This book is based on the 10-part Digital Transformation Debt series. I’ve expanded my research and recommendations, especially for the shifts that are happening post-COVID-19.

2020 – the year of the COVID-19 pandemic – changed everything. Its ripple effects will be felt for many years to come.

At the same time there have been incredible advances in digitization. We are amid a digital revolution with unprecedented innovations. The pandemic has accelerated the requirements for “Digital Transformation.” Organizations need to adopt and transform to survive and hopefully thrive.

At the core of digitization there is very much an underlying principle of “debt.” It comes originally from what is called “technical debt.” Simply, technical debt “reflects the implied cost of additional rework caused by choosing an easy solution now instead of using a better approach that would take longer.” Difficult transformative choices need to be made now – especially post-COVID-19. If an organization ignores digital transformation for “easy solutions,” the “debt” accumulates and can have disastrous consequences.

The pandemic has accelerated the accumulation of digital transformation debt! It has also provided an opportunity to thrive in the post-COVID-19 era.

What does Digital Transformation mean? What are the opportunities? What are the core digital technologies? What are the best practices? What are practical recommendations to alleviate the Digital Transformation Debt?

This book addresses Digital Transformation Debt holistically and makes recommendations as to how to alleviate the debt.

Here is the outline:

Chapter 1: The book starts with the need to transform the organizational Culture: virtualization, flattened organizations, servant leaderships - among others. The importance of Culture was accentuated in the post-COVID-19 era. Indeed, true transformation starts with Culture. One of the most archaic organizational structures that has survived decades if not centuries is the ubiquitous vertical “Org Chart.” The conventional hierarchical "Org Chart" does not inspire agility, change, or empowerment in the pre-COVID age.

Chapter 2: To thrive in this milieu, organizations need to achieve Operational Excellence and address optimizations for their processes or value streams. The emergence of Low-Code/No-Code, then, in conjunction with crucial enablers such as Robotic Process Automation, AI, and Value Stream digitization within next-generation iBPM platforms – are providing compelling incentives to realize the promise of Real-Time Lean and Six Sigma.

Chapter 3: The value streams and all operations need to be Automated. There is a spectrum of automation for all categories of work: Hyperautomation, especially through Robotic Process Automation. Intelligent Process Automation enablers used for digitizing value streams which connect customers, partners, and the entire ecosystem of organizations, are all available through technologies such as Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and intelligent Business Process Management.

Chapter 4: Software runs the world. A new category of programming Is transforming organization, especially through the emergence of Citizen Developers: various categories of Low Code/No Code platforms and tools. The new generation of application development environments is getting much easier to use, allowing anyone –most notably the younger and more tech-savvy generations – to build small and robust enterprise applications.

Chapter 5: Organizations are becoming Data-centric. Extracting Data insights to improve the enterprise is becoming critical. Citizen Data Scientist are the agents for data transformation.  The Data-centric enterprise needs to provide strategic as well as pragmatic tools for Citizen Data Scientists: from Data Lakes to Visualization to No Code Development to Machine Learning.

Chapter 6: Only the Innovators will survive. Methodologies such as Design Thinking and Minimum Viable Products best practices need to be weaved in the DNA of the organization. Also covers Design Sprints. The success of entrepreneurs and founders in startups is often contingent upon factors beyond that of innovation, marketing, and a sales strategy –for example, methodologies from Ideation to Minimum Viable Products (MVP) and then productization. Design Thinking is one such methodology that could help balance innovation with achievable execution for success.

Chapter 7: Customer behaviors have changed radically. Major shifts in Customer Experience and the powerful voice of the new generation of customers is changing all the priorities. The new generation of customers, particularly Millennials, are increasingly tech-savvy and digitally chatty. With their mobile and connected devices, they are active and continuously engaged through social interactions on various social platforms. Above all, they are demanding experiences that are a unique blend of contextual, meaningful, instantaneous, and entertaining.

Chapter 8: The world is becoming increasingly connected through IoT. Connected devices have permeated homes, businesses, cities, and governments as well Manufacturing: IIoT. The road to IoT success runs through Intelligent Process Automation of Things – connecting the consumer’s world through end-to-end value streams that orchestrates people, things, enterprise applications, and business partners.

Chapter 9: The world is also becoming Decentralized. Internet of Things is supplemented with Internet of Value through Blockchain and Decentralized applications. A Connected and Decentralized world involves humans, robots and connected devices to all leverage Blockchains – especially for inter-enterprise transactions and policies. In addition to the peer-to-peer decentralized and disintermediated recording of transactions, Blockchains also execute Smart Contracts.

Chapter 10: Digital Organizations need to balance Innovation with Best Practices. The Competency Centers with empowered roles will play a key role in governance, enablement and methodologies alleviating DTD. Digital Transformation (DX) Competency Centers (CC) need to balance DX Strategy with pragmatic Execution Best Practices – that addresses the prioritizations and objectives of the DX Strategy.

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The below video describes why this book was written.