More and more organizations are beginning to view Digital Transformation as a non-negotiable matter of survival. Digital leaders consistently outperform their peers in every industry and a number of small, agile organizations have displaced their larger more-established counterparts making some executives hot under the collar.

Fortunately the vast majority of Large Enterprise organizations understand the potential for success that can come from Digital Transformation and are taking action. Using social media, data and analytics, mobile and embedded devices, SMB's, SME's and Large Enterprise organizations are achieving their goals by transforming business models, internal operations and the customer experience through digitization.

Business leaders want real world examples of the power Digital technologies have to create better experiences and stronger brand connections for their customers before making the decision to invest dollars and time. This is something we completely understand. It can be difficult to know when to act and when to hold back when considering a large investment in new technologies. Trends are often dangerous for organizations of any size to latch onto and there is a fine line between agility and recklessness when it comes to making quick operational decisions.

This week we will dig into what new digital technologies can do to promote a better experience for both you and your customers and how partners can take advantage of all Cisco has to offer along the journey to Digital Transformation.

Wow your customers at every turn.
One of the greatest benefits for organizations that adopt digital technologies is the opportunity to truly wow users at each step of the customer journey. New digital tools are extending information collection and turning what can be overwhelming amounts of data into easily actionable knowledge. What does this mean for your customers? Digital Transformation makes it possible to hone in on customer behavioral patterns giving organizations the ability to craft an experience unique to each individual. Businesses are also now able to track and respond to customer issues in real-time giving them a level of agility in problem solving once unheard of. More data means a better more tailored experience for your customers and real-time problem solving mean your teams can spend more time innovating and less time addressing potential issues.

Streamline, update and improve business operations.
Digital Transformation allows organizations to adopt processes that promote a proactive and agile stance, giving them the ability to develop new innovations and adapt quickly to changing conditions. Streamlined operations save money and time while allowing teams to be more efficient and productive. This kind of agility provides a critical advantage over competitors who have not seized the digital opportunity and are quickly falling behind. The success stories from Partners and their customers who have invested in digital technologies and practices are truly astounding and show unparalleled growth in nearly all aspects of their businesses.

"Digitization of products, services, and business processes allows disruptive players to deliver the same value a traditional competitor provides— and even augment it—without having to reproduce the conventional value chain. In fact, that is the objective of digital disruption: to provide superior value to the end customer—either a consumer or another business—while avoiding the capital investments, regulatory requirements, and other impediments of 'encumbered incumbents'." (Cisco)

The time to act is now.
Recent studies have shown C-suite executives across the United States and Europe believe that within the next ten years many leading Fortune 500 businesses will no longer exist. Most are worried about competition from disruptive organizations and their fears are not without merit. Former Cisco CEO John Chambers, during a 2015 panel discussion made a handful of ominous statements surrounding the future prospects of many organizations saying "40% of businesses in this room, unfortunately, will not exist in a meaningful way in 10 years. 70% of companies will attempt to go Digital but only 30% of those will succeed. If I'm not making you sweat, I should be." While Chambers words point to a bleak outlook for a good percentage of businesses the sentiment is intended to inspire action from executives not to paralyze them.

In a 2015 report, Cisco in partnership with the Global Center for Digital Business Transformation found that despite the obvious warning signs for businesses slow to adopt new digital technologies and processes, digital disruption was "not seen as worthy of board-level attention in about 45 percent of companies" and that "43 percent of companies either do not acknowledge the risk of digital disruption or, have not addressed it sufficiently." Fortunately in the last two years business leaders have begun to realize the need to act if they wish to remain relevant and operational and are taking proactive steps to transform digitally before it is too late.

Cisco has the tools to reimagine business in the Digital Era.
Cisco offers a range of solutions to help you and your customers become a digital enterprise and realize the rewards of digitization. From transforming cities through Internet of Things technology, to building systems that rapidly detect and contain cyber threats, to improving manufacturing through automation that decreases downtime and enhances efficiency, Cisco offers the tools to turn every organizations digital vision into a reality.

"Only Cisco provides the foundation for Digital Transformation by bringing everything together into a simple, intelligent, automated and secure infrastructure."
(Cisco)

Cisco Digital Network Architecture
Cisco DNA (Digital Network Architecture) takes the digitized world and gives "businesses both a roadmap to digitization and a path to recognize immediate benefits of network automation, assurance and security (Rob Soderbery, Cisco). Cisco DNA is an open, extensible, software-driven architecture that rapidly delivers services to enable IT to innovate faster. Cisco Digital Network Architecture allows for reduced cost and complexities, lowers risk, and helps businesses meet compliance.

"Organizations must begin to look at digital holistically and transform by applying digital thinking across everything they do -- how they win, serve, and retain customers; how they operate internal processes; and how they source business services. In short, they must become a digital business"
(Forrester)

We are in the midst of a monumental shift in the ways people work, live, play and interact. Digital Transformation is creating new business models and transforming the experience of customers, employees and executives, permanently altering the way work gets done and enhancing productivity and efficiency. Digital tools are building more dynamic and agile businesses while opening the doors to nearly unlimited opportunities for positive outcomes. For organizations that work to disrupt themselves by adopting new digital technologies and transforming business operations and practices, the potential for success is virtually unlimited. Businesses that take a "wait and see" approach may find themselves struggling to compete; many will pass into obscurity.

If you'd like to know more about Digital Transformation and how we can help you and your customers take advantage of all Cisco has to offer along the path to digitization get in touch or leave a comment below.