Meeting expectations in a new era

Further, abandoning tradition and leveraging new ways to market is inevitable. Digital transformation revolutionizes how telcos sell. Finding new communications and partner channels to drive the CSP’s brand and maximize digital services and products revenues is critical to success. This will lead to a 360-degree omnichannel customer experience, which must replace traditional, more limited relationships. User expectations increase in the digital world and, to meet them, seamless, integrated experiences must be supported if the telco is to accrue benefits in increased customer satisfaction and reduced customer churn.

The key point about these shifts, perhaps better described as advances, in infrastructure is the (service) benefits that accrue to the service provider once they have been made. The advantages are multiple. The transformation of customer experience is a given. The promise of digital transformation is that it delivers an easier life via the usage of new technologies (think social media, apps, and so on). Customers can in theory address problems quickly and efficiently. But this means redesigning digitized customer journeys, increasing the speed and agility with which insights are accrued, driving the adoption of these new journeys by customers, and providing agility within the journeys themselves.

Unlocking data agility

A premium will be placed on the accrual of data-driven insights. Arguably the greatest benefit of digital transformation is the ability to track metrics and analyze data surrounding the customer relationship. Doing this means gaining insights into behavior that let telcos optimize their strategies and processes to achieve ever-better results in areas like subscriber acquisition and retention. 

To take advantage, telcos need to leverage both structured and unstructured data and use it in both innovative and decisive ways. The reward if they do so is dramatically increased return on investment.

Collaboration is also set to increase, with a ‘new’ telco emerging. When pretty much all a business’ processes and strategies are reinvented, organizational culture change also has to evolve. When a network organization becomes a marketing organization, it won’t succeed if it still thinks and acts like a network organization. While digital transformation may as a result be a demanding process, the telco that emerges from it successfully will be better positioned than ever before to compete effectively in the modern, commercial landscape.

Enabling agility

Taking all of the above into account, it’s easy to see why CSPs must become more agile and more innovative. Fast and continual improvement in the ability both to meet customer needs and to operate effectively are a fundamental benefit of digital transformation. As a result, the ability to adapt to market changes and lead in innovation are inevitable by-products of the shift. Success in the digital landscape corresponds exactly to the degree of agility enabled.

There will also be a greater demand for specialization. Successful digital transformation means staying ahead of the curve in an exponentially changing landscape where artificial intelligence, machine learning, augmented reality, advances in analytics, and other trends are coming into play at pace. These are opportunities the telco must leverage to protect and expand its market presence both now and—even more importantly—in the short-term future.

Lastly, expect a consolidation of process and operations. Digital transformation brings both workforces and technology together to better connect with both customers and prospects. This creates an organization that is outward- rather than inward-looking and in so doing focuses the organization precisely on what is required for commercial success.