Digitalization and IT strategy consulting

Strategy vs. IT strategy vs. digital strategy

Terms such as IT and digital strategy can easily be confused or mixed up, or remain unclear and unspecific in definition in relation to the word strategy. But one point always applies: A strategy must have a clearly and precisely formulated goal that is as specific as possible. Therefore, all discussions and considerations on the topic should always be based on this predefined goal and compared to it (Which is sometimes forgotten, isn’t it?).

An IT strategy is about ensuring the future viability of an existing business model with the means and methods of a modern IT infrastructure. (“reactive how”)

A digital strategy, on the other hand, looks at the digitization and realignment of a business model as a whole. (“proactive what”)

Central cornerstone of corporate strategy and value adding

All three points mentioned are, of course, not universal definitions, but merely refer to the central point of every IT project and every strategy development process, namely the primary “objective” or “mission clarification”. Here, the wh-questions should be asked and answered, including the “zero option”
> Why should which goal be achieved by whom, how or with what, and by when?

The topic of digitization/IT and/or the use of AI is not an external service or a contribution from outside the field, but a central and significant component of every company’s business idea and strategy.
>The IT or digitization strategy must align with the company’s goals, not the other way around!

Activities in digitization/IT should be content-driven, result-oriented, and technically focused, and should be continuously verified with the relevant internal and external stakeholders of a company to provide specific services that serve the company’s actual value creation as flexible as possible.
> Agility is more than just a buzzword!

In short: It is neither meaningful nor sustainable to operate IT that is technically and content-wise detached from the actual business expertise of a company, like an isolated service division.
> This explicitly applies in both directions regarding the “isolation”!

A company-wide, IT-driven and top-down promoted curiosity as well as continuous training in the area of digitization – even if associated with effort and possible failure – can theoretically always also reveal new business opportunities and possibilities. And to support this opportunity even better, it is equally important that the role and perception of IT – if still predominantly reactive and service-oriented – be shifted more toward a proactive business development focus aligned with the business purpose in general. For this, it may make sense to provide also IT staff with ongoing thematic and subject-specific training in the direction of the business purpose and corporate strategy.
> A common understanding, a common language, and a common “we” is the – quite ambitious – goal here!