The digital age has re-imagined the very fabric of business ushering in an era of unprecedented growth and innovation. We see 3 responses to this change. Of intent to do something about it. Of respect for the magnitude of the transformation that it warrants. Of looking away and running business as usual in fear of the unfamiliar and unpredictable. These attitudes correspond to the attitudes to the onset of Covid 19 in early 2020.
Working from home was an outlandish notion just 4 years ago, in the beginning of 2020. The year Covid 19 started to raise its ugly head, many companies were quick to start working out logistics to facilitate WFH. Others took a little longer to incorporate them. And then there were companies that denied reality till news of deaths hit the roof. In the same vein, as soon as the lock down ended, some companies eagerly returned to ‘business as usual’ with zero tolerance to hybrid work models ignoring the implications on productivity, efficiencies, costs, safety and employee choice.
As per an article published in The Economic Times in 2021, a survey by a prominent research institute revealed that in India, close to 86 per cent of the surveyed companies reported increased productivity levels since the shift to hybrid working. Over 90 per cent of Indian employers agreed that employees should be given the right to request flexible working from day one. A 2021 Gartner Survey revealed that 50% of Indian hybrid workers consider themselves more productive when working remotely.
In response, several companies completely shifted to working from home. Many others embraced the hybrid model and continue to smooth out glitches every day. And then there are those that train energies into justifying ‘business as usual’. These are typically the companies also struggling with attrition, unsettled clients and compromised revenues.
The smashing of ‘business as usual’ is apparent not just in work culture codes. It can be seen in every other facet. The avenues for revenue generation, for example, have expanded beyond what was traditionally available leading to a rethink of strategies and budget allocations. Speaking of which, ROMI (return on marketing investment) is measurable on a variety of metrics. This disrupts the usual approach to ads and branding exercises. The digital arm of marketing is speedily going from being a silo operating on the side to becoming the main hub for both marketing and branding.
Branding and marketing business as usual was about brands and businesses researching their target audience to identify clever ways of playing with emotions or rationale for profits. The tables have been turned and this system is being smashed. Today brands and businesses are being researched by people much more thoroughly than they themselves ever were researched. This has disrupted the usual notion of what determines success for a business.
Just 11 years after its release the famous “sell me this pen” scene from the 2013 film, “The Wolf of Wall Street” has lost meaning. The skill of selling anything to anyone through clever manipulation is no longer what assures business success. Why? Because the digital era has unraveled a world where it is possible to find and sell useful products to exactly those who need it, on demand from and to anywhere.. This is what has led to unprecedented growth for businesses who transformed successfully or for businesses that were born in this era.
Change, even when we stand to gain from it, is not easy to work around. Especially when it is of the magnitude that the digital age has brought on. Even where there is intent, there have been more instances of digital transformation failure. Often, because it is handled as a side operation to simply flank the main ‘business as usual’ operations. Keeping up with the new world order warrants digital transformation of business and strategy in its entirety. This demands the reinvention of a company’s culture, processes and technology. It can be a daunting process but, organisational intent and readiness makes all the difference.
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