The document outlines the first steps in a company's journey to establishing a digital workplace: defining the vision of success, understanding the reasons for embarking on this journey now, and conducting an assessment of the current situation. It stresses that defining the end goal without considering company culture, people's needs, and identifying allies will likely cause initiatives to fail. The digital workplace should transform the business into an agile organization where internal and external interactions provide a positive experience for all.

1. The heroic journey to the digital workplace:
Our hero sets out

2. All stories have...
a beginning,
a middle,
and an end.

3. And it’s no different for business stories, like your journey
towards the digital workplace and its epic conclusion of
connected collaboration for all.

4. The digital workplace means more than “going digital”. It’s a
complete transformation of how your organisation interacts...
both internally and with the outside world. It’s about
faster, better, information flows which lead to quicker, more
informed decision making.

5. Organisations
planning a digital
workplace rose
from 9% to 52%
in one year.
Click to tweet

6. It’s about technology, of course, but
hand-in-hand with technology is cultural
change. The combination of the two
can put your organisation in a
position to quickly take advantage
of market trends and differentiate
itself against the competition, by
creating an environment where
the positive experience of
interacting with you is
enjoyed by customers,
employees, and
partners as a single,
seamless experience.

7. Customer service
and engagement
tools were a
priority for 52% of
early adopters.

8. But like any journey, it’s marked by milestones…
with a few pitfalls to avoid.

9. This series of guidebooks
is your map.
Take it with you on your
journey, and the road
ahead will be clear.

10. The first in a series of three
The next guidebook in this series will define
the path to a smooth launch, introducing
the characters and challenges to address as
your organisation transforms.The last part,
the third, will answer the issues around a
successful transformation, realising the
expected and unexpected benefits and
bringing your organisation with you.
But this - the first - starts at the beginning:
equipping you for the journey ahead.

11. 1. The Vision:
Define your destination
[Vision]

12. When digital initiatives
fail, it’s often because
their leaders didn’t
think beyond digital.
So the first task of any digital hero
is to define what success looks like.
“Going digital” on its own isn’t a
vision; it’s a method. A method to get
your business to a better place.
[Vision]

13. The vision of taking a business to a better
place is different for every organisation. For
every organisation’s visions to succeed it
needs a hero to drive it, a hero driving from
the top, leading from the C-Suite.
[Vision]

14. So first, emphasise what success
looks like. Not where.
Because before you can start your journey, you’ve got to know
how things will be on arrival. In short, once you understand the
vision and how it drives your digital journey you can get going.
[Vision]

15. So to define your
destination, take
a step back from
technology, and look
at the end destination.
[Vision]

16. Human factors
The key to getting
buy-in is understanding
that cultural factors
often matter more than
technological ones.
So before you look
at tech, look at the
beating heart of your
organisation,
your people.
[Vision]

17. “Culture eats strategy
for breakfast”
Peter Drucker
[Vision]

18. That’s the first step:
embedding your vision
in your company culture.
At this milestone, you haven’t yet
started your journey. But, you know
where you’re going.
[Vision]

19. 2. The Reasons:
Why this, why now?
[Reason]

20. Organisations fail when
they see this reason as
the entire journey and
not the first step.
Every journey will
have a starting
point, a reason to
embark it, a reason
for the vision.
[Reason]

21. Employees today are wary of management fashions and fads.
So any vision is more likely to succeed if it answers a broadly
recognised problem.
But that problem doesn’t have to be a big one.
[Reason]

22. Your vision may be
designed to address
some large event.
[Reason]

23. However, the starting point
could be, and in fact often is,
something much smaller, such as
an office move, a consolidation or
renovation. This might be the result
of a merger or acquisition or it
could be a drive for more flexibility.
[Reason]

24. More and more we find digital
tools and channels at the heart of
marketing - and this is only going to
increase.
However as always success will
come from the successful adoption
of this technology.
[Reason]

25. Having
the right
collaboration
partner can
help!
[Reason]

26. Rather than denying
this reality, embrace it.
Win-win.
[Vision]

27. 3. The Assessment:
Create a map of where
you are going
[Assessment]

28. Once you’ve defined what success looks like, make sure you
know how to plot the journey. When going on a journey, it’s not
enough to know where you’re going - you also need the best
route plan. After all, how can you get to your destination without
knowing where you are now and how you are going to get there?
It’s not always a straight A to B...
[Assessment]

29. There are many tools, surveys and
third parties that can help you
with your assessment. The key is
to determine which are the most
important metrics you need to know
about your current situation.
[Assessment]

30. Talk to staff at
all levels, and ask
yourself the hard
questions.
Are they open to new ideas, or will
they see your plans as a threat?
What do they have invested
in their current processes, the
ways they work now? Might they
feel your changes alter their
professional identity in some way?
How likely are they to push back?
[Assessment]

31. You might not want to
hear the answers but
you must answer these
questions first. If you
can make the team see
how a digital workplace
will improve their lives
you are halfway to user
adoption and buy-in.
[Assessment]

32. By 2020, 60% of
organisations will
be spending money
on rapid detection
and response.
[Assessment]

33. Network effects
[Assessment]
If two or more people are using a collaborative application, it has
value. If only one person is, there’s not. That’s the network effect
of the digital workplace: where a product or service becomes more
valuable in tune with the number of people using it.

34. The digital
workplace has 9
“dimensions”, over
half of which are
network-centric.
[Assessment]

35. [Assessment]
As network effects grow,
there comes a point where
it’s more valuable to be
on the network than off.
(Who can do without a
mobile phone these days?)
This is the other part of
the vision step: finding
that point of no return.
Because from then on
your vision is unstoppable.

36. [Assessment]
It might mean department
heads incentivised to make
the changes. It might be ten
young guns on a mission to
persuade. In extreme cases,
it might mean persuading
hundreds of people to retrain
or adjust their worldview. But
once you have a critical mass
of people seeing value in your
vision, that vision becomes a
goal rather than an idea.

37. 60% of digital
workplace early
adopters see it
as essential for
competitiveness.
[Assessment]

38. [Assessment]
If the “big problem” is a major office move, look for the
“small problems” that preoccupy most staff.
Do I lose desk space? Where will I sit when I come to the office?
Will I be able to access all the resources I need? These aren’t
small issues to the people who have to spend eight hours a
day experiencing them. Maintaining or even improving social
interactions is also a key factor - if people are working remotely
they need other ways to feel engaged.

39. Find the Little
Problems…
[Assessment]

40. 70% of office
workers believe
their productivity
would be higher if
their environment
was less noisy
whilst 81% of
managers are
unconcerned about
office noise.
[Assessment]

41. [Assessment]
If the feedback tells you there is
a requirement for more private
workspace in the office, make sure
there are areas for concentrated
work. If the commute is a big issue
then flexibility and work/life balance
will be hugely motivational.

42. 40% of employees
already rely on
mobile for at least
some of their work.
[Assessment]

43. …to drive
the Big
Change
[Assessment]

44. [Assessment]
Along the way, you’ll find this gets buy-in to the big problems, too. If
you’re merging with a partner company - or being taken over by one!
- poor workflow integration is why most M&A’s fail.

45. [Assessment]
If the first milestone involves equipping 10 people with new laptops
for remote working, yet frees up 5 hot desk stations, you can offset
costs against benefits in stages. Making your whole plan a lot more
palatable to the CEO - while managing risk.

46. 4. The Allies:
Choose your travelling
companions
[Allies]

47. [Allies]
Lastly, remember
reaching your digital
workplace isn’t a
journey you can take
alone, it is a journey
for which you need
allies, a road trip.
Identifying the right
functions and people
in your organisation
with a shared vision
is going to make
your journey a much
more successful one.

48. Tailor benefits
to the team
leaders
[Allies]

49. [Allies]
Once the right people,
functions and teams
have been identified
it is time to formalise
it. Create a steering
committee or group
with someone at the
helm who will drive
collaboration and ensure
that everyone is working
towards a shared agenda.

50. [Allies]
The CFO’s interested in the
business case for adopting
your plan. Marketing wants its
people to shout your story from
the rooftops with greater reach
and clarity. IT wants a smooth
rollout with lower ongoing
support costs. The Sales head,
well, wants more sales and HR
is looking to find better ways to
attract, retain and engage talent.
Ultimately, they’re all the same
benefit: value to your company.
But you can communicate that
value in different ways.

51. Look for
champions
outside the
C-suite
[Allies]

52. [Allies]
Finally, there’s a case for finding champions across the office who
are key to helping you communicate your story across functions
and regions.

53. 40% of workers are
looking for ways
to perform better
without sacrificing
family life.
[Allies]

54. [Allies]
Champions can come from any function, all they need is passion.
If they sell your vision of the digital workplace, you will find opt-in
across the organisation is far higher.

55. Summing up:
The digital workplace isn’t only about
bits ‘n bytes. It’s about transforming your
business into an agile organisation: where
customer service ethos runs through
every department your employees and
customers interact on an equal basis for
the same positive experience and your
digital story can be experienced both inside
and out.. Communication and collaboration
technology are your enablers.
When you’re ready, take the
next step on your journey:
preparing for launch.

56. Your heroic journey to the
digital workplace starts here.
Download Chapter One of this guidebook
and take it with you as you begin your
journey.
You’ll be the first to receive Chapters
Two and Three, plus access to more great
resources to help you on your way!
Continue your journey

57. Contact Arkadin to see
how we can help you on
your journey to a digital
workplace.
Get in touch now!