–Jenna Delport | IT News Africa
The economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic on global businesses has sparked universal uncertainty and panic. Some industries are more accustomed to rapidly-changing conditions than others, which find themselves at sea, particularly when it comes to relying more heavily on digital.
Pragmattica consulting founder, Amanda Bester believes that there are plenty of lessons to be learnt from the world of digital media and digital-first SMME’s, for those businesses currently in the digital space in their fight for survival.
“Many companies are finding that the pandemic is driving their digital transformation more quickly and effectively than their CTO’s or CEO’s ever did,” says Bester. “That may seem flippant, but the lesson is that many businesses shouldn’t have had to wait for a massive global disruption to dictate a new strategy for them – the need to incorporate a more digital-focussed model has been there for years and a lack of preparation has been shown up by recent global events”.
Bester believes that strategy drives digital transformation, and she suggests five practical strategies that should be considered when approaching ways to adapt your business for the digital world:
Consider outsourced expertise to help kickstart your digital transformation journey. Many companies have halted new job hires, but that doesn’t always mean that the job position they required is no longer needed within their corporation – a practical solution would be to make use of independent contractors or online freelancers for the short term.
Those businesses still choosing non-digital marketing solutions will no doubt experience a rapid decline in brand awareness and sales. Now is the time to focus your marketing resources and investment on a digital strategy.
Keep your communication at an all-time high – both internally and with customers. The scramble to employ tools such as Zoom and others continues whilst businesses adapt to the new normal. Think of the communications on all of your marketing platforms, including your website – it might be a good time to explore chatbot integrations especially when it comes to customer support.
Leadership to drive change management through digital transformation is more important than ever. Organisational leadership needs to be all encompassing and from all levels within the organisation. For employees, leading upward is a way to support management, and at times like this, it is just as vital.
Some employees may be without immediate work during this lockdown and you may find yourself with some free time on your hands. Now is a great opportunity to upskill yourself by making use of skills development through online training. Don’t underestimate the power of upskilling your digital skills during this time in order to futureproof your career.
COVID-19 hasn’t only forced businesses to look at new ways to communicate with and sell to their customers – it’s fundamentally changed the way they have had to function internally, too.
Remote working is now the norm under lockdown and all in-person business development meetings have been cancelled, resulting in a snowball effect on growing new business and revenue streams.
The scramble to acclimatise to the new remote working order and factoring in the challenges this presents to their sustainability has forced many leadership teams to re-think the way they do things on every level – and how their teams meet deadlines.
Bester believes that the new order – or at least the order that is going to help many businesses survive the effects of the pandemic – is collaboration.
She says it’s not a stretch to believe that the togetherness fostered between entire populations, and between countries around the world in supporting each other in the face of the virus can be translated to the business world, too.
Related posts
Global | Didi Angaye Earns A Distinction Award, Another Feather To The Cap
On a bright sunny day, in the month of July, 2024, the prestigious Staffordshire University located in the West Midlands of England organised its Award giving and Graduation ceremony to honour graduates of various educational programmes and courses which it offers. Didi Timipah Angaye,…
Olu Of Warri Bags Award In UK, Wife Advocates Return To Cultural Values
The Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III, has received the Leadership and Community Development award at the 14th African Achievers Awards (AAA), which took place at the Parliament House, United Kingdom. The award was presented by a member of the House of Lords, London, Rt…
Brit Awards | Asake, Burna Boy And Other ‘New Cats’ Get Nominations
Nigerian singers Burna Boy, Asake, and Rema have been nominated for the 2024 Brit Awards. The nomination list for the annual music awards show was released on Wednesday 25, January 2024. Burna Boy and Asake made the ‘Best International Artiste’ category, while ‘Calm…
Brit Awards 2024 | The Full List Of Artist(e)s
This year’s Brits nominees have been revealed ahead of the ceremony in London in March. Dua Lipa is the first star confirmed to perform at the event – but how many awards is she up for? Musicians including Raye, Central Cee, J Hus and Blur are also…
Despite Increased Transfer Volume And Institutional Adoption, Bitcoin Stays Below $60K
Bitcoin’s price hovers around $59K as increased transfer volume indicates a stable demand among investors. CryptoQuant data indicates buyers are absorbing the panic selling pressure around the $57K price level. Bitwise’s latest report suggests that institutional investors are still buying Bitcoin despite the recent price…
Traders Focus On Meme Coins As Bitcoin, Ethereum And XRP Erase Recent Gains
Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP dip under key support levels at $60,000, $2,600 and $0.60 respectively. Tron ecosystem’s meme launchpad SunPump generates over $1.1 million in revenue within twelve days of its launch. Tron network daily revenue reached a record high of $26.83 million on Tuesday,…
Top 10 Cryptocurrencies To Invest in January 2024
-Michael Adams From Bitcoin and Ethereum to Dogecoin and Tether, there are thousands of different cryptocurrencies, making it overwhelming when you’re first getting started in the world of crypto. To help you get your bearings, these are the top 10 cryptocurrencies based on their market…
The Risk And Reward Of ChatGPT In Cybersecurity
Juan is an experienced CTO with a demonstrated history of working in the computer and network security industry. He is an information technology professional skilled in SAP and Oracle applications, computer forensics, vulnerabilities research, IPS/IDS and information security. Unless you’ve been on a retreat in…