By Mousumi Behari, Avionos Digital Strategy Practice Lead
Time. There is never enough of it, and when is it ever the “right” time? Working with clients and prospects, we often hear, “We want to do a strategy, but it’s not the right time for us now.” The truth is, the best time to start a strategy project is NOW, especially if you are planning any type of digital journey. At Avionos, we like to refer to any digital transformation work as a journey, because, as technology evolves, so do your customer needs. There will never be an ultimate “destination” because platforms and preferences are always changing. A sound strategy must include a roadmap for what you want to accomplish in the future. The best strategies aren’t set in stone but should be “directionally correct.” They need to provide a solid outline for the requirements and tools needed along the way. It is the North Star that guides your people, process and technology plans throughout your digital journey. Before embarking on the journey, there are a few things to consider:
- Why Are you Going On this Journey? Understand what you are trying to fix. What are the current pain points? What are you trying to achieve? Why? Are you looking at it through the lens of people, process and technology? Identify your business objectives that may be both internally facing and external with the voice of the customer.
- Make sure everyone is on board: Talk to a cross-functional audience. Make sure they agree on the big picture. Find commonalities between groups and even disparities. Often the best strategies are those that bridge the gap between marketing and technology. Be careful of leaving your cognitive bias at the door.
- Create Checkpoints: How will you measure your success? Are the objectives achievable? In strategies these are your key performance indicators (KPIs) that will give you the ability to measure your progress over time.
- Be Adaptable: Every flight plan has alternate airports. Be willing to understand why something isn’t working and be able to nimbly change course on your journey. Set processes in place where you can realize quick wins even if you have to slightly pivot to meet a larger initiative.
And then… get started! The best strategies focus on customer-centric needs and then look at the technology and internal processes needed to enable the best digital experience. At Avionos we create strategies across varied industries with a forward-thinking approach and methodology. Take a look at our JLL and Ulta case studies to see exactly how we’ve helped other industry leaders with their digital transformations. Let us help you achieve a first-class experience along your digital journey! 
