Why is "digital business transformation" still so difficult?
In many companies, there is still a misunderstanding about what "digital transformation" really means. And yes, I am referring here to "digital (business) transformation" and not just to digitalisation and certainly not to digitisation (see Digitalisation, digitisation and digital transformation - what's the difference?)
Many company managers still see "digital transformation" as something that happens "as part of IT". But "digital transformation" essentially has nothing to do with IT.
It is true that the "digital transformation" utilises IT as one of the enablers for business transformation and a strong focus is highly desirable.
But a CIO usually talks about "technology: Infrastructure, back-bone, TCO, DevOps, stability", whereas a CDO should be more concerned with 'people': culture, HR, change management, new business models, agility".
Depending on the industry in which the company operates, IT can also be regarded as a commodity/non-strategy and report to a CFO (=> strong focus on operating costs).
However, the "digital (business) transformation" and therefore the CDO must play a strategic role in the future growth of the company. This role must therefore dominate the management team and be strongly orientated towards the strategy defined by the Executive Board.
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