.
“There is really very little excuse for being in business and not having an understanding of how AI and the other technologies mentioned above will impact your business and industry.”
6. AI for customer experience success
New technologies, processes, and the advancement and benefits of AI will continue to positively affect the customer experience in 2023 and beyond. Gartner predicts that organizations with customer service channels that properly embed AI will experience a 25% increase in operational efficiency. Customer-centric approaches to commerce are now the medium of preference and leveraging this optimally relies on AI. Today, companies can lawfully collect deep insights about their customers. Those with an eye toward the future are boosting their data and analytics capabilities and harnessing predictive insights to connect more closely with their customers. The insights on exactly when, how, and why a customer behaves a certain way with a business are causing IT system redesigns. The markers of this are visible everywhere from pop-up customer care chat boxes and e-mail capturing to drip campaigns or “also bought” suggestions.
According to Boston Digital, investing in customer experience tools will help to strengthen your digital footprint and increase your ROI. The customer experience is becoming far more personalized and rendering traditional approaches obsolete. Considering the growing strength of AI technologies, AI will continue to become more ubiquitous in consumers’ everyday lives in 2022 and beyond, particularly in retail and hospitality.
7. Increasingly distributed enterprises
Traditional office-centric organizations that once relied on hiring employees in a specific location are becoming more geographically dispersed. Companies such as Remote facilitate remote work on a global scale. Speaking of the necessity for the technology to support distributed enterprises, David Groombridge, research vice president at Gartner said:
“This requires CIOs to make major technical and service changes to deliver frictionless work experiences, but there is another side to this coin: the impact on business models. For every organization, from retail to education, their delivery model has to be reconfigured to embrace distributed services. The world didn’t think they’d be trying on clothes in a digital dressing room two years ago.”
Companies must keep up with technological transformations if they are to keep their dispersed teams engaged throughout times of disruption. Having the right digital transformation tools is imperative to success. Gartner expects that by 2023, 75% of organizations that exploit distributed enterprise benefits will realize revenue growth 25% faster than competitors.
8. Digital Transformation Leadership
With an increased pressure on organizations to digitize their services, the importance of business technologists will come to the fore as essential players in the acceleration of innovation and digital transformation. Business technologists will be crucial to IT departments’ efforts to accelerate organizational innovation. In 2023, it will be imperative that business technologists “walk the walk” when it comes to digital transformation – and have the right tools in place to execute successful digitization strategies.
9. Continued supply chain digital transformation
The world’s delicate supply chains are under a mammoth burden of stress – contributing to increased consumer prices and a sluggish global economic recovery. Supply chain digitization, and supply chain 4.0, will be crucial components to alleviating the complexity of global supply chain issues in 2022. Companies need to rethink their supply chain and approach it with innovation rather than the status-quo.
Supply chains now have the opportunity to reach new heights of operational effectiveness, to leverage emerging digital supply chain business models, and to transform into a digital supply chain.
‘’Supply Chain 4.0 – the application of the Internet of Things, the use of advanced robotics, and the application of advanced analytics of big data in supply chain management: place sensors in everything, create networks everywhere, automate anything, and analyze everything to significantly improve performance and customer satisfaction”
Because purchasing supply chain management software is filled with headaches and risks, along with so many pitfalls en route, many companies fail to purchase the right supply chain management software for their unique business needs. Often vendors will pitch you their supply chain management software – regardless as to whether it is the right tool for you or not. Supply chain digitization is undeniably essential in 2022 and beyond, but you will need to ensure that you purchase the right supply chain management software for your company. Follow Olive’s steps to choosing the right supply chain software here.
10. Industry 4.0
Industry 4.0 combines traditional manufacturing processes with new integrated technology that aims to mitigate inefficiencies. This fourth industrial revolution will transform how businesses operate and benefit the customer. We will see industry 4.0 expanding in urgency in 2022 – with 91% of manufacturers increasing their net technology spend in 2021. In 2022, predictions point to organizations attempting to pull together all silo technologies they’ve deployed over the years, with more productions moving towards robotics, and AI and machine learning becoming increasingly important.
11. Software vendor sales bluffs exposed
The world of software selling business can often be a jungle of deception and mismatched vendor sales solutions. One of the reasons we created Olive, was to overcome the bias in software sales. Purchasing the wrong software can not only damage business but also employees. According to a G2 report, poor software choices may lead to increased employee turnover, with more than half of respondents (52%) stating they have been dissatisfied in their roles due to mismatched software, and 24% stating they have considered looking for a new job due to mismatched software.
Unfortunately, some software selling companies are becoming increasingly brazen – selling to companies in which the software becomes shelfware. For example, take a smaller company with very specific and niche needs, that is strong-armed into buying SAP. This solution doesn’t necessarily meet the needs of the business. In 2023, as companies become increasingly savvy of generic software vendors that offer ‘’a one-size-fits all’’ solution, certain software vendor sales bluffs will be exposed.
12. A growing focus on human capital management (HCM) software
The focus on human capital management (HCM) has already made a big comeback in 2022, and will continue to take center stage in 2023 and beyond. The practice of Human Capital ManagementHCM has become increasingly prevalent, as people recognize that an organization’s workforce is its greatest asset. HCM has become the driving force behind many new business practices, a growing abundance of human capital management software solutions, and an emphasis on the concept of human capital as a competitive advantage. The success of HCM will rely largely on digital transformation in 2023 and beyond as HCM software helps organizations manage their workforce.
Find Digital Transformation Solutions with Olive
The acceleration of digital transformation trends that we predict to see in 2023 and beyond may seem overwhelming. But with the right technology by your side, big changes will be seamless for you and your organization. Olive is the first cloud-based technology evaluation platform created for IT consultants, IT leaders buyers and their teams to collaborate and streamline the process of selecting solutions that drive digital transformation.
“To prepare for “intelligent enterprises”, businesses must ensure they embed the right technology throughout their processes and in every area of operations.”
Reduce the cost of your technology evaluations. Increase process effectiveness. Keep talent, and automate the frustrating and mundane activities) and find the solutions in 66% less time, with Olive!
