Itineraries for a great digital transformation journey typically begin with the internal IT team but can stall without fresh ways of thinking and access to expert resources. This blog looks at some of the false starts and wrong turns of in-house digitalization and shows how a trusted companion can help companies succeed on this essential journey.
Failing to go the distance
In my experience, there are many reasons why in-house digital transformation fails to go the distance, including:
- Companies can struggle to move forward without appropriate tech skills – relevant expertise and experience are needed in big data, cloud, edge computing, artificial intelligence and machine learning, the Internet of Things, augmented reality, virtual reality and more.
- It can be hard for the in-house team to keep pace with new technology solutions and innovations as well as alternative business models, processes and domains. In most cases, digital transformation is not a company’s primary expertise; with limited resources, the in-house team is likely to be busy with other tasks which cannot be ignored to make progress on a complex transformation journey.
- Digital transformation requires adjustments in business culture, vision and process; C-suite executives may not be ready to lead this change and, worse, they might assume the journey is unnecessary. Companies with a non-digital culture may hesitate to make day-to-day changes and accept new things; these organizations start on the back foot as they probably fail to attract the talent and skills needed for digital transformation.
- Data is isolated and effectively trapped in legacy platforms, and people may be reluctant to switch out of legacy data-gathering processes.
- The cost of in-house digital transformation often escalates, especially if evolving stakeholder needs cause scope creep; when decisions are changed mid-project, budgets increase and timelines lengthen.
Contrasting this, a faster and more efficient journey to digital transformation can be achieved with the right outsourcing partner.
Trusted travelling companion
Outsourcing to a third party helps companies progress the transformation journey in a timely, cost-effective way while eliminating overhead costs. It means there will be sufficient resources to meet specific goals. Also, the third party takes responsibility for resourcing which leaves the in-house IT team free to focus on core business.
The broad knowledge and skills required on a journey of digital transformation can be expensive, especially as these capabilities are needed only for a limited time period. Fortunately, a third-party provider allows cost-effective access to a richer pool of talent on an as-needed basis. This also serves to mitigate risk in the digital transformation journey, as the outsourced digital services team will have prior experience and success in similar projects.
With outsourcing, there’s no need for substantial capital expenditure on new technologies and licenses. Instead, companies benefit from the provider’s IT investments in software, hardware, security and more.
Destination: Digital services
From my perspective, one of the best places in the world to source business-critical digital services is Jamaica. We’ve got many claims to fame.
Annual revenues in Jamaica’s expanding global digital services sector exceeded US$ 900 million in 2022. About 55,000 talented and experienced people work in this sector for around 70 different companies including IT service management companies Conduent (formerly Xerox), Teleperformance, and Hinduja Global Solutions, the online printing services company VistaPrint, the digital transformation company Sutherland Global Services, and the homegrown global services
provider Itel. And the country has established a unique value-creation ecosystem through public and private sector initiatives, investments, infrastructural developments, and growth-centric decision making, supported by favorable government policies and regulations.
Digital services salaries in Jamaica are, on average, 40-60% lower than in North America which likely reduces overall operational costs. And high-quality, high-value services – delivered via our unique Upsource services model – provides a growing pool of talent with global expertise at a fraction of the cost of creating and maintaining a specialist in-house department. This also enables rapid scalability and allows high flexibility in deployment. Jamaican teams can work around the clock to suit different time zones, and are available when needed for seasonal or long-term projects.
As the Jamaica digital services sector expands, it’s attracting the best and brightest talent as well as entrepreneurs and investors from around the world, supported by an unrivalled enabling environment.
Find out more
If your organization could benefit from upscale outsourcing, please get in touch today. You can also find further information on our website. We’re ready for take-off together on your digital transformation journey!
