It is common knowledge that a company’s digital transformation is crucial for productivity and efficiency purposes, and it could be just as good for advancing corporate sustainability matters.
The digital transformation of organizations has for long been a crucial task to pursue and develop across global markets, as it has proven to be the key to efficiency and productivity when approached correctly.
Another very important task on top of corporate tables today is that of sustainability, because the latter is just as crucial for efficiency and productivity, only this way everything is done under the umbrella of social and environmental responsibility.
And so the question we ask ourselves is how can business pair these two elements together (corporate sustainability and the digital transformation) and make the best of both worlds.
The importance of undergoing a digital transformation
The digitalization of organizations has proven to be beneficial many times in many ways. As the world turned more technological, companies have had to adapt. Some simply by developing websites, and others through more complex and holistic processes.
All in all, digitalization has brought many benefits by, for example, bringing data recollection and analysis to a whole new level, or by enabling companies to further personalize costumer services and therefore increase satisfaction and improve user experience.
It has also, in many occasions, limited human error and made inner and outer communications and collaborations more agile and easy. The list of benefits goes on and on, and thus, the importance of undergoing a digital transformation.
Engage employees in the sustainability strategy
However, as most things in life, and in business, the digital transformation of a company won’t magically or naturally bring more revenue, productivity or efficiency, there is a tiny bit more complexity to this matter than meets the eye.
And unfortunately, the reality is that many companies fail to embed the digital transformation successfully in their organization, mainly because they tend to implement digital processes merely in a superficial level.
Often time companies might develop apps or other technological tools to help ease out certain tasks and activities in the company, but fail to structurally and culturally embed this onto their workforce. A common occurrence, for example, is that of employees lacking the necessary skills to enjoy such digitalization benefits.
So how can businesses make sure they are actually setting themselves for success when undergoing the digital transformation?
How to successfully implement digitalization
The key to a successful digital transformation is change management. Not only should companies go deeper into company culture and structure to make sure it is equipped for new technologies, but they should also prioritize their employees’ necessary skill set to make the best out of these digital tools.
In this regard, having a holistic approach and understanding of what new technologies can bring into the corporate table is essential. This will ensure that the digital transformation benefitting one area doesn’t actually become an obstacle for another one.
The second most important thing to remember is that progress can be slow and small but not less important. A common mistake is for companies to focus on big and fast gains that most times are bound to fail because they are too unrealistic to company capabilities and adaptability.
Corporate sustainability and the digital transformation
Now that we have understood the reality behind undergoing a digital transformation successfully, we can begin to approach the idea of making corporate sustainability a part of it all; because just as any other corporate process, sustainability can also be benefitted by digitalization.
One of the main priorities for sustainability leaders today is that of accurate reporting of the sustainable practices of the organization. Therefore, data collection and analysis for further improvement of ESG matters is absolutely imperative to business success and regulatory responsibilities.
On the other hand, digitalization could also serve as a means to align all corporate efforts towards the same sustainability goals and purpose. This is, the right digital tools could help all departments and employees work towards achieving global corporate sustainability goals.
Engage employees in the sustainability strategy
In DoGood, we aim to simplify the complex web of sustainability objectives for companies by offering a platform that translates the high-level ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) objectives into actionable tasks for every single employee.
Then, each employee not only knows how to make an impact but also feels empowered to contribute meaningfully to the greater sustainable strategy.
No more vague directives. No confusion. DoGood automates the process, making it seamless for the workforce to know precisely what steps to take.