A new survey by Deloitte finds a connection between digital maturity and the financial performance of companies. Here we look at the key insights from the survey and speak with Deloitte’s chief innovation and digital officer Ragu Gurumurthy.

1. Digital Maturity Is Critical
To Business Success
– Now, More So Than Ever –
Survey Finds

2. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Title
Text
IntroductionIntroduction
A company’s level of digital maturity is one of the most significant indicators of growth
and financial success, according to a new study from Deloitte. And this is only going to
become more so as we move into a post-COVID era.
Findings from the Digital Transformation 2020 survey show that companies identified by
their executives as well along the road to digital transformation were three times more
likely to achieve revenue growth in the last year. This may not seem particularly
surprising given the boom we have seen in artificial intelligence, data analytics, and
connected technology – all enthusiastically co-opted by industry to drive bottom-line
growth.
Digital Maturity Is Critical To Business Success –
Now, More So Than Ever – Survey Finds

3. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Digital Maturity
However, a deeper dive into the report’s insights shows that growth is particularly
apparent at organizations whose digital strategies center on innovation and developing
new models of business. In straightforward terms, those that don’t just use data and
digital technology to do things differently – but also to do
different things.
The questioning was conducted before the onset of the world-changing events we’re
currently living through with Covid-19. To me, though, the insights take on a new
relevance at a time when so many companies - entire industries, in fact - are forced to re-
think the most fundamental aspects of their business models, from the ground up.

4. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Digital Maturity
The report highlights the trend of large enterprises establishing "digital-first" subsidiaries
– examples given include Telefonica's Gif Gaf sim-only phone service, and Goldman Sach’s
online savings account provider, Marcus. These largely autonomous (from their parent
companies) units are designed to be “digital native” from day one, not anchored by legacy
infrastructure issues, and so able to compete in an agile way with more nimble start-ups
and would-be disruptors.
There are certainly lessons to be learned here, even for much smaller organizations,
finding themselves in the position of having to rapidly leverage digital technology to stay
afloat.

5. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Digital Maturity
Ragu Gurumurthy, chief innovation and digital officer at Deloitte, tells me, "A lot of people
are telling me they have seen more innovation in the previous two months than in the
whole of the previous two years.“
The report focuses on seven pivots – asking execs to rate the progress their organization
was making towards each fundamental of digital transformation.
They are:
• Flexible and secure infrastructure
• Data Mastery
• Digital savvy, open talent networks
• Ecosystem engagement
• Intelligent worksflows
• Unified customer experience
• Business model adaptability

6. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Digital Maturity
Respondents were asked to rate a number of benefits that they were seeing through their
work on each pivot, including revenue growth, efficiency, quality of products and services,
customer satisfaction, and employee engagement.
They were also asked to evaluate the extent that each pivot was enabling the organization
to develop its focus on growth and innovation.
Gurumurthy tells me, "What I find most interesting – and what I find relevant for the
business community in a post-COVID world - is that, though there’ a consensus that
digital is critical, is the question ‘do we have data? Is this hype or is this for real?’ – those
are the questions I would be asking as an executive.

7. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Digital Maturity
"And fundamentally, this report provides data for the prevailing hypothesis that being
digital is helpful in terms of growth and helpful for increasing margins.” The results, he
continues, are just as relevant, perhaps more so, than when the survey was carried out in
the pre-COVID days.
Key findings and statistics include that companies with a high level of digital maturity are
two to three times more likely to achieve benefits and likely to be more focused on
innovation and growth. Additionally, 45% of high-maturity companies achieved net
revenue growth above industry averages, compared to 15% of companies not rated as
highly mature.

8. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Digital Maturity
More mature companies are also significantly more likely to be offering “connected”
products and services – services that can be engaged with by customers in real-time via
mobile apps or the web. These services may use smart devices, including mobile phones
but, increasingly, any number of IoT-connected objects, to provide increased value to the
customer through data-driven insights.
The report also throws up further evidence that investing in growth and innovation-led
strategies is offering increasingly good payoffs. “I find it interesting,” Gurumurthy says,
“Companies find that generating growth and innovation leads to better stock market
performance than companies that use technology purely on the cost-saving side … [they]
start off saying 'let me increase efficiency and reduce cost,' but as they get better, they
quickly see this is not simply about increasing performance, this is about doing things
differently."

9. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Digital Maturity
All this sets out some useful lessons that should be taken on board by anyone putting
together a business strategy aimed at increasing resilience, throughout the difficult days
ahead.
Within organizations that have successfully adapted to the digitization of their core
services with an eye towards efficiency and growth, services are less likely to be severely
disrupted by widespread societal changes.
This gives them breathing space and freedom to think, "If we were born again, digitally-
native, can we create, as an experiment … a separate digital business platform … and if it
works, can we move the whole business to the platform?" Gurumurthy tells me.

10. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Digital Maturity
Other benefits of higher digital maturity include improvements to societal functions and
responsibility – with 65% of respondents from high-maturity organizations stating that
technological measures are used to improve workforce diversity, and 67% stating they
help the organization reduce consumption of natural resources or carbon emissions.

11. © 2017 Bernard Marr , Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
© 2018 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Bernard Marr is an internationally best-selling author, popular keynote speaker, futurist, and a
strategic business & technology advisor to governments and companies. He helps
organisations improve their business performance, use data more intelligently, and
understand the implications of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data,
blockchains, and the Internet of Things.
LinkedIn has ranked Bernard as one of the world’s top 5 business influencers. He is a frequent
contributor to the World Economic Forum and writes a regular column for Forbes. Every day
Bernard actively engages his 1.5 million social media followers and shares content that
reaches millions of readers.
Visit The
Website
© 2017 Bernard Marr , Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
© 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Bernard Marr is an internationally best-selling author, popular keynote speaker, futurist, and a
strategic business & technology advisor to governments and companies. He helps
organisations improve their business performance, use data more intelligently, and
understand the implications of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data,
blockchains, and the Internet of Things.
LinkedIn has ranked Bernard as one of the world’s top 5 business influencers. He is a frequent
contributor to the World Economic Forum and writes a regular column for Forbes. Every day
Bernard actively engages his 1.5 million social media followers and shares content that
reaches millions of readers.
Visit The
Website

12. Title
Subtitle
Be the FIRST to receive news,
articles, insights and event
updates from Bernard Marr & Co
straight to your inbox.
Signing up is EASY! Simply fill out
the online form and we’ll be in
touch!
© 2018 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved

13. BernardMarr
hello@bernardmarr.com
www.bernardmarr.com