Industrial Automation Magazine India

The digitisation journey it is not one-size-fits-all

Published on : Wednesday 23-10-2019

Digitalisation is imperative but enterprises are still struggling with implementation. How can begin the process?
Most organisations have attempted the digital journey without a proper plan and a roadmap; many a times looking at just a thin slice of their operations. It is imperative to get the basics right. Digitalisation can definitely enable better decision making by improving visibility and thereby improving efficiency, optimising costs and efforts and more. Most importantly, it has to be about the core business;

For many organisations, the stumbling block is the silos, which ironically, digitalisation seeks to break. Is this a classic chicken and egg story?
Yes, silos are typically stumbling blocks in digitalisation or other initiatives. In some cases departments within organisations are competing to prove their adoption of digitalisation is higher. There have been early successes in areas like sales (field force digitisation), HR (attendance, manpower productivity), safety, security, operations which have set the ball rolling. As a natural process there will be some initiatives in silos and then would converge. Even if you start with a proper digital strategy and a plan there will be some catch up internally. The key is to be able to take the initiatives from the silos and combine them into those that benefit the business overall.

Is joining one of the digital platforms the only way for an average enterprise?
Joining or using a ready digital platform maybe convenient for some organisations but it is not mandated. In the digitisation journey it is not 'one size fits all'. Start with what you need and then see if you need a full-fledged platform and then look for one. There are organisations who have been able to build their own platform and it does require plenty of time and investment. Both have their pros and cons which need evaluation in the first place. Start with what your business needs and then see if you need a full-fledged platform and then look for one.

Often, companies get bogged down in discussing technologies rather than outcomes. How should an effective CTO deal with this?
This is classical siloed approach or trial approach. The CTO must look at the business objectives, take a sign off from business teams and then see what technology is required or most effective. We need to see technology as a tool set not as an outcome; looking through the business lens is most critical, more so for a digitalisation initiative that could have far reaching consequences.

Finally, is multiplicity of vendors creating conflict in the process?
In the digitisation era there are bound to be multiple vendors and they may be working parallel within the same organisation. It is imperative to slot the vendors as per their strength and value proposition. Particular vendor may have the best platform or technology, someone may have the best enterprise digitisation, someone maybe strong in operations digitisation, and someone will be strong at a consulting led model. My suggestion is go top down, first management buy in, second business buy in and then digitisation can do wonders.

Nimish Danani leads the west region for India Go-to-Market for Digital Operations at Hitachi. He comes with a mix of technology and consulting experience. He has 17+ years of diverse experience in multiple roles across Consulting, Client Engagement and Business Development. In the past, Nimish has worked for over 7 years with technology companies like IBM and Cisco handling key sectors like Manufacturing, Oil & Gas. He has been part of BMGI in the field of Operations Consulting (Lean, Six Sigma transformations) and has a sound understanding of operations and the challenges faced. Prior to joining Hitachi Consulting he was co-lead of the IoT Practice at KPMG India. Nimish had also been associated with start-ups in the e-commerce and enterprise mobility space. He has co-authored white paper IOT – the Indian Context and has been a session chair and a speaker at multiple forums including CII, Digital India, IDC amongst other.