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More than just tools, methodologies, and hiring consultancies, Discovery is a culture of observation, critique, deliberation, and initiative that should be embedded in every project and be part of the strategy. To make this cycle continuous and maintain a sustainable and adaptive trajectory, realistic and contextualized mapping of gaps, resources, and limits is only part of the work. Benchmarks, frameworks, and other references for Discovery practices become meaningful as they translate into actions by the key players, from the growth executive to managers, operators, partners, and the client themselves.
Discovery Goes Far Beyond Assessments, Tests, and Reports
If someone in IT, growth, or management delves into their searches for "discovery," after passing through the streaming channel, they will find links to a variety of technology topics, as different vendors place their bets on the term.
DPOs, data scientists, and compliance professionals, for example, associate the term immediately with "data discovery." In organizations with intensive cloud use, the Casb (cloud access security broker) might come to mind. ITSM (IT service management) providers might be talking about inventory, while cybersecurity professionals refer to threat discovery. All these aspects are part of most Discovery approaches. However, the concept and practices that work are much broader.
The classic sales pitch of vendors, as well as many service providers, is to run the solution in a PoC (proof of concept). Without dismissing the applicability of this criterion, it's worth considering that one of the most frequent mistakes in Digital Transformation and unsuccessful cases is a set of reasonable decisions on their own, but not so much when they overlap. Especially given the complexity of modern organizations, full of roles and interdependencies, autonomy can become a short blanket game without a transparency structure that provides consistency to critical thinking and creativity.
Discovery as Cultural Transformation and Continuous Process
One of the conditions for predictability and results of digital initiatives is a good mapping of resources, deficiencies, and the list of priorities to be resolved. For this, the multidisciplinary capacity of the team is vital. It seems obvious, but we still hear sad stories about problems, like a PI Planning (which, by definition, should be executed in three months) being stalled by a router configuration issue, which was only resolved with the inclusion of a very experienced specialist in the project team.
In addition to a good "talent portfolio" composition, the groups involved in our Discovery activities breathe technological prospecting. The industry is fast, standards and trends change, and clients need to convert all this into relevant transformations in their context.
Other pillars of a Discovery culture include monitoring the macroeconomy, sector, critical reading of case studies, participation in formal and informal forums, and the opening of internal and external communication channels. Evaluation should consider several dimensions – financial, market position, prospects – of impacts and investment assessment. Discovery is a continuous process in all aspects: adaptive updating of technology, organization, and market approach.
Innovation, Frameworks, and Data-Driven with Purpose
Without proper alignment to objective conditions and culture, you can follow the most established frameworks to the letter and still not meet promises. Wrong decisions can also be made based on precise data if the strategy is inconsistent or leaves blind spots in the orchestration of initiatives.
Indeed, the implementation of global management and collaboration frameworks, in Discovery and other disciplines, represents a significant part of the motivations that bring clients to us. We also operate in monitoring operational and business data as a living process, with dashboards covering established KPIs in the segment.
The alphabet soup (SAFe, ITIL, CISSP…) of frameworks, certifications, and updates will never stop strengthening the capacity to evaluate, compare, and propose directions for businesses. Of course, we use frameworks, but without attachment or expectation of silver bullets. Even to avoid overshadowing important contributions. In many cases, the risk of confusing resistances to be worked with legitimate objections, from those who saw relevant and unmapped impacts, can compromise viability and success. The key to overcoming this distortion is an effective co-creation approach.
Uncertainty is part of the game, but hesitation can be mitigated. As people in the organization acquire and share awareness about their opportunities and gaps, the existing or feasible resources to be added, the demands/expectations of stakeholders, or even the assertiveness of these demands and expectations, everyone moves more coordinated.
Immersing in the Organization for Discovery of Costs, Opportunities, and Hidden Work
Although digital technology has a deflationary tendency, both in its own prices and in the reduction of operational expenses, today's world is ultimately more expensive. Connectivity, data, and other technological conveniences have opened up space for previously unfeasible ideas. Supply chains, digital marketing, continuous development, and other innovations make operations more complex. Consequently, they add some overhead.
Engaging with the leadership and digital pioneers of organizations is vital for transformation initiatives. This is one of the reasons we deliver projects where global consulting players have failed. Along with the premise of co-authorship, placing company people as protagonists, it is important to analyze processes end-to-end and listen to people. The answers may require zooming in, from leadership to managers and operational staff.
The equation of revenue, cost, and margin is insufficient. It is necessary to understand costs by areas and processes, as sometimes the revenue from a client or business area becomes too expensive.
In a report on AI and process automation, a company was quoting AI courses for the managerial level, while dozens of employees spent more than half their day copying and pasting data from the ERP to partner portals, or vice versa. As this hidden work is discovered and resolved with relative simplicity, undervalued to the point of no one noticing the inefficiency and lack of sense, resources are freed to create services and expand reach in digital markets.
AP Digital Services helps Digital Transformation happen with precise and effective strategies in each business reality. Our multidisciplinary teams work alongside those who live the day-to-day of your company, in a co-creation approach, which accelerates overcoming setbacks and brings collaboration and engagement to innovations.
To discuss this further, get in touch.
Professional with over 20 years of experience in product development and innovation. Luciana has worked in major companies such as CI&T, Coca-Cola Company, and Accenture.
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