Why don’t we just say something else?
First of all – if you have a good suggestion for another phrase to use instead, please please please note it in the comments here. An alternative term would do the business world a real service.
(Note: answers containing “Agile” or “agility” will not be considered. The Agile/agile debate is its own black hole, swallowing meaning and ideas at interstellar speed)
But at the moment there’s a good reason why we don’t just switch up the language and stop driving everyone to distraction.
And that’s that “digital” and “transformation” are the least worst words for the still somewhat poorly defined ideas we are trying to convey.
We don’t really know the end result of the many, many ways technology is reshaping the world. We haven’t seen it yet. That’s why we throw “digital” around so much – it’s a blanket term for a transition we can’t really shape in our minds yet.
And for all our research, we still don’t have the best understanding on what really causes organizations to fundamentally change. We know leaders are important. We know incentives are key. We know communications are critical.
But how these diverse aspects add up to a greater shift remains fluid – a cocktail that is re-mixed every time. Transformation is a moving target – moving so fast that it can feel like chasing a ghost.
3 ways to do better when speaking about digital transformation
While the deep nature of “digital” and “transformation” remains elusive, we are unlikely to get better words.
So what can we do in the interim? Here are a few suggestions:
1. Talk about what you’re talking about. Take a minute and re-center on what you actually want to discuss before you spit out “digital transformation.” Is the subject on the table actual technologies or techniques (AI, data analytics, etc.)? Is the subject change management or wholesale culture change? Are you just talking about your leadership needing to be 20 percent hipper?
If your end goal is indeed to get your CFO to transition from a suit jacket to a fleece vest on Fridays, calling that “digital transformation” is pure noise pollution. If your end goal is to introduce your team to the benefits of robotic process automation, positioning the topic as “digital transformation” is like renaming the song “New York, New York”, “General MidAtlantic Region.” Specifics are more engaging and more accurate.
[ Read also: 12 bad communication habits to break in IT. ]
2. Use the term, but work with others in the conversation to define it. I see smart leaders use this technique all the time, and it really accelerates the conversation. “For me, digital transformation around here really centers on a better flow of data into the field and back – do you agree?”
You can also flip this one when you see someone bandying the term around wantonly: “By digital transformation, you seem to mean installing a foosball table….do I have that right?”
3. Think about when and why you’re producing [synonym for male of the cow family’s waste product]. I read a wonderful quote recently: "For any given topic, there is a gap between the supply of what we actually know and the demand for what we feel we need to know. Everything that fills this gap is bullsh*t."
What a great explanation – and a helpful nudge to think about every time you start to say “digital transformation.” Are you using an indistinct phrase because you think you should know something…but don’t? If so, get real and talk about what you do and don’t know (effectively, a combination of the first and second strategies in this list).
It’s a simple equation, really: Reduce your use of the term “digital transformation,” and deal with fewer irritated co-workers. Tackling the big-and-small picture impacts of a world where technology often moves faster than our ability to grasp it can actually be an energizing and ultimately joyful task.
To paraphrase Gloria Estefan, don’t let the words get in the way.
[ Editor's note: This article originally appeared on LinkedIn, "Shut up about digital transformation!" ]
Comments
Hilarious but unfortunately so true. Great article!!
Good article and fun to read. As for a suggestion / alternative to the term "digital transformation" how about "applied innovation"? Of course the word innovation is also loaded. We need a term that expresses a smart and thoughtful effort to bring about a change that dives a meaningful benefit for a business by leveraging technology and the latest best practices.
As a male over 50, I get a yearly physical. When I am getting one type of examination, the word digit (as in finger) has a much different meaning. So using the word digital seems like a less than ideal word to describe a technology update (that's a much better expression IMHO...) Someone pointed out that the word digital is so 1980's/1990's.
This is a really well written article and good argument. I just disagree with the conclusions. Thanks!
Your "debunked" 70% failure rate, is probably a matter of rounding. You're saying 1/3 succeed, then saying that's a 50-60% failure rate. Actually, the 2/3 failure would be closer to 66%, which readily rounds up to 70%. Add on top of that the possibility that the percentage of failures might actually *be* between 50-60%, which someone then made a shorthand "1/3 success" rate statement of.
It's a matter of how one states the numbers, etc. Steve Savitzky did a song on the IT/management distortion of reporting up the chain (kind of like the game "telephone") https://lyrics.fandom.com/wiki/Steve_Savitzky:Mushrooms
thank you very much for this nice and informative post. to be honest, i was planning to write about this topic and i intend to post a link to this wonderful article once i have it done. i learned myself few other things i never thought about. the highlights for me is that the word digital which is playing a prominent role in any firm and the transformation has achieved more in this article.
kind regards:
Pruthvi [www.factocert.com]