Challenges to becoming a customer-focused digital enterprise include digital strategy ownership, organizational readiness, and establishing metrics to measure digital success
Improving the overall customer experience is a top business priority for companies and a main driver behind their digital transformation ambitions, according to a new study from Accenture. But the majority of businesses don’t set themselves apart yet from competitors through the digital customer experience they offer.
The study, titled “Digital Transformation in the Age of the Customer,” is based on a survey of nearly 400 decision-makers in companies globally. It was commissioned by Accenture Interactive, part of Accenture Digital, and conducted by Forrester Consulting.
The study found out that ‘improving the customer experience’ topped the list of business priorities companies have for the next 12 months. It received the most number one rankings (21 percent), followed by “growing revenues” (17 percent) and “improving differentiation” (16 percent).
The study also finds that companies are focusing on digital channels to make customer interactions more engaging: sixty-three percent are planning to enhance their online experience, 46 percent are looking to add or improve their mobile offerings, but only 39 percent want to improve their in-store experience.
“Customer experience is now clearly at the heart of digital transformation, and digital is at the center of that customer experience,” said Anatoly Roytman, managing director Accenture Interactive and global digital commerce lead. “But many companies have considerable ground to cover on their path to becoming digital enterprises. They’re challenged with setting a digital vision and strategy, getting the right people in place, and measuring digital success,” he added.
The three major challenges site by the study for becoming a customer-focused digital enterprise are, first, confusion over who sets the digital vision and strategy hampers digital transformation, as indicated in the study. Currently, ownership is divided between the chief executive officer (38 percent), chief information officer (33 percent), chief digital officer (ten percent), and chief marketing officer (eight percent). When asked who should own an organization’s digital vision and strategy, the CIO came out on top (30 percent) followed by the CEO (27 percent). The CDO and CMO lagged at 17 percent and eight percent, respectively.
Second, respondents were hesitant that their business has the right people in place to execute its digital strategy. They listed their “organization” as the part of the company that is least ready to digitally transform (64 percent) compared to technology (75 percent) and operational processes (75 percent).
Third, companies tend to worry about implementation of processes and technologies before putting in useful analytics and metrics with which to evaluate them. Fifty-seven percent of the respondents said that implementing digital technologies is critical to enabling their digital business, but only 29 percent said establishing digital metrics and measurements are.
The study recommends that to achieve differentiation through digital customer experiences, leaders from different parts of the business will need to team up even more tightly. Also, third-parties can help fill gaps even digitally mature companies will have and make it cheaper and faster for the organization to implement and execute their digital strategy. Forty-five percent already work with providers on enhancing the customer experience.
The study was commissioned by Accenture Interactive and is based on a survey Forrester Consulting conducted among 396 decision-makers with responsibility for customer experience strategy or digital initiatives in US, Canada, the UK, Germany, France, China, India, Japan, Brazil, and Mexico in May/June 2015.