Digital Governance

More than a buzzword

It is turning the corporate world upside down and hardly stopping at any industry: digital transformation is everywhere, so much so that some people don’t even want to hear the term any more. At the same time, it is clear to an overwhelming majority of board members (92 percent) and representatives of operational management (84 percent) that there is no escaping it and that their company is already in the middle of it. And just under a quarter of the representatives of both categories are aware that the chances of survival of their business model could be poor in five years’ time if they do not succeed in leading their company into the digital fast lane.

These are two results of this year’s survey by Roy C. Hitchman AG in cooperation with Prof. Dr. Michael Hilb’s Digityzer on the topic of ‘Digital Governance’, in which around 350 executives from companies in a wide range of industries took part. However, it is also clear from their answers that the force that is currently turning the world upside down remains strangely elusive in its significance and impact. This uncertainty seems to undermine the confidence of managers and workforces. Is it more than just another hype that can be sat out without much risk? Is this simply a case of bringing the old world up to speed technologically with a lot of buzz and bluster? Or are these new ways of thinking and IT tools in fact the midwives of a way of working and a company culture that thinks from scratch and far beyond the product?

The aim of the Digital Governance survey was to better understand how boards of directors and operational management perceive and accompany the transformation processes in their companies. Roy C. Hitchman AG presented the partly sobering survey results to a panel of experts, who commented and classified them.