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Introducing digital technology to your business: A checklist

Introducing digital technology to your business: A checklist
Steve Paul
Steve PaulCesura Business Mentoring and Coaching

Posted: Wed 17th May 2023

Over the last two decades, significant investments and changes in technology and digital have had a great impact on businesses of all sizes.

But in recent years, the pandemic has further accelerated this transformation, creating both opportunities for small businesses to compete in wider markets, and challenges in the form of information management and security.

Here, I explore what businesses can do to achieve returns and realise benefits from investments in technology and digital, and provide a brief checklist you can work through to digitally future-proof your business.

You're almost certainly doing some of this already, but it's always useful to have another take on digital strategy.

Connect with Steve on Enterprise Nation today

A step-by-step guide to investing in digital

Here's what to do.

  1. Assess the current state of your business: That includes your people and your processes.

  2. Set a vision for the digital enterprise: Consider how digital can make that relevant and sustainable difference for your customers and employees.

  3. Define your digital goals: Is it to optimise your business and make it as efficient as possible, or to transform it?

  4. Commit to digital throughout the entire business: The true benefits of digital occur when you adopt it comprehensively.

  5. Identify and support a digital champion: Choose someone with energy, enthusiasm and authority.

  6. Put the right people in the right places: Allow the people who can make a difference to operate where you need a difference to be made.

  7. Choose a trusted adviser: Technology vendors can be very helpful, but look for independent advice that can point out the hurdles and the pitfalls of the tools and solutions you might be considering.

  8. Develop a roadmap: Set out the individual next steps and how you'll gain forward momentum.

  9. Involve all stakeholders early: The last to arrive are often those who object the strongest.

  10. Address and manage the consequences of change: Recognise that not everyone will see the benefits immediately, and not everyone will be flexible and ready to change.

  11. Set up an agile governance mindset: Move away from centralised decision-making and give individual employees and teams the power and autonomy to make decisions based on their expertise and needs.

  12. Design the best possible solution and select the right technologies: It goes without saying that there isn't one solution that suits all businesses, so choose wisely.

  13. Develop a business-led data-driven culture: Having insights based on data allows you to make informed decisions. Digital helps you collect, analyse and interpret data more effectively.

  14. Monitor your progress: And if you need to, make adjustments.

Relevant resources

Steve Paul
Steve PaulCesura Business Mentoring and Coaching
I'm Steve Paul – Business Mentor, Leadership Coach and co-founder of the Marketing Mindset Partnership Work with me as your business mentor and I will provide you with practical hands on support for you and your business in your ambitions for growth, profit and reputation. That support is based not only on my knowledge and skills but also on my experience heading up marketing and sales teams within businesses and as Head of Digital in independent marketing agencies. Over the last 6 years I have built a mentoring and coaching practice to support professionals in small to medium-sized businesses that are looking to grow and succeed. That support includes coaching individuals who want perform at their best for their business, their colleagues and themselves. I work with my clients – from the leadership team to the hands-on teams – to equip them with the mindset, the methodologies and the tools to plan and execute activities that will deliver sound results. Areas that I cover as a business mentor include: Using digital for effective marketing and sales Digital for internal communications Developing brand and value proposition, and competitive positioning Marketing planning Developing and presenting pitches Writing proposals Working with external agencies Areas I cover as a coach include: Leadership, management and team development Maximising employee engagement and wellbeing Creating and embedding a company culture Confidence and self-esteem I have an enthusiastic and empathetic style and take care in my work, as a mentor and coach, to hear what my clients are saying and to work with them in the best way that they chose and enjoy and that brings them the results they are looking for. My experience I've held senior marketing, sales and strategy roles at director level with leading organisations: Philips Electronics, Commodore Computer, IBM Lotus, Harper Collins, The BBC. I've led diverse teams as Client Director and Head of Digital with digital and brand agencies working with larger and small to medium-sized businesses. I'm a business mentor and leadership coach and I coach private individuals My qualifications BA Hons - Business and Marketing Diploma in Transformational Coaching Accredited Coach with the International Coaching Federation A trained NLP and Hypnotherapy Practitioner Registered Digital Champion with Digital Kent (an initiative of KCC) My interests Family Music - as a listener and a performer Reading - mostly non-fiction Food - eating out and cooking Cricket