How IT and IC Can Partner Effectively to Ensure Successful Digital Transformation

Digital transformation continues to be a key priority across many industries and organizations in 2023.

When successful implementation is known to improve efficiency and productivity, the employee experience, company reputation, and sustainability, it’s obvious to see why.

But it’s not as simple as sourcing and rolling out the latest tech capabilities or digital platforms. There are significant challenges to overcome to ensure any digital transformation is successfully adopted by your employees.

Here are six ways that IT and Internal Communications can work together to ensure any digital transformation effort is adopted successfully, and the business benefits are realized quickly.

# 1. Have a clear and shared vision
It’s fundamental that everyone involved is clear on why the transformation is required and what the benefits are for both the business and employees—this starts with IT and IC coming together to understand the desired and expected outcomes themselves.

Having a shared vision and understanding of how the transformation aligns with the organizational objectives and values is a critical first step in establishing trust and support amongst employees that these changes are both necessary and a positive step forward for the organization.

# 2. Understand and respect the employee change journey
Change can be exciting. It can also be daunting, worrying, and stressful to many. However, combining the tech expertise of IT and the people-centric know-how and networks of IC creates a recipe for implementation success.

Any concerns about change can be massively reduced if employees feel they are supported through the process. This starts with having a solid internal communication strategy and plans for the campaign that fully considers the change journey that employees will go on.

# 3. Engage your employees early on
Employees will make or break the digital transformation process. No matter how incredible or transformational your platform or tech promises to be, it will be a flop if employees are not engaged early on.

This is where IT can really leverage IC’s people connections and expertise in employee engagement. Inform your employees, involve them in the whole process, and ask for their feedback.

# 4. Demonstrate leadership support
Leaders from the C-Suite to first-line managers need to buy into any digital transformation, not just personally speaking, but because they will be key ambassadors and role models of any adoption and behavioral change across the organization.

They need to walk the talk. IT and IC must therefore work together to ensure all leaders are aware of what’s changing, why, and when, and that they’re enabled to build their tech capabilities and feel confident in using it or at least understand the terminology.

Then they’ll be well established to become change champions, and better decision makers and lead the rest of the organization forward on its digital transformation journey.

# 5. Share personal stories
Nothing resonates more effectively than a personal story. Weave personal stories and real-life examples of how employees are adopting the new technology or behavioral changes and other employees will more easily understand what’s expected of them.

Share success stories of how the transformation has improved a colleague’s work-life or role and don’t be afraid to share employee challenges or doubts about the change and how they overcame it.

Be human, relatable, and honest in your communication story-telling and you’ll convert the biggest nay-sayer to an advocate in no time.

# 6. Become a partnership
IT and IC have such different areas of expertise, but combined they create a partnership powerhouse. Two heads are better than one, as the saying goes! Share, collaborate, seek to understand one another, and leverage your skills for the greater good and any digital transformation will be all the more effectively adopted than if you didn’t.