A common thread in all of our market research reports is that several industries lack the culture required to make the most of the digital solutions, which is why stakeholders fail to extract the most from it. Shortcomings in the digital culture in the form of risk aversion, inadequacy in understanding the customer requirements, and lack of means to address the cultural problems have emerged as a major impediment in digital effectiveness. Also, when seen from a long-term perspective, cultural obstacles do have a negative impact on the economic performance of that industry or organization.
Digital effectiveness and cultural loopholes
Contrary to popular belief it is not the lack of IT infrastructure, funding, or understanding of the latest digital trends which is affecting the performance of the digital solutions. Rather, it is the trend of risk aversion, and the fear of the unknown which stops several stakeholders from wading into deeper waters in a geographic area. Risk aversion also leads to under-investment in the market along with delayed response to the changing customer needs.
As the cultural angle is often ignored by stakeholders, they also miss out on providing a consistent experience to their customers as the various touch points aren’t well integrated. Digital effectiveness thus is drastically compromised due to various loopholes in understanding the specific cultural requirements of the target audience.
Can digital solutions solve cultural problems?
The main problem lies in the fact that most executives believe that cultural differences and loopholes can be overcome over a period of time. While not completely wrong, this idea leaves a lot of scope for delay and gaps to widen. Thus, it is recommended that digital solutions be used intelligently and designed in such a manner that it directly addresses the cultural loopholes in the business plan.
The laxity in addressing concerns of the customers, the usual attitude of risk aversion, and rigid business framework, need to be overcome for the industry to flourish at a global level. Right from placing the customer in the middle of the entire business plan, to adopting an attitude of calculated risk, and building a dedicated workforce, inventiveness is sure to boost the performance of digital solutions irrespective of the area of work.
Digital solutions and cultural requirements have emerged as two defining forces, which when united in the right manner is sure to provide great solutions at the local as well as global levels.
Technavio is a leading market research firm which specializes in understanding the practical details of an industry. Its reports on ICT, automotive, and consumer & retail analyses the various factors responsible for growth in the global market.
