Digital Acceleration and Innovation
THRIVE IN THE NEW ERA OF DIGITAL DISRUPTION BY HARNESSING THE HUMAN ELEMENT
WHAT’S YOUR DIGITAL STRATEGY?
Emerging technology, rising customer expectations, changing consumer behaviors, shifting business models and other forces are creating remarkable opportunities and challenges in the new era of digital disruption.
Our research shows that most companies are struggling to keep pace with the speed of disruption and that their digital transformation efforts are under-delivering or failing to achieve their objectives. To switch from defense to offense, drive digital transformation and create a culture of continuous innovation, organizations have to focus on the human element – leaders, teams and culture– to thrive and build true digital advantage for the future.
OUR APPROACH
We work closely with senior leaders to help them shape their organization’s approach to human capital and deliver high-impact innovation and digital acceleration through five key stages:
Dream Big
Define the ambition to digitize the business and become a disruptor – grounded in the external innovation and technology landscape
Look in the Mirror
Assess the digital readiness of the company and its leaders and identify enablers and blockers of innovation and their digital ambition
Design for the Future
Develop a digital acceleration playbook that will allow the organization to evolve toward a two-speed organizational model that balances both big “I” and little “i” innovation
Make it Happen
Engage the organization in implementing an integrated, digital acceleration playbook that aligns the organization, process, talent and culture to create digital advantage
Make it Last
Create a culture of continuous innovation and digital disruption that becomes embedded in the core DNA of the organization
Our approach is grounded in Unstoppable Performance Leaders research with our groundbreaking META (Mobilize, Execute and Transform with Agility) framework, which focuses on how leaders, teams and top organizations can accelerate performance to outperform their peers.
Also informing our approach are the six rules of Goliath’s Revenge: How Established Companies Turn the Tables on Digital Disruptors, co-authored by Scott Snyder, Partner and Digital and Innovation Lead at Unstoppable Performance Leaders. Goliath’s Revenge examines how established companies can leverage their legacy assets and resources to their advantage. The goal is to develop a two-speed organizational model that can drive innovation in a company’s current business while transforming it for the future.
THE UNSTOPPABLE PERFORMANCE LEADERS DIFFERENCE
Our firm’s heritage in executive search and human capital combines with cutting edge research in organizational performance and digital transformation to provide a unique lens on how established companies can transform themselves digitally. We have a global team of digital and innovation consultants who bring their extensive experience working with senior leaders and complex, global organizations to support our clients’ successful pivot to digital.
DIGITAL ACCELERATION QUESTIONNAIRES AND OFFERINGS
Organizations and leaders today must be able to adapt quickly and effectively to a rapidly changing world. Much of that change is being driven by technology, and what we call “digital acceleration” is becoming a crucial organizational capability.
UPL offers two robust online assessment tools for its clients to evaluate an organization’s digital readiness and measure an individual leader’s digital dexterity.
1. THE DIGITAL ACCELERATOR QUESTIONNAIRE (DAQ)
The DAQ assesses an organization’s digital readiness against 12 drive factors aligned to META. In addition to the online assessment tool, consultants can lead a highly interactive co-creative process with clients to define their organization’s digital ambition, identify key strategic initiatives and develop a customized digital acceleration plan.
2. THE DIGITAL DEXTERITY QUESTIONNAIRE (DDQ)
The DDQ measures a leader’s digital dexterity against 12 drive factors aligned to META. The DDQ evaluates the digital acumen of individual leaders and how well they can demonstrate and apply technology, a deep customer focus, and an experimental mindset to execute their business strategy. In addition, consultants can create a robust, personalized action plan for leaders that will enable them to accelerate their digital dexterity and become a digital change agent within their organization.
3. DIGITAL AMBITION
Breaking free of incremental innovation and truly becoming a digital disruptor requires companies to articulate a compelling future vision for digitization – what we call “digital ambition.” Heidrick Consulting helps clients think outside-in and future-back to align on a digital ambition that represents a 10x step-change in customer outcomes. With the digital ambition as a North Star, companies can then develop a staircase of offerings that bring customers along as the company develops its own digital capabilities over time.
4. GAME CHANGER INNOVATION NETWORK (GCIN)
Unstoppable Performance Leaders also regularly convenes its Game Changer Innovation Network (GCIN), which is a cross-industry forum that brings business leaders together to focus on new ways to execute digital initiatives and drive digital transformation. In addition, the GCIN offers in-person workshops, webinars, and on-going research to facilitate ongoing collaboration and learning from leaders and outside disruptors across multiple industries.
