As we enter the era of the digital imperative, digital transformation is an essential business progression to remain competitive in a digital world.
‘Digital transformation’ is not a buzz term
Digital transformation is a blanket expression often used to refer to the ways that digital technology can be embraced by organisations to make life easier. In doing so, customers receive improved service levels and more value is delivered. By infusing technology – such as artificial intelligence, data analytics and insights, and software programmes – into every business process, organisations can drive operational efficiency to differentiate from competitors.
End-to-end digital transformation not only results in quicker processes (internally and externally) but improved customer experiences. As a result, digital transformation is becoming the digital imperative to maintain business survival in increasingly competitive, dynamic market conditions. At this year’s Microsoft Inspire event, Microsoft Chairman and CEO, Satya Nadella, highlighted 5 digital imperatives for every organisation to ‘do more with less’:
1. Migrate to the cloud
‘Cloud’ is a term that’s becoming ingrained in everyday vocabulary – but why? Put simply, cloud computing enables global connectivity through the Internet, no matter where from or what device. Migrating to the cloud enhances accessibility and usability between all members of an organisation, driving operational efficiency and reducing costs.
Microsoft Azure’s packages are 80% less expensive than main competitors, with unique capabilities to take the hassle out of virtualisation management and SQL Server capability to simplify your cloud migration journey. Microsoft has coined Azure as ‘the world’s computer’ because of the programme’s sophisticated localisation capabilities to ensure compliance, data residency and service availability. Azure also has more Datacenter regions than any other cloud provider on the market, providing customers with quick access to services. If you would like to find out more about the latest Azure capabilities announced at Microsoft Inspire, click here.
2. Empower Fusion teams
An essential feature of successful digital transformation is the leveraging of Fusion teams: multi-disciplinary teams of developers, users, and business leaders with differing areas of expertise who come together to produce a product that meets a common goal.
Microsoft has the most complete platform to produce digital products, empowering pro and citizen developers with a range of applications to suit varying technical skill sets – including applications with low-code and no-code options such as Power Pages web builder.
3. Unify data and apply AI models
Microsoft has identified the dual challenge of getting organisational data in order and applying large-scale AI models as platforms. To combat this, Microsoft Intelligent Data Platform enables users to spend less time on managing and integrating their data state and more time on other areas to create business value. The platform also gives organisations digital agility to respond to dynamic environments and enhanced security and privacy controls to build on a trusted platform.
4. Collaborative business processes
Hybrid work is not going anywhere, therefore the ability to provide employees with a digital-first experience is key to producing connectivity and adaptability. Microsoft Viva, powered by Microsoft 365, enables this by combining; communications, learning resources, goal setting and insights in one employee engagement platform.
Furthermore, as the metaverse becomes more and more of a (mixed) reality, Microsoft has launched Mesh for Microsoft Teams – a mixed reality application enabling presence and shared experiences from anywhere, on any device. This new feature enhances the virtual collaboration experience between members of an organisation through holoportation, holographic sharing and visualisation.
5. Prioritise security
Last but certainly not least, as organisations digitally transform their processes to broaden their digital estate, enhanced security and privacy measures are critical. Cybersecurity attacks are becoming increasingly sophisticated and are targeting businesses more than ever. As a result, Microsoft integrates over 50 security product categories to minimise cost and complexity in cyber security programmes.
The most recent Microsoft security solutions provide end-to-end protections against cyber threats:
- Microsoft Entra: A combination of all Microsoft identity and access capabilities
- Microsoft Purview: The future of compliance and data governance
- Microsoft Priva: Helping your customers manage privacy
- Microsoft Defender: Defending against malicious cyber threats – this ranges from individuals to large enterprises
- Microsoft Sentinel: Cyberthreat detection software to prevent attacks.
By migrating to the Microsoft cloud, customers can benefit from the entire Microsoft stack – avoiding the hassle (and costs) involved in employing multiple vendors in their digital transformation journey. As Satya Nadella put it, “The time is now. It’s what will make the difference between organizations that thrive and those that get left behind.”
Digital transformation looks different for every organisation. Get in touch with one of our consultants today to find out how Telefónica Tech can make digital transformation work for you and propel your business forward.