For some reason, media outlets and blogs have been overflowing with posts about digitalization, and have been for the past few months—at least if my eyes aren’t deceiving me. The only thing I can bring myself to think is: My God, did you just figure this out now?
The fact that so much is being written about digitalization in blogs and trade publications means that somewhere behind it all there is an entire cohort of consultants who want to make money. No offense intended—of course people should make a living, and of course they should try to draw attention to their product. But I would argue that there is a rather big “but” here. If you are only now starting to talk about making your company digital, or if you are selling some kind of help with that, doesn’t it feel a bit late?
Of course, even a tired old industrial company must be allowed to take a step forward, and of course it’s reasonable to evolve even if you’re doing it late. What rubs me the wrong way is that I suspect that somewhere behind all these articles, someone is promising gold and green forests. Becoming “digital” today will not work miracles—your competitors have been there for a long time already. It’s like, at the age of fifty, considering a hockey career and starting with: “Maybe I should try visiting the ice rink sometime.” You’re not even at the point where you can let go of the boards, because you haven’t even made it to them yet.
The bottom line: yes, of course you should evolve—digitally as well—but don’t expect miracles. While Peter Forsberg is flying around on the ice, and has been doing so for a very long time, it’s time for you to find your way to the boards and hang on there, so that sooner or later you can let go and venture out onto the ice.
