Times and seasons exist to capture the true impact and essence of the progression of humankind. More so, it tallies the spiral- ing pace of the developing nature of man, weighing it against the inherent dogmas individuals strive to tear down and build up. Humans are in a constant state of improvement and the current dispensation is for the technologically savvy man who has both edges of his sword sharpened to navigate the nuances of life and career.
The turbo-speed evolvement of things can get a tad scary, and for both businesses and individuals who are not quick on their feet and even smarter in the heads, they might end up at the bottom of the food chain and merely described as ‘failures’ who sat on their hunches and watched life happen.
In the business circle, it is even more ruthless as the competition isn’t merely one be- tween company rivals but an ‘unseen’ entity whose impact is still forceful and disruptive.
Technology has for years, redesigned more than just the plans and strategies of businesses, but has forced them to be flexible, not just in their practices, but also receptive to the demands of the time. In this age and time, the digitally adept and savvy companies are the ones raking in the millions of dollars and are the go-to for millennials who reckon they better under- stand their vibe and needs. Believe it or not, there is an imaginary line, segregating the open-minded businesses and the narrow-minded ones – in the tech space, they are called the digital natives and native analogs.
Native Analog and Digitals, Issue of Old Versus New?
The insistence for digitization is nothing new; it was well known that it was a sink-or-swim initiative even way back in the automated age. But what was urgent then is critical now, especially with AI now creeping its way into every aspect of business, thereby blaring the lines between real and fake, and technology as a whole evolving at a careering pace; the digital clarion call can no longer be unheeded. Native Analogs who are basically CEOs and businesses and fall within this category across the world during the last stages of the pandemic were urging a return to the office. Their default world is in-person, and anything else feels like a poor imitation.
On the other hand, Native Digitals who make up Millennials and Gen Zers born between the early 1980s to as recently as the 2010s are dictating the pace and trends in the real life and business environment. Team members who are Native Digitals roll their eyes at the argument that they can’t function at a high level remotely. They’ve been using digital technology since before they could walk or speak. It’s as if their whole lives have been preparing them for this moment. Although there isn’t a formalized competition between the two, enough conversations have gone on, particularly on the strong case for digitally savvy companies to thrive.
Deviating from the Norm, Going Absolutely Digital
For years, digital transformation has been the focus for organizations looking to gain competitive advantages and modernize their processes and technology, with the goal of becoming digital businesses where value creation is based on the use of technologies for processes, products, services, and experiences. Now that the digital business era has fully arrived, companies are seeking new digital revenue streams, while digitizing operations to reduce costs and increase efficiency. When it comes to their organization design, digital natives have had an advantage in the digital age: they have not needed to transition at scale from legacy systems and ways of working. The structures, roles, capabilities and resources needed to continuously experiment, learn and adapt have been embedded in their organizational DNA. They have built a continuous cycle of digital innovation into their business models, enabling them consistently to out-grow their competitors, capture exist- ing markets and create new ones, and continue to attract talent and investment – even while not making a profit.
In contrast, non-digitally native organizations have turned to ‘digital transformation’ programs and projects. Due to their size and complexity, many established companies have taken an incremental approach to transforming the organization. However, by ‘doing’ digital rather than ‘being’ digital, the full benefits of digital transformation have often not been realized, or not at the expected pace.
Applying ‘Biztech’ to Mine Gold
Each era has its own unique way of productively raking in profits, especially for businesses who position themselves to receive such measure of harvest. According to McKinsey, Digitally Native Brands (DNBs) are attracting significant investor attention these days, and for good reason. DNBs make up an increasing share of disruptive players in the market, comprising 15 percent of the new unicorns funded in 2020, up from 10 percent in 2019 and 5 percent in 2018.
They are growing, on average, at triple the rate of overall e-commerce, while the fastest-growing among them have scaled from $50 million in revenues to $1 billion in four to eight years.
“The most successful consumer-facing brands, including food-delivery apps, tech-enabled exercise equipment, and hair-coloring systems, are innovative category disruptors that enjoy intense customer loyalty. DNBs’ online origins give them two important competitive advantages: deep knowledge of their customer base and extensive control over the customer file.”
In the digital dispensation businesses find themselves in, whether they have a product, service, or a product-service combination to offer, what sets them apart is the fact that brand owners know exactly who their customers are, what online behavior led them to their initial contact with the brand, and what they’re likely to buy next. When businessmen have a full grasp on the handle of this revelation, it progressively creates opportunities to build deep and lasting relationships with customers. It’s an advantage that can carry over even if, later in their life cycle.
Overriding Tech Challenges, Adoping Digital Tech Infrastructure
Despite the near foolproof nature of native digitals, there are some challenges it equally encounters. The challenge established enterprises face in their digital transformation is around their cloud transformation journey. When it comes to this, established enterprises have historically invested money in building on-premises infrastructure to suit their needs. That notwithstanding, depending primarily on this infrastructure slows down progress.
Digital natives on the other breath who were “born on the cloud” build very little when it comes to tech infrastructure and prefer borrowing from outside sources. All of these digital native tools are “plug and play,” which have allowed cloud-native companies to move much faster when it comes to deploying new applications leveraging AI technologies.
VentureBeats believe that scalable technology approach allows these companies to constantly have access to the latest and greatest technology. Another benefit is not having to worry about challenging infrastructure issues. Digital natives’ cloud infrastructures not only give them simplified IT operations, but allow them to focus on more important issues, such as deploying and integrating new systems. Just as importantly, they can focus on keeping customer data safe.
Established enterprises can leverage their expertise and industry knowledge while embracing a more DNO-like model. Tech leaders in established companies understand the challenges with new technology solutions, which allows them to anticipate any complexity and understand how the new technology will integrate with existing systems. A scalable technology infrastructure allows companies to build and buy their digital platform to best suit their needs.
Innovation, the Prime Game changer
In a positive sign of change, the executive frame of mind is starting to shift as leaders embrace innovation ahead of stability. According to the 2022 AWS C-Suite Report, when asked to rank their top business priorities, 52% of executives selected growth-focused priorities, while only 38% chose to prioritize stability-focused objectives. With this, VentureBeats asserts that many established companies can be overrun with processes that may limit creativity. Many of the leaders at these companies are also incentivized to lead large teams of employees, creating additional friction that limits agility and ultimately threatens their success in digital transformation.
“As inherently leaner organizations, digital natives have less friction by way of leaner, looser processes that allow work to get done more quickly. With this smaller size, DNOs can even experiment more often. They find great value in small but continuous innovation through faster cycle times during experimentation.”
Digital natives are mainly taking advantage of open innovation to drive better outcomes. According to recent research by the IBM Institute for Business Value, organizations embracing open innovation have a 59% higher rate of revenue growth compared to those that don’t. A culture steeped in innovation enables increased collaboration both internally through cross team collaboration and externally by harnessing the collective value of employees, partners, vendors and customers to drive innovation and growth.
Meaningful growth for especially companies desiring to make global impact is all about flexibility to position themselves to strategically win on all fronts. By implication, the Native Analog world is fading like a sunset making way for a newer and more development-oriented native. If businesses want to lead after the sun sets, then they need to start thinking about what life and business will look like in a Native Digital world, and how they can adequately prepare and meet up its growing demands today.