CIOs Thriving in the Fourth Industrial Revolution

CIOs Thriving in the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Growing an Arsenal of Digital Skillsets Throughout the Organization Published: March 2021 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Analyst: Andrew Morgan Contributors: Transport Canada, Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC), Philippe Johnston, and Nina Brudermanns

Preface Within this paper, the subject of Digital Literacy is explored. In doing so the paper aims to contribute to awareness regarding the general topic, as well as answer the research question of how one can improve / grow ones Digital Literacy skills. To achieve this, ICTC (Information Communication Technology Council of Canada) conducted interviews with CIOs, CTOs, CDOs, and other subject matter experts to uncover a deeper understanding into the problem and potential solutions. Interviewees were selected from both the public and private sectors, spanning different industries located around world. The collected primary data is utilized to gather valuable insight into the mind of a successful CIO while learning from the failures and mistakes they have witnessed throughout their career, with the intention of providing recommendations to current and future digital leaders. This research is paired with extensive secondary research from academic and professional reports and publishing.

There is no doubt that having a workforce with a high digital literacy plays a crucial role in the continued success of an organization in today’s digital era. Resultantly, there is no shortage of a strategies, paths, and programs which promise to propel an organization to increase their Digital Literacy to the highest level.

However, countless of these methods, unfortunately, do not prove effective as they often do not take into consideration a multitude of important key factors. For example, organizations may be operating in the same industry but have dissimilar strategies and similar results, or work in dissimilar industries, use similar strategies and have different results. Keeping this in mind, it is highly recommended that the findings of this paper be internally vetted in order to ensure their suitability for a specific organization. Nevertheless, the core concepts, research, and fundamental logic applied, is applicable to different sectors, industries, and organizations around the world.

Abstract

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Digital literacy no longer refers to one’s ability to use software or operate a digital device. Today, Digital Literacy rather describes the skills, knowledge, and understanding that individuals and organizations need in order to thrive in a digital economy.  On an individual level, digital literacy refers to the knowledge, experiences, skills, and confidence which positions someone to live, learn, and work in a digital society.  On an organizational level, we must look beyond the current capabilities and consider which skills will be required in the future and the extent our workforce, culture, and processes will enable the transition.

As we enter the fourth industrial revolution, organizations and workers alike, have the option to either adapt to the times or become irrelevant. As a result, an enterprise’s ability to thrive in a digital environment is continuously increasingly dependent on their ability to plan accurate scenarios and generate post traumatic growth. Again and again it is demonstrated that those with an ability to handle crisis and disruption thrive, while those who optimize for stability struggle. Successful business leaders must realize that the ability to accurately hypothesize scenarios requires a unique mindset capable of recognizing how an inclination affects the growth trajectory of an organization while understanding how their assumptions are molded by the trajectories, trends, and beliefs formed by the vision of those who know nothing about your organization.

Key Challenges  Limitations of Leadership: Digital leaders must be able to identify and understand the drivers, signals, and themes triggering innovation in order to find “clarity” in an unpredictable future. This “clarity” will serve as a backdrop for strategic decision making and therefore determine their success moving forward.  Unclear Business Value: A disconnect between those with a traditional and those with a digital mindset is creating an inability to vocalize the correlation between digital literacy levels, enterprise agility, and growth.  Overcoming Sunk Cost Fallacy: Workers are not granted access to modern tools which could improve efficiency as a result of the utilization and re-investment into outdated legacy systems.  Articulating a Clear Vision: An inability to convey a clear and concise vision fuels individual interpretation and a lack of organization-wide alignment or consensus.  Shortage of Skills: With technology changing at exponential rates, it is hard to ensure your entire workforce has the competences necessary to succeed  Resistance: Resistance can and will come from all directions. Whether it is from the individuals scared of losing their job, the Board wanting to reduce costs, or any other reason, the CIO can’t back down.

Key Recommendations  Communication, Collaboration, and Participation is key. Requiring extensive effort from the CIO, the digital champion must lead the charge towards a modern culture fueled by communication, collaboration, and participation of the masses.  Create a balance between creating a strong foundation to grow from and acting now. If you speed through the early phases you may cause more harm than good.

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 Ensure an accurate understanding of the current digital literacy landscape within your organization, those who envision themselves as something they are not are doomed to create off-kilter strategies  Become comfortable with the uncomfortable. Whether you’re in the public or private sector, there is no escaping technology nor its exponential growth.  Creating confidence and digital trust throughout the organization, this trust will make it easy to focus on generating technical proficiency.  Make a push towards encouraging staff to leverage their knowledge and expertise to identify opportunities for innovation and growth within the organization.

Table of Contents

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Abstract…….………………………………………….……………………………………………..………….…..4 Introduction………………………………………….……………………………………………..………….…..4 Deeper Look………………………………………………………………………………………………………...7 Designing a Strategy for Success……………….……………………………………………………....13 Managing Digital Literacy………….………………………………………….…………………………...25 Conclusion……………………………….………………………………………………………………………...29 Appendix………………………………………………………………………………………….……...30

List of Figures

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Figure 1. Characteristics of a Successful CIO….…….……….………………………………………7 Figure 2. Digital CIO Mindset………………………………………………………….…………….……...8 Figure 3. Prominence of Emerging Technologies…………….….………….……………..…...11 Figure 4. Digital Literacy Positioning Matrix………………….………………………..….……...13 Figure 5. TOWST Analysis……………….……………………………..……………………………...…..15 Figure 6. Growth Enablement Venn diagram………………..…………………………………...16 Figure 7. Innovation Through Change Matrix.…………………….…….…………………..…...22

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Introduction

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As we enter into the midst of the fourth industrial revolution, global markets, organizational practices, and standards are changing. More and more we live in a digital society, a culture which is completely permeated by applications and data, our actions are frequently mediated by digital tools, and the objects we encounter are often shaped by digital intervention1. From the farmers of Tanzania using mobile phone to receive payments for their crops, to doctors in Canada using video conferencing to evaluate patients during a pandemic— today Digital Literacy is an essential aspect of life. As such, the vulnerability of an organization increasingly stems from the leadership team’s ability to increase digital literacy, evaluate the impact of drivers, signals & trends, as well as maintain alignment in their organization. However, regardless of this, research shows that the vast majority of enterprises are choosing to optimize existing business models, rather than transforming. This can effect even digitizing enterprises, which remain vulnerable to a crisis demanding fundamental change2.

Technology has and will continue to transform our lives, therefore, increasing Digital Literacy is no longer an option but rather an indispensable requirement. Enterprises must ensure their workforce is not only confident in their abilities to use various technologies but can also fluently speak its language, identify associated trends, as well as continue to learn and grow alongside the technology. A successful transformation strategy is rooted within the organization, more specifically, a successful transformation strategy begins with the workers.

When determining an innovation strategy many corporate executives focus the majority—if not all— their efforts on technological improvements and innovations. While this is a common strategy, this is not a complete approach. Another component of a thorough action is related to Social Innovation. Social innovation refers to innovating and improving social practices in order to meet new needs. For an organization this means their employees behavior, and even the overall imbedded company culture. Without Social Innovation an organization will likely struggle. A key component of Social Innovation is Digital Literacy. It is irrelevant how much is invested in an exciting new technology, if the employees are not digitally literate enough to use it or execute their job to their full potential, then valuable resources are wasted.

What Does it Mean to be Digitally Literate?

Digital literacy involves more than the mere ability to use software or operate a digital device; it includes a large variety of complex cognitive, motor, sociological, and emotional skills, which users need to possess in order to function effectively in a digital environment3. It is a toolkit containing knowledge, experiences, skills, confidence, as well as the ability to adapt to the changes stemming from varying developments in a way which is effective for an individual4.

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Allan Martin & Jan Grudziecki, “Concepts and Tools for Digital Literacy Development, Innovation in Teaching and Learning in Information and Computer Science” DigEuLit, 2015, 5:4, 249-267, DOI: 10.11120/ital.2006.05040249 2 CIO Research Group, “The 2020 CIO Agenda: Winning in the Turns” Gartner, 2019, https://www.gartner.com/document/3970511?ref=solrAll&refval=257486111 3 DR. Dovi Weiss, “ The Essential Elements of Digital Literacy for the 21st Century Workforce,” Enabley, 2017, https://enabley.io/the-essential-elements-of-digitalliteracy-for-the-21st-century-workforce-infographic/ 4 “What is Digital Literacy, “ ABC Life Literacy Canada, 2020, https://abclifeliteracy.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/ABC-Digital-Literacy-1.pdf

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At the individual level, digital literacy refers to the knowledge, experiences, skills, and confidence which positions someone to live, learn, and work in a digital society. The specific skills and attitudes can be divided into six main categories which come together to form an overall level of digital literacy5   

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ICT proficiency (functional skills): The understanding and confidence in the usage of ICT-based devices, application, software and services.

Information, data and media literacies (critical use): The capacity to find, evaluate, manage, curate, organize, and share digital information, as well as understanding the rules of copyright.

Digital creation, problem solving, and innovation (creative production): The capacity to adopt and develop new practices with technology, use digital evidence to solve problems, and design and/or create new digital artifacts and materials.

Digital communication, collaboration and partnership (participation): The capacity to communicate effectively in digital media and spaces, participate in digital teams / working groups, and participate in / facilitate /build digital networks.

Digital learning and development (development): the capacity to participate in (and benefit from) digital learning opportunities and understand the educational value of different media forms for teaching, learning, and assessment purposes.

Digital Identity and wellbeing (self-actualization): The capacity to develop and project a positive digital identity / manage digital reputation, use digital tools In pursuit of personal goals, and participate in professional, social, and community activities.

At the organizational level we must look beyond the current capabilities and consider which skills will be required in the future, as well as the extent to which our workforce, culture, and processes will enable this transition. Enterprises with high levels of Digital Literacy are progressive firms which are comfortable with the uncomfortable, deploy agile strategies, and have a deep understanding of the importance of continuous learning and its promotion. Organizations with successful digital leaders continuously challenge established processes in order to replace them with relevant modern solutions. For instance, digital leaders have begun to see their workforce as being made up of Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants rather than Baby Boomers, Generation X, millennials, etc. Digital Natives are those who have grown up completely emerged in technology while Digital Immigrants are those who have been required to learn these skills later in life6. While Digital Natives have the advantage of growing up immersed in technology, they believe the success of individuals in both groups is reliant on their digital literacy and willingness to adopt a continuous learning lifestyle.

Why are Organizations Turning to Digital Literacy?

Confronted by the constant shift in emerging technologies, changing consumer demands, constant state of crisis management, and digital transformation, IT leaders are forced to recognize the importance of organizational agility as well as ensuring staff is properly trained through a supply of tools required to succeed or gain further agility. However, this has to be achieved while simultaneously running the business and hitting regular performance goals7. The most forward way to reach elevated levels of organizational agility and success is through digital literacy. The skills and attitudes possessed by a digitally literate individual—as mentioned in 5

“JISC digital Capabilities Framework: The six elements defined,” JISC, n.d., http://repository.jisc.ac.uk/7278/1/BDCP-DC-Framework-Individual-6E-110319.pdf Clay Halton, “Digital Native,” Investopedia, 2019, https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/digital-native.asp 7 Mary Mesaglio & Simon Mingay, “How to Achieve Enterprise Agility with a Biomodal Capability” Gartner 2015, G00276981 6

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the previous section—creates confidence and mental capacity regarding the reaction and adoption of the pressures associated with a modern, digital world8. It is important to note that these pressures—often referred to as turns or crises— are becoming increasingly frequent while offering organizations the opportunity for advancements of their digital transformation strategies. In essence, digitally literate individuals are capable of pushing organizations to identify turns as opportunities and leverage them to drive post traumatic growth. In contrast, traditionalists generally prefer firms to revert to strategies which worked in the past. Seeing as they achieved success with those strategies and lower levels of digital literacy previously, they do not feel the desire or need to change. An effective example to depict the dire consequences which can be followed by a traditionalist approach are many taxi companies. These firms had a monopoly on transportation for hire.

However, the majority of firms are run by traditionalist who refused to change their business model in order to adapt to the digital developments threatening the ultimate sacrifice: bankruptcy, without any chance of a recovery. In today’s technological environment, it is the very stability that once maximized results of traditional business models which now hampers enterprises in attempting to revolutionize changes in accordance with demands of the digital market9.

While many enterprises are looking at advancing current systems and processes, the continuously most successful ones are those who are transforming rather than optimizing. Instead of spending valuable resources attempting to advance expensive legacy systems or processes, firms need to leverage the tools available today which are often a lot more affordable, efficient, and effective. By leveraging modern tools such as social media, video conferencing, or cloud technology, employees are able to apply valuable skills developed in their personal life to improve their work life. In essence, the seamlessness and speed at which growth happens in an organization is dependent on the digital literacy of its workforce.

CIOs are beginning to comprehend that before they can decide on actions for the future, it is crucial that they understand what happened in the past and molded our current environment. Only upon understanding what has changed, why it changed, and how to anticipate future change, can we devise a strategy guiding us to success. As a result of this mentality, firms are slowly starting to focus on digital literacy and experiencing benefits such as reduced inefficiencies, increased revenue, reduced attrition rates and many more. Additionally, a survey conducted by Gartner10 in the USA found:  Employees who work for firms that make apps available and highly accessible spend 17% less time on manual processes;  87% of CIOs believe digitally empowering employees can drive at least 5% additional revenue growth over 3 years;  54% of CIOs agreed that the ability for their workforce to more easily access business applications has reduced attrition rates;  94% of IT survey respondents reported significant benefits from adopting SaaS; and  By getting to the point where 6 in 10 employees strongly agree they have the materials and equipment they need to do their work right, organizations could realize an 11% increase in profitability.

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“JISC digital Capabilities Framework: The six elements defined,” JISC, n.d., http://repository.jisc.ac.uk/7278/1/BDCP-DC-Framework-Individual-6E-110319.pdf CIO Research Group, “The 2020 CIO Agenda: Winning in the Turns” Gartner, 2019, https://www.gartner.com/document/3970511?ref=solrAll&refval=257486111 10 “27 Stats About Digital Workplace Transformation, “Gartner, https://www.dizzion.com/resource/blog/27-stats-about-digital-workplace-transformations/ 9

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Deeper Look

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The Role of the Chief Information Officer The role of CIO has been steadily growing in prominence in both public and private organizations since the 1980s. As information technology shifted from niche department to vital organ within organizations, CIOs have moved from the relatively uninspired task of managing mainframes to today, in some organizations, being the second hand to the CEO regarding power and responsibility. As their responsibilities have ballooned, new C-Suite roles have split off from the CIO, such as the CTO or CDO. Resultantly firms invest increasingly large amounts of time and capital in ‘digital transformation’, meaning those in the role of CIO are likely to see their responsibilities enlarge further.

Alongside technology the role of the CIO has constantly been changing and evolving. However, in today’s modern world, the differentiating needs of individual businesses require unique organizational structures. This has become a key factor in the growing popularity of related roles, such as Chief Digital Officer, and Chief Technological Officer.

Although there is some overlap between the positions, each focuses on different key areas. Broadly speaking, the CIO is responsible for IT requirements within the firm. This includes IT equipment, software, internal apps, portals, internet, VPNs, remote drives, and all other daily IT needs for workers within the firm. By contrast, the Chief Digital Officer (CDO) is focused on extending a company’s value proposition into the internet, and to fight off competition from emerging Internet competitors11. The Chief Technology Officer (CTO) is another similar but distinct role within the executive suite. The CTO is focused on scientific or technical issues within the firm, and this will vary depending on the nature of the company.

Figure 1: Characteristics of a Successful CIO

Source: Morgan, 2021

While conducting the interviews, a common belief, that a successful CIOs no longer associates the “I” in CIO with information exclusively, was uncovered. Many have grown into supplementary “roles” such as Chief Intelligence Officer, Chief Inspiration Officer, and Chief Innovation Officer. Additionally, as illustrated in figure 1, these interviewees described a successful CIO as someone who, among other characteristics, is a skilled communicator, business and technologically savvy, open minded, constantly learning, a visionary, and is able to “get shit done”.

Like any corporate executive, CIOs have achieved their professional successes through dedication, perseverance, and by mastering a variety of key skills. It is a combination of these technical and non-technical skills which allow them to thrive in technical as well as operational positions. When it comes to adapting to the current times, these CIOs and other IT executives—CDOs & CTOs—need to shift their mindset from a traditional 11

“Organize for Digital – the CIO/CDO relationship”, Deloitte, December 2018, https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/nl/Documents/consumerbusiness/deloitte-nl-organize-for-digital-the-cio-cdo-relationship.pdf

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approach, perhaps the mindset which lead them to success, to that of a more modern and digitally centric methodology. In theory, when evaluating seven key areas: strategy, culture, talent, technology, User Experience, IT Philosophy, Project Management, and business model, a digitally minded individual would focus on factors such as innovation rather than efficiency in terms of strategy or high skilled talent rather than low cost talent (figure 2).

Figure 2: Digital CIO Mindset

During the conduction of the interviews, it was uncovered that no organization/CIO in the public or private sector operated with a fully digital mindset.

Instead, the majority of interviewees could exclusively express a desire to move to a more “digital” approach for strategy, culture, talent, project management and others due to faced challenges in their implementation. Meaning most participants were still in transition towards a predominantly digital approach, rather than having fully finalized it. Also some were still using traditional non-digital approaches as a default.

However, with the impacts of COVID-19, the need to shift to a digital mindset has become a top priority for all organizations.

The areas where a digital approach was most predominant across interviews was in the realm of “User Experience” and “IT Philosophy”. There, nearly all interviewees asserted that their approach was predominantly a digital one. Overall, for-profit firms tended to have an easier time transitioning to a predominantly digital approach across more areas, than interviewees from the public sector.

Source: Michael Krigsman. CXOtalks.com

Factors Aiding the Switch to Increased Digital Literacy In one form or another, the ongoing pursuit of a more digitally literate society has been in motion since the first industrial revolution. Specifically in the last 15, and especially last five years, the idea of increasing digital literacy has become a pressing conversation within organizations of any size. This is partially a result of drastic advances in technology, its increased widespread availability, changing customer demands, as well as the shift to a reliance on technology.

One factor which can have a positive impact on the culture and ambition for organizational growth within a company is the implementation of a horizontal organizational structure. Reducing the hierarchical intimidation of senior executives from the workforce allows individuals who work on a product or process all day to have the confidence and opportunity to provide suggestions to upper management. In addition, when employees see management on the work floor, leading by example and promoting continuous learning, they will be highly motivated to do the same. As a result of COVID-19, organizations are now faced with the barrier of creating this organizational structure in a mainly WFH (work from home) environment.

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It is no surprise that enterprises capable of boasting their strong culture of digital literacy are those which provide their employees with the resources and technology they want and need and the ability to access it. This does not mean that all legacy systems must or should be scraped and a complete technological overhaul need be conducted. However, when only three in ten U.S. employees strongly agree that they have the materials and equipment they need to do their work correctly12, something needs to be changed. And in fact, as a result of this managers, directors, and C-suite executives have been reallocating resources to provide employees access to the tools necessary to complete their jobs effectively.

Transformation takes time, resources, and manpower. Thankfully, as Digital Natives begin to enter the workforce, they are becoming Digital Ambassadors for the Digital Immigrants of the organization. Exposing the firm to a new mindset, vocabulary, emerging technologies, and a new way of working allows Digital Ambassadors to play a crucial role in the advancement of digital transformation strategies.

As a species that is inherently stubborn and greedy, humans always want the latest and greatest technology and are never satisfied with what they already possess. One could have a Walkman which can play an artist’s latest song, but then one could argue that we need something that could store millions of songs and fits in a pocket. If one has a rotary phone that allows calling anyone desired, one could argue that we need a watch that enables sending a text message. Every time a new technology is introduced to the masses the overall digital literacy is increased.

One does not need to be a CIO or expert in order to understand the value of creating an environment where all parties, no matter their seniority, are working towards a single goal. When directives are issued to all employees but certain people are exempt, it can result in a negative connotation. It is for this reason that Clevel executives (frequently CEOs and CIOs) are often the champion of digital workplace changes. Despite the direct correlation to the relevance of their position, research uncovered that this was only the case in at approximately 65% of organizations12.

While technology is a key component of the shift towards a more digitally literate world, it is not the biggest driver in 2020. As indicated in our interviews with CIOs, COVID-19 is driving change at rates never seen before. In a matter of a few months, the disease made advancements which would have not been possible with 10 years of traditional innovation. From an almost completely digital currency, to a shift to working from home, to restricting brick-and-mortar shopping, it is safe to say there is no avoiding technology.

As discussed in a previous section, successful leaders are focusing on gaining a thorough understanding of the problem and its causation rather than rushing to find a solution. This does not mean they are spending weeks analyzing each and every problem they are facing, but rather that they understand the high stakes of making a mistake. For instance, if one notices a decrease in productivity, it may not be a result of the staff’s efforts but rather the outdated hardware or software in which is in need of replacement.

Factors Hindering the Switch to Increased Digital Literacy As reliant as the majority of the world has become on technology, many still fear it and the uncertainty it creates. Unfortunately even with all the positives opportunities generated on a personal, societal, and even

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“27 Stats About Digital Workplace Transformation, “Gartner, https://www.dizzion.com/resource/blog/27-stats-about-digital-workplace-transformations/

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organizational level, there are certain key factors which are working towards hindering and even reversing the growth of technology.

When it comes to new, emerging and even long established technologies, many users operate them, some are able to understand them, but only a select few are actually capable of creating or manipulating them.

This discrepancy of knowledge around technology is the underlying basis for a hindrance towards the growth of a more digitally literate society. The internet supplies answers to almost any question, however, the majority of people do not leverage this in order to gain a deeper understanding on a topic. Additionally, having infinite information at our fingerprints is not exclusively positive, considering that some of this information can be faulty or dangerous superficial knowledge. As a result, no matter the position, one is capable of finding “proof”, “facts”, and “sources” validating almost any arbitrary opinion, idea, or theory. In essence, anyone can become an “expert” on a subject, regardless of the depth of their knowledge or their point of view (e.g. The flat earth society). The impact of these misinformed experts has the potential to cause major ripples in any organization or society As powerful as buzz words are, the reality is that many do not fully understand their true meaning and therefore developed misconceptions and potential unwarranted negative association. A good example is “automation”. For many this word is associated with time savings or improvements. However, for others, the term triggers thoughts of a high, unrealistic, bar of what can actually be automated. This results in a fear for their job and/or a belief that machines are taking over.

No matter how old, there always needs to be a spark which functions as a driver of personal and professional growth. Unfortunately, it is very simple to get to the point of cruising through life with the skills and the knowledge we already have. Most of the time it will start with a lack of desire to learn new work skills and progress until all motivation to learn something new is completely lost. If the drive for continuous growth is lost, one will become stagnant while other progress.

When it comes to factors hindering the growth of digital literacy on an organizational level, in addition to aspects relating to their employees, organizations may be facing a triple threat.(1) A Digital Threat where one is forced to change what and how one is operating. This causes numerous problems related to the introduction of new technology and all the technological and non-technological problems associated. (2) While one is facing these problems, organizations might be losing market share and facing new competition from different sectors (3) all the while, the organization is dealing with a bad company culture. The bad culture could be caused by factors such as competition/competitors, low levels of digital literacy, a lack of progress, a lack of interest, or actively fighting a major lawsuit. When experiencing the triple threat, firms are in a toxic environment, and fighting for survival rather than striving for increased digital literacy.

Another factor that might be holding a firm back from prosperous levels of digital literacy is related to an unclear understanding of the impacts of technology. Two of the major misconceptions are the notion that automation will result in outsourcing to India—or other countries—and the threat of job loss. This is a difficult hurdle because it requires immense effort to change someone’s mind once they have decided to dig their heels in.

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In terms of constraints restricting the successful adoption of most digital transformation initiatives, our research concluded, CIOs have named budget constraints, lack of cross-departmental collaboration and limitations of current platforms as main challenges to creating a digital workplace.

Key Emerging Technology Trends While there are a number of technologies and technological developments playing key roles in the transformation of the Canadian economy, an analysis of CIOs, from different industries and geographical locations, anchor this evolution largely in part to a few of the following core ‘transformative’ technologies: Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Figure 3: Prominence of Emerging Technologies Internet of Things (IoT), and Blockchain.

 Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning: AI is the science of designing computer systems that exhibit characteristics associated with human intelligence. This includes learning, thinking, reasoning, strategizing, and problem solving. AI is a multi-disciplinary subject that involves methodologies and techniques from various fields, including mathematics, engineering, Natural Science, Computer Science, and linguistics. Over the last few decades, we have seen the continued evolution of AI activities such as Machine Learning (ML).

Source: Morgan, 2021 Rather than a program learning through explicit programming, ML enables the ability to learn from data.  Virtual Reality & Artificial Reality: More commonly referred to as VR and AR, Virtual Reality & Artificial Reality emerged from a subset of the information communication technology sector focused on interactive and immersive experiences. They utilize various kinds of integrated technologies such as: software to generate virtual objects and environments; hardware to capture, transmit, and display data; and servers to store and process information and to enable Machine Learning functions.13 Despite these similarities, Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality are actually quite different, supported by a unique combination of hardware and software tools, and used for a unique set of purposes. Virtual Reality (VR) completely immerses users in a computer-generated 3D environment, removing as much connection as possible with the real world. Augmented Reality (AR) enriches the real world with virtual or digital information in the form of words, images, video, and audio.

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“The Technology Behind Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Applications in Clean Teach”, Ecoformatics, 2019. https://www.ecoformatics.com/blogs/news/thetechnology-behind-virtual-reality-and-augmented-reality-applications-in-clean-tech

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 Blockchain: Despite its increasing popularity, blockchain technology remains difficult to define for the non-specialist, both in terms of the unique technical components at the core of the technology, and the widespread imprecise usage of the term. In simple terms, a blockchain is a type of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) that is continually updated by participating users and verified by other users, hosted across numerous servers rather than having a single authoritative version held by a single user or data center. Everything entered into the blockchain is permanently recorded: a writer can create a new entry that reflects the change of a previous record, but they are never able to delete an entry.14 The integrity of entries in the blockchain is maintained through a cryptographic hash function, and blockchain uses a particular cryptographic technique where each entry or “block” is encoded such that it points back to the previous block, meaning that no old entry can be changed without compromising all the other blocks in the interlinked “chain.”15 Using this process, blockchain is intended to be decentralized, transparent, open-source, autonomous, immutable, and pseudonymous.16 Interestingly, one technological development which was not mentioned by any of the CIOs interviewed was Social Media. Unlike other trends mentioned above, social media is used extensively by the masses on a daily basis and has provided consumers and organizations with unprecedented access and power. Organizations are able to more efficiently connect with their customer base and provide value through new mediums. In some extreme instances customers can even determine the fate of an organization with a mere 280 characters. In a more practical sense, consumers are able to communicate, express their opinions, share, learn, and much more, in using Social Media. This allows organizations to get access to user reviews and opinions felt by the masses (or a single person) faster than ever before.

All this being said, a CIO should not try to be—nor is it possible to be—an expert in all of the above mentioned skills, and/or other new technologies. There are far too many emerging technologies for a single person to become a power user, especially considering that even established technologies are subject to constant change. Additionally, not all tech is relevant in every industry. Given the limited number of hours in a day, CIOs tend to only focus on and evaluate technologies directly relatable to their core business. This means other technologies can go unnoticed or overlooked. This is why many successful CIOs have a similar mentality when it comes to staying up to date with the various emerging technologies. “[It’s] not about technology – CIOs cannot be experts in everything – they need to bring the right people in and talk about it publicly.” –Alex Benay The shift towards a more technologically friendly culture cannot be successfully accomplished without the help of others. By bringing experts together one will be exposed to new and different technologies. Keeping in mind that while at this moment, certain emerging technologies may not be directly beneficial to a firm’s core business, they may create additional revenue streams, impact core processes, or create an opening for new competitors to come up in the future.

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Carlozo, Lou “What is blockchain?”, Journal of Accountancy Vol. 224, no. 1, 2017, p. 1 Kotow, Emily “What is Blockchain Hashing?”, Hedgetrade, February 26, 2019, https://hedgetrade.com/what-is-blockchain-hashing/ 16 Lin, Ion-Chang et al. “A Survey of Blockchain Security Issues and Challenges,” International Journal of Network Security, Vo. 19, no. 5, 2017, pp. 653-659.

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Designing a Strategy for Success

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“Never waste a crisis to fix systematic problems” -Helen Wetherley Knight When designing a strategy it is important to account for uncertainty and understand factors which can hinder or aid in successful implementation. The direct cause of a future crisis may be unknown right now, however, regardless of a cause, firms must recognize the opportunity for post traumatic growth and inject change that may otherwise be impossible. Those who want to return to the status quo are not only wasting a prime opportunity for growth, but they are putting their firm in jeopardy with their outdated mindset.

Digital Literacy Positioning Matrix The Digital Literacy Positioning Matrix is routed upon the core understanding that an organization’s success in the digital era is determined by the ability and willingness to leverage the full potential of their staff’s capabilities in congruence with exhausting various technological advancements. The model creates an understanding of a business’s future based on a self-assessment of the key components of success. The urgency required for change will depend greatly on the categorization.

Figure 4: Digital Literacy Positioning Matrix

Source: Morgan, 2021

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An organization can be categorized into one of eight groups based on an evaluation of two key factors: The level of digital literacy within the organization and the appetite for change within the organization. After analyzing these two factors, the organization can be categorized as one of the following:  The Thriver: Thrivers, are the digitally elite and considered to be the gold standard for embracing what the digital economy has to offer. They understand the importance and value of high level digital literacy and therefore invest heavily in offering continuous learning opportunities to their staff. Employees possess elevated levels of all components of digital literacy. Through a flat and collaborative centric organization model, employees are easily able to propose new ideas to Leadership. Although this is the most desired section, it requires extensive work to achieve and just as much to stay there.

Example: Alphabet Inc. (Google)  The Grinder: Grinders are enterprises who understand the value of digital literacy and have a high level appetite to adopt digital transformation. However, they are currently being held back from their full potential as a result of various factors. These factors could include: resistance from employees, reliance on legacy systems, financial constraints, or lack of direction regarding digital transformation strategies.

Example: Boston Consulting Group  The Fad: Organizations which are categorized as Fads, are those who are currently financially successful, however, they are operating with a false sense of security. While they have a high level of digital literacy, they usually do not have clear direction in terms of increasing digital literacy or their leadership does not believe they need to continue to adapt. Start-ups that generate irregularly high growth levels and firms that struggle with interdepartmental collaboration are often at risk of becoming fads. If firms continue down this path they may begin to transition into Grave Diggers / Business Cases.

Example: Zoom  The Survivor: Survivors are those who continue to operate in a relatively similar fashion apart from making small to medium changes in their strategy as they progress. They are not losing market share at the moment, however, this may change if a major ripple happens in their industry. These firms usually have a vision they want to achieve but are hesitant to act until they see the success of others.

Example: Many Government Departments  The Talker: Talkers are those who have the ambition and know what they need to do, however, they do not actually pursue any actions. Similar to other positions, this is very dangerous as they may become grave diggers or business cases. If it has not started already, they will soon begin to lose the digitally literate staff to other companies.

Example: Television stations*

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 The Sceptic: Sceptics are in a now-or-never situation. They have moderate appetite for change; however they have little to no digitally literacy. Despite having a desire to change, they may be facing resistance from traditionalists or lack the foundation to grow. If no action is taken, they risk transforming into Grave Diggers or Business Cases.

Example: Traditional taxi companies  The Grave Digger: Grave Diggers are those who, whether they know it or not, are on the decline.

Whether it stems from a lack of ability (low levels of digital literacy) or desire (low appetite for change), there is a disconnect between leadership, workers, and customers. This can occur due to a number of factors with the most common one being a lack of desire and ambition to put effort towards necessary changes. Grave diggers are often established firms with industries which were recently disrupted.

Example: Koodo Mobile  The Business Case: These are the organizations which have fallen below the point of no return and are likely to fear becoming irrelevant if not bankrupt in the near future. These organizations become examples of what can happen when change is fought and an adoption to current standards is refused.

Often it is the stability that once maximized results of traditional business models which hampers the enterprise’s attempts to make changes demanded by a digital model (CIO Research Group).

Example: Blockbuster The evaluation of digital literacy should be an assessment of the six components of digital literacy, as previously discussed: Functional Skills, Critical Use, Creative Production, Participation, Development, and Digital Identity. For a more detailed description of the six components, see Appendix 1.

When filling out this model, it is imperative to be as realistic as possible considering that an overestimation regarding the organization’s digital literacy position Figure 5: TOWST Analysis can result in a false sense of security or the formation of an off-kilter strategy. It is best to conduct an evaluation of the digital literacy level of employees from different positions, as this increases the accuracy of the result. As a further insurance, trusted employees from various levels should also conduct their own analysis and categorize the organization. This exercise is valuable as it will indicate whether the vision and understanding of the company’s situation is accurate to its perception. If is the CIO believes their organization is a “Grinder” but the majority of other response indicate “Talker”, there exists a disconnect, which needs to be investigated, is obvious.

When the initial evaluation is completed, a TOWST analysis should be conducted with respect to digital literacy (figure 5). The TOWST analysis—verbalized the same way as “toast”— is an adaptation of the traditional SWOT analysis analyzing threats, Adapted from: Dr. Michael Robertson opportunities, weaknesses, strengths, and trends. When completing the analysis in terms of technology/digital literacy, the evaluation will uncover guiding information on how to 15

stay in the current categorization, or, if this is not satisfactory, an idea on what to do to increase the level of digital literacy of the organization.

How to Incite Change It’s not of the utmost importance if one is initially classified as a Thriver, a Survivor, or a Grave Digger.

Good CIOs understand that one cannot become content, but must rather continuously strive for improvement.

Keeping in mind that staying stagnant is fatal, they must always look for a way to increase digital literacy levels, close the digital divide, and drive digital transformation. It is like Edwin Louis Cole once said “You don’t drown by falling in water, you drown by staying there”.

As has been mentioned before, there is no universal golden ticket for success or to achieve a high digital literacy. The specific combination of programs, initiatives, and investments necessary for a successful digital transformation is unique to the industry, the organization, and their associated desired vision. That being said, it is impossible for one person to make the change on their own, as there needs to be action on the CIO, the organizational, and the individual level. Meaning multiple entities need to spark the movement towards a better future through an understanding of the value in challenging what is considered “normal”.

Figure 6: Digital Literacy Growth Enablement

Source: Morgan 2021

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What can the CIO do?

When it comes to a successful rollout of any initiative, there are certain actions that the CIO can perform to ensure a positive impact on the organization. For instance, they will allocate funding, determine KPIs, establish an oversight framework, and seek advice from key individuals. Furthermore, when it comes to the successful implementation of a strategy concentrated on increasing digital literacy, in addition to these core actions, the CIO should consider undertake following: 

Lead by example: When it comes to the successful implementation of digital initiatives, it is necessary for the CIO, CEO and other executives to lead by example. As the digital champion, they will ensure the constant momentum and engagement.



Create a culture of learning and growth: At first glance, this does not need to be directed towards digital literacy. The habits used to learn how to learn a new language, run a marathon, or learn a new skill are the same which will be used to improve digital literacy. If people have no desire to continue to learn and grow in their personal life, then how will they become motivate to grow in their professional life



Create a clear, concise, and explicit digital literacy strategy: The CIO must become a wordsmith capable of articulating a clear and concise vision to their workforce. Without a clear definition and vision, the strategy becomes open to interpretation and has a high likelihood of failure. To articulate a clear and consistent vision, CIOs must clearly convey a purpose, objective, mindset, scalability, and services.



Generate change in all directions: CIOs must drive change in every direction. They must push through and overcome any resistance from the organizations leadership. They need develop and grow the skills of the current workforce. When necessary, they need to partner with peer and nontraditional entities and further develop leadership capabilities within the management team17.



Constantly adapt: The list of priorities is never-ending and never stagnant; therefore, the CIO must constantly reevaluate all priorities. This step also involves saying “no” to new ideas or stopping initiatives, when necessary.



Start small and methodically: Instead of a large roll-out, begin by focusing efforts on a small group of 10-15 exceptional employees. Find the intrapreneurs of the organization, meaning the individuals who are never satisfied with the status quo. The identified small group will be the most susceptible to the vision and provide the highest likelihood for a successful launch.

What can the CIO and Organization do? 

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Conduct additional analysis on the Digital Literacy Position of the organization: A TOWST and Digital Literacy Positioning Matrix analysis should always be conducted by numerous individuals in order to minimize the likelihood of a false evaluation.

De’Onn Griffin, “The Leadership Compass for CIOs” Gartner, 2019, ID: G00450237

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

Create and ensure there is digital trust: It is simple, if people do not trust technology then they will not adopt technology. By creating trust in technology, individuals will become more confident in their ability to use technology, thus unlocking their true potential.



Conduct a GBA+ Analysis: Devising a strategy, especially one which needs to align with individuals with different skillsets, genders, backgrounds, or geographical locations, is not easy. Therefore, a focus groups should be created to conduct a Gender Bias Awareness Plus analysis, this allow the strategy to be vetted for any biases which may have been inadvertently created when being shaped.



Value employees and subject matter expert’s opinions: When it comes to making decisions, digital leaders need to understand that no matter how much they know, there will likely be someone who knows even more. Therefore, instead of keeping a closed-door decision making process, the subject matter experts and those who are on the front line should have a heard voice. This doesn’t mean that anyone and everyone should be able to make key decisions, but rather that if one’s digital transformation is successful, workers should possess the expertise and confidence to make informed/calculated decision or provide valuable insight.



Open a dialogue / give employees a voice: When designing a strategy to increase the digital literacy of a workforce, the workforce should have a voice. By providing the opportunity for people to have a voice, those who are passionate on the topic will speak up. These are the people who understand the vision and are likely to help spreading the word. By not actively creating a dialogue, people will feel like decisions are being made on their behalf rather than with them. Furthermore, any feedback will indicate whether deployed efforts are working or not.



Continuously re-evaluate the strategy: The digital landscape of an organization is fluid, meaning it is constantly adapting to its environment. As a result, one cannot accurately create a digital transformation strategy for the next five years. Focus should instead be set on short term goals which are capable of achieving a long-term vision. The success of a strategy is directly correlated to the effort which is put in.



Change the narrative: Change can be an uneasy and difficult thing for people. Especially, when they believe their job may be in jeopardy. The best way to overcome this situation is to change the narrative.

One should refrain from putting employees into a position of serious uncomfortableness. This can be accomplished by focusing on the positive and the creation of an understanding that if a skill is learned or knowledge obtained, there is a chance of promotions or other exciting opportunities. Instead of feeling like they are backed into a corner, employees will feel empowered and want to grow.



Create advancement opportunities for the digitally literate: If one wants to attract and retain top talent, there needs to be opportunities for growth. By providing opportunities to the digitally literate one will rewarding hardworking employees, by giving workers something to strive for, as well as provide an outlet for someone to continue to grow and gain new experiences, thus continuing their journey of growth.

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What can the Organization do?

It’s easy for digital leaders to start the movement but they cannot do it all, especially in the beginning.

While certain activities must happen collaboratively with other parties, there are certain activities that need to happen on the organizational level as they fall outside the purview of the CIO and any individual. 

Find the right balance of change: Changes need to be big enough to inject some digital DNA, but small enough to minimize resistance and rejection.



Provide the tools necessary to do a job digitally and efficiently: Employees need to have access to the apps they need wherever and whenever they need them. No one would restrict a carpenter to using a handsaw when they could be using a table saw, so why should any workforce operate with anything less than the proper tools.



Take the leap of faith: In some instances, organizations need to be willing to take on financial, operational, or strategic risks in search for long-term growth, even if that could decrease current year profits. When it comes to many emerging technologies, the resources required to adopt a technology or learn a new skill will pale in comparison to the potential savings down the line.



Focus efforts on the “Digitally Ready”: While one may want to address the entire organization, start by engaging the Digitally Ready. Once the organization is able to generate a record of success, it will be easier to scale to the masses without causing major problems.



Don’t penalize the less Digitally Literate: One of the most detrimental things one can do is penalize the less digitally literate. If their position will likely transitions into ones which requires skills they do not currently possess, move them into a different role. Not only will this eliminate negative publicity but seeing the careers of others advance while theirs stays stagnate may be the motivation necessary to get them on the path to digital enlightenment. That being said, this should be a last resort.



Leverage Post Traumatic Growth (PTG): After a crisis, rather than easing back into how things were before, organizations should leverage the opportunity to implement change they otherwise would not be able to.



Inject new life into the organization: While promoting internally is a valuable tool, a quick and easy method of jump-starting change within an organization is through the introduction of fresh blood.

Onboarding staff with various experiences and high levels of digital literacy will reduce groupthink and create access to specific skills without the need to expel any resources developing them.

What can the Organization and Individuals do? 

Ensure the CIO is upholding their promise: It is the responsibility of the firm and its workforce to hold the CIO to their promises. If the CIO is “talking-the-talk” but not “walking-the-walk” or their

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implementation has started to stray from the vision, something needs to be said. 

Create a reputation for possessing a high level of digital literacy: It is impossible to control external factors. Therefore, an importance should be placed on self-improvement. As an enterprise, creating a reputation for being digitally literate will be attracting as well as retaining top talent. On an individual level, this will unlock new opportunities.

What can the Individual do?

Everything comes down to the workforce. They are the ones who need to be willing to put in the effort.

Those who put in the work will experience personal and professional growth, while those who resist will begin to struggle more and more as time and technology advances. 

Reach out to digital leaders / Executives: Individuals with a desire to grow their digital literacy need to be proactive and reach out to digital leaders within their organization. These digital leaders will be able to provide them with resources, opportunities, or a platform to reach their goals.



Don’t be afraid to propose new ideas for personal, professional, or organizational growth: Just because one is not a CEO or CIO does not mean one cannot understand the current environment enough to have a good idea. Different experiences and expertise will allow people to view a situation in different ways.

If it is a good idea, they will take it on.



Become a digital influencer/role model for digital literacy within the organization: Not everyone can be on the center stage when it comes to influencing an organization, but this does not mean everyone cannot make an impact. Those who have a passion for the topic have the ability to become a digital influencer within their network. As people begin to notice, one will be able to impact more and more people.



Continuous training / create a drive for personal growth: If technology is constantly changing, so will the industry and consequently the firm’s needs. As a result, employees need be aware of the skills they possess and work towards gaining the ones the organization needs.



Take advantage of C.M.T. (Coaching-Mentoring-Training) opportunities: In most organizations, there are numerous programs aimed at providing growth opportunities to workers. Unfortunately, many go unused. Taking advantage of coaching, mentoring, and training opportunities provides the unique opportunity to learn in new ways. Additionally, these opportunities provides direct access to key members of an organization.

What can the Individual and CIO do? 

Start the conversation: It does not matter if one is the CIO, an intern, a manager, or anything in between.

The determination and passion which creates change and drives innovation can be possessed by anyone.

Individuals need to speak up and start the conversation. Educating people on the value and benefits of 20

increasing their digital literacy will generate the momentum necessary to create change within any organization. 

Grow through experiences: An individual’s level within in the organization is not important, the amount of experience a person can contribute, equates to the number of different tools they can leverage when solving a problem. This also means that one should change to something new and more challenging, once getting comfortable in a position, in order to continuously expanding one’s toolset. Individuals in the public sector should feel encouraged to venture into the public sector for a few years. This will expose them to very different environments.

What can the CIO, Organization, and Individual all do? 

Embrace change: The key to success in the fourth industrial revolution is to become comfortable with the uncomfortable.



Understand the current environment: One needs to understand that today’s standards are defined by the digital era and the ways of the industrial age will no longer lead to success.



Continuous learning and growth: Only when technology stops advancing should people stop trying to learn and grow.



Start today: Something needs to happen today, while it does not have to be world changing it should be something to get the ball moving. Otherwise it will continue to be put on the backburner until it is too late.



Challenge stagnation: If we are not moving forward, we are moving backwards. It should be the responsibility of each and every person in the organization to push themselves and the organization forward.



Perseverance: Improving levels of digital literacy is not easy, nor will it happen overnight. The only way to make it happen is through grit and perseverance.

These are by no means the only things that can be done. However, they will provide a strong foundation to build upon as one progresses down the journey of success and continuous growth in the digital era. While the ability to change your level of digital literacy depends on your specific innovation strategy and ability to make trade-offs. The selection of any of the initiatives listed in figure 6—or others— boils down to the crossing point between two key factors and how they will align with the vision: the level of importance associated to the level of investment into the personal and professional growth of their workforce in congruence with the focus on existing versus new technical competencies.

When designing a strategy to increase digital literacy within an organization, CIOs must determine the balance between how much to invest financially in initiatives aimed at increasing digital literacy and the extent 21

to which they want to focus on new technical competencies. The Innovation Through Change Matrix will provide CIOs with assistance when determining how financial and technical factors will generate change within their organization.

Figure 7: Innovation Through Change Matrix

Source: Morgan 2021 Adapted from: Corning; Gary P. Pisano. “You Need an Innovation Strategy”

While a CIO may be looking to change their digital literacy position, the access to resources such as finances, man-power, or time is limited. Therefore, by evaluating each potential initiative against this matrix, they will be able to understand what type of change it will generate and whether it will lead to the results they are looking for. While every initiative will cause change in some form or another, the level of impact can be anticipated as one of the following.  Organizational Change: Organizational changes refers to transformation which is driven by an increase in investments towards increasing digital literacy while focusing on existing technologies and worker competencies. Although expensive, the impact will have ongoing benefits.  Radical Change: Radical Change refers to a strategy which is aimed around growth on all fronts.

By increasing investments towards personal and professional growth and providing access to new technical competencies, an organization will find the highest levels of intrapreneurship and growth.  Prehistoric Change (Status Quo): A prehistoric strategy is a dangerous strategy one which generates almost no change whatsoever. Often resulting in a continuation of offering the same optional training programs as 5-10 years ago while Internal processes / best-practices have seen little to no change over the years.

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 Routine Change: A routine change strategy is a simplistic strategy which will provide comfort to organizations clinging to what they have. Rather than increasing the investment towards professional development, there is a gradual shift of resources towards offering the same resources on new topics. This strategy involves offering some new training programs which creates a sense of optional growth for their workers. A mentality of change being a necessity over opportunity will kept costs down but at a potential devastating costs.

Key Considerations Once one further illustrates the path of digital enlightenment, one will begin to see an increase of digital literacy. This may happen through organizational efforts or through natural cause and effect (older less digitally literate employees retire and new digitally literate employees join the organization). Regardless of the cause, the shift towards a digital mindset is not one to be taken lightly. It requires extensive thought into considerations such as potential ROI, target audience, contingency plans, budget allocation, etc. However, it is important for CIOs and their digital leadership team to also consider the following digital contemplations.

Before one can determine a strategy to increase digital literacy, the CIO must understand the current levels of digital literacy and their staff as well as the organizations readiness as a whole. Adoption rates for new technology vary greatly based off an individual’s—or organization’s—level of digital readiness. According to a research study by the Pew Research Center18, the rate at which an individual will adopt a new technology can be categorized into one of five categories spread between two groups. They will either be part of “the relatively hesitant” which include The Unprepared, Traditional Learners, and The Reluctant. Or they will be considered “relatively more prepared”, which includes cautious clickers and the Digitally Ready. For a complete report or to view the questions, refer to John B. Horrigan’s report titled “Digital Readiness Gaps”.

Once the CIO has a lay of the land, they will need to decide whether they want to embark on a transformation or transition strategy. Transition can do the same work with the same intended outcome, simply using new tools. This usually results in a significant increase in output and efficiency. Regardless, these changes will not last forever. They will continue to transform in the future. Which on the one hand could be introducing RPA (Robotic Processing Automation) to handle repetitive tasks and free-up human capital. On the other hand, transformation happens when something changes the output, on a more permanent timeframe19. For example, when Netflix went from solely being a streaming service for small/medium/large production companies to creating their own content, they transformed their business into something new that will last “forever”.

When determining which technology to invest in or what skills to search for, a focus needs to be set on how technology is evolving and what time commitment is required to master it. In a world constantly changing, we must ensure the end product, strategy, or skill is not outdated once it is ready to be released.

When creating an IT strategy, it is easy to focus on the physical—i.e. technology—and forget about the intangible—i.e. understanding the technology and its fit in the organization. That is why it is not important where a company begins their process, it is important not to become too fixated on the technology itself. The 18 19

John Horrigan, “Digital Readiness Gaps,” PEW Research Center, 2016, https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2016/09/20/the-meaning-of-digital-readiness/ Isaac Sacolick, Interview with Isaac Sacolick, 2020

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objective is not to become more technologically reliant, but rather to improve performance using digital means20. Therefore, when devising a strategy, it is important not to focus on wrong aspects. Going digital does not equate that everything and anything needs to be digital, meaning that while the technology might be at our fingertips one may not always need to use it.

With six key components, as outlined in appendix 1, it is important to determine which aspects encompassing digital literacy are most relevant and deserve the most attention. While a strategy based around two or three components is possible, an attempt to implement initiatives which focus on each component would require extensive financial and organizational resources.

As firms become more and more digital, they need to understand, a digital word is different than the physical word. This means that even though the technology and the knowhow to streamline a specific task is available, does not mean we should continue down that path. Before approving a change initiative, digital leader must consider the impact it will have on the health of the organization and its workforce. For instance, with the rise of working from home and virtual meetings, a decision needs to be made regarding whether to use the new technology more or less. When people have back to back virtual meetings all day, they are no longer getting up from their chair to move to the next meeting nor does it easily allow them to have any “water cooler talk”.

Employees no longer have the ability to clear their mind before meetings or create person connections with coworkers. This raises the question if this new way of working improves or hinders the employees’ perception of working from home.

When filling a position, digital leaders need to work alongside Human Resources to identify which critical hard and soft skills a candidate must possess. While it is easier for someone to learn hard skills such as using MS Excel, or Cloud Computing than it is to develop soft skills such as collaboration, adaptability, problem solving, critical thinking, the hiring committee must consider the cost-benefit analysis of both options21. Similarly, when investing resources for existing employees, CIOs need to decide if it is more valuable to start a transformation strategy by offering training or with less “traditional” methods. While training is important and something that can easily be offered to the masses relatively quickly, it could be more productive and valuable to create a program which sparks an interest in growth from within. For example, one could spend $500,000 in creating and offering job specific training programs, or one could invest that $500,000 in the development and execution of a program which encourages employees to present original ideas to improve a current technology, an internal process, or problem and offer small grants to be used to further explore good ideas. One of these initiatives can be rolled out quickly and give workers the skills necessary to do a current/future job, while the other encourages staff to leverage everything they know about technology and the company while being creative. Ultimately a CIO needs to decide how much an individual who does not have a spark and deeper desire will realistically take away from a training initiative.

As previously mentioned, when communicating with large groups, it is common to use buzz words as they will grab people’s attention and paint a picture in their head. However, when introducing change into an organization, digital leaders should avoid using certain buzz words as they generate far more harm than good.

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Andrus, Garth R., & Phillips, Anh Nguyen, “23 and You: How many traits of Digital DNA does your company have?” Deliotte, n.d., https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/finance/articles/cfo-insights-23-and-you-how-many-traits-of-digital-dna-does-your-company-have.html 21 Alex Gay “How Digital Literacy Affects the Modern Workplace,” Adobe, 2019, https://theblog.adobe.com/how-digital-literacy-affects-the-modern-workforce/

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Managing Digital Literacy

b

Combating Resistance Throughout the entire digital transformation process, it is not a matter of “will one” but rather “one will” face resistance from individual employees or even groups. When pushing digital transformation and trying to manage those resisting change, one needs to not fixate on the negative. Especially taking into consideration that resistance could originate in a plethora of reasons. Perhaps an individual is misinformed on a topic, scared of change, or does not see value in a specific initiative. Regardless of the reason, there is an abundance of proactive and reactive strategies capable of overcome resistance.

Ideally, the design and implementation of one’s strategy will include a variety of proactive measures which will alleviate the need for reactive strategies. As discussed in a previous section, two of such measures are centered on changing the narrative and avoiding triggering/buzz words. Changing the narrative, involves always trying to put a positive spin on things even if others may interpret it as negative initially. As 2020 turns into 2021 and beyond, companies will require more and more digitally literate staff. Therefore, those who cannot or will not try to increase their digital literacy may begin to feel as if they will be out of a job. Whether an organization decides to implement the strategy or not is up to them, and irrelevant for this discussion. This strategy allows the emphasis of any positive outcomes rather making someone feel as if they were backed into a corner. Additionally, dodging buzz words is a viable strategy for bypassing misconceptions caused by negative word associations. However, if one is determined to use buzz words, ensuring to clarify what they will mean for the workforce is indispensable. This will alleviate some problems down the line.

The next strategy aims to eliminate any ill-conceived notions people may have towards technology.

When conveying a vision along with the new opportunities it will create, one should make sure to mention that even in a data heavy world, not all “low tech” positions are destined to disappear. It is important to be honest to employees by admitting that many positions may change, while also ensuring them that this does not equate to their complete disappearance. For instance, software may be able to replace a position which previously required a person to call clients to gather specific information for various reasons. However, those with this experience can be trained to do follow-up calls or other customer service activities.

One can try hard to be proactive, but it should be clear that it is not possible to please everyone.

Consequently, there is no avoiding situations which require reactive strategies. For instance, if someone is being vocal about their disagreement with the strategy, one should not address them in public or in any way which could escalate the situation. On the contrary, one should sit down with them and have an informal discussion in an attempt to understand their point of view. As a key driver of transformation, it should be the CIO who has the conversation. This way both parties have the opportunity to voice opinions and concerns in a confidential and non-confrontational environment, where any misinterpretations can be explained and resolved. This a highly effective solution as it allows for one to mediate a problem and understand a flaw in the strategy which is likely mirrored by more than just the one employee.

While modernization is necessary for the growth of an organization, it cannot be accomplished without change. Unfortunately, change is a key driver of instability and resistance. In period of stability, “alignment” means that everyone in the organization is operating under the same understanding and in the same direction.

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As is imaginable, it is easy for a firm to fall out of alignment through attempted change. When old methods have been drilled into all levels of staff for years, the missing ability to convey a clear and concise vision for change will in end in organizational instability. By creating a dynamic alignment strategy, leaders are able to ensure a successful transition period. The five components of an effective dynamic alignment strategy include: Effective Leadership, Disciplined Investment, Compelling Vision, Clear Strategy, and Robust Relationship 22.

Things become more complicated when the resistance stems from a toxic internal company culture.

Whether the toxicity is caused by increasing levels of competition, lack of progress, lack of interest, fighting a major lawsuit, or any other reason, it is hard to initiate change under these conditions. As a result, it is best to alter the chosen digital transformation strategy to one which enables collaboration and allows communication.

Conversations which uncover the root of all problems are tough, but necessary in order to address them.

Perhaps it is beneficial to provide support for the overwhelmed and recognition for the underappreciated.

Regardless of the specific situation, creating a dialogue will unveil the path to a better culture.

If all of the above depicted strategies are not successful and resistance is still voiced by some, ignore them. Stubborn individuals which are standing in the way of meaningful change should not be supplied with any power. Instead a focus should be set on the positive impact that is being had on the organization. Once the transformation displays the first rewards they may reconsider. However, if this is not the case and all else has failed, consider terminating their employment in order to allow them to find an organization which aligns with their beliefs.

Anticipated Results In the most basic sense, there are three potential scenarios an organization may face. They will either become a digital leader or thrive in a digital economy, adapt enough to survive, or struggle until the point of bankruptcy or change. In reference to the Digital Literacy Positioning Matrix (figure 4), an organization may experience the following.

Scenario 1- The Thriver: Excelling in the Fourth Industrial Revolution Here, an organization is thriving and experiencing growth as a result of a strong digital culture where workers are extremely digitally literate. The culture within this organization will be one of curiosity and open collaboration between departments. By ensuring all employees have the physical tools as well as the training, skills and confidence necessary to perform their job with optimal efficiency, not only will staff be put in a position for success, but their growth mindset will begin to generate new strategic and financial opportunities.

Scenario 2- The Survivor: Surviving in the Fourth Industrial Revolution This is a situation where the organization has made minor advancements in their strategy. However, these changes are sometimes out of necessity rather than a desire for growth or a result of successes from small initiatives. In this state, the firm will likely not be gaining / losing any market share. Regardless, the introduction of new organizations with a more modern mentality, will have negative repercussions

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Barbara Gomolski & Chris Howard, “CIO Leadership Vision 2020,” Gartner, 2020, ID: G00714546”

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Scenario 3: The Grave Digger: Becoming Irrelevant in the Fourth Industrial Revolution This scenario will occur if an organization fails to establish a strong presence of digital literate staff. Through minimal investments in the personal, professional, and technical growth of employees, many top digital leaders are likely motivated to leave. Additionally the procurement of new—qualified—talent to fill their positions will be increasingly difficult. There are generally two outcomes for this situation, either the company is sold out of desperation or spirals towards bankrupt.

While everyone is striving for it, long lasting success will only be achieve by those who embrace technology and follow the process and core teaching discussed in this paper. Those who do not may be able to prolong their decline for a few years, but there is no escaping the inevitable.

Evaluating Success When designing a strategy, KPIs are needed in order to evaluate accomplishments. However, rather than focusing on creating and evaluating KPIs for various initiatives, it is efficient to utilize employees as the KPIs. If employees create S.M.A.R.T. goals and provide the transformation committee with milestone updates, one will receive an indication of actual progress while simultaneously supplying the employees with guidance and motivation on their path to increased digital literacy. If it becomes obvious that the majority have surpassed their original goals and created new ones, the strategy works, whereas if people are not accomplishing them, the strategy needs to be adjusted. A secondary analysis of interdepartmental collaboration levels, turnover rates, employee engagement and market share will provide different indicators of the success associated with increasing digital literacy.

How to Maintain Growth While, it is an accomplishment to reach a level of organizational growth and agility by increasing the levels of digital literacy within an organization, the only way to ensure continued success is through maintaining growth. Previous sections, discuss numerous strategies which will both generate and maintain levels of digital literacy within organizations. The most crucial of which are: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Ensure all workers have the tools necessary to do their job effectively and efficiently, Establish a culture of continuous improvement, Encourage collaboration and communication, Become comfortable with the uncomfortable, and Focus on creating a strategy which mimics the progression described by the various technological drivers, signals, and trends.

Recommendations While the road to increased digital literacy varies from organization to organization, the core process remains constant: Envision, Communicate, and Implement. Each of the three phases play a different but crucial role in determining success of your strategy23.

Like many tasks, the planning—or envisioning—stage is one of the most important. This is what will be used to shape and mold the strategy. While there is a wide range of components and responsibilities which 23

Shannon L. Thissen “Digital Readiness Project” ISTE Coaches, 2015, https://msthissen.org/iste3/digital-readiness-project-edtc-6101/

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need to be considered, the most significant are Analyze, Identify, Research, and Discuss. One needs to analyze their current situation on topics such as technological capabilities/assets, digital literacy levels, and company culture. Next, identify who in your organization would be early adopters, laggards, and resistors to change and research into the various trends, signals, drivers, and technologies that may affect the organization. Finally, based on the analysis, the CIO needs to have discussions with their top digital leaders regarding where everyone anticipates the world is heading and the new vision for the company.

Next, it is absolutely crucial to ensure there is constant communication between the various levels of seniority throughout the organization. Similarly to the envisioning stage, communicating has four important themes: Identify, Create, Engage, and Share. This is the time to focus on identifying and promoting any digital tools and resources available to workers, create a shared vocabulary, and ensure an open line of communication. Once this is achieved, the CIO must regularly engage with everyone—give them a voice—and share a clear and concise vision of where they want to go and how to get there.

Finally one can focus on the five themes of the implementation stage: Incorporate, Familiarize, Help, Teach, and Adapt. This is the time to incorporate concepts like digital literacy and a continuous growth mindset into the company culture/mission/training programs/etc. Additionally, there needs to be an effort to familiarize staff with new opportunities, technologies, and processes which will be introduced in the near future. While it’s important to focus on the organizational aspects, leaders must be constantly helping workers grow in order to reach their goals and teach them any emerging in-demand hard and soft skills. Last but not least, the champions leading the charge are responsible for ensuring the organization is always adapting to the current needs.

Additionally, when creating, modernizing or transforming a strategy digital leaders should not only understand the follow recommendations but thoroughly embrace them.  Evaluation: CIOs must start their journey with an internal analysis of digital literacy levels within the organization as well as conducting an evaluation of all available technologies—which pertain to their business in any way— and how they will impact the future landscape of the industry.  Communication, Collaboration, and Participation: Requiring extensive effort from the CIO, the digital champion must lead the charge towards a modern culture fueled by communication, collaboration, and participation of the masses.  Departmental collaboration: Department leads must look to leverage the digital skillsets of employees and resources from other departments in their search for new growth.  Democratizing IT: Ensure new technologies and improved user experience is empowered by those outside of the traditionally technical departments. In essence, regardless of someone’s position, they must have access to any and all technology necessary to conduct their tasks to the best of their ability.  Confidence: Once the shift towards a modern culture is successful, efforts can be shifted towards improving employee’s confidence around, using, and speaking about technology.  Technical proficiency: By creating confidence and digital trust, it will be easy to focus on creating technical proficiency.  Clear and coherent vision: Digital Leaders must ensure a clear and coherent vision throughout the organization, this can be achieved by reducing hierarchal barriers and leading by example.

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 Focus on medium and short-term strategies: Find the balance between creating a strong foundation to grow from and acting now. If you speed through the early phases you may cause more harm than good.

Additionally, review your strategy constantly and do not be afraid to make changes along the way.  Continuous learning mindset: Focus on creating a generic desire for continuous improvement, it is this mentality which will drive the worker towards professional growth.  Become comfortable with the uncomfortable. Whether you’re in the public or private sector, there is no escaping technology nor its exponential growth.

By the time most organizations reach the point of Creation, Innovation, and Growth, advancements in technology and trends will require the CIO to restart the process or risk turning into survivors or grave diggers, in their new environment.

Conclusion

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As technology becomes increasingly intertwined in the inner working of our personal and professional lives, it is of paramount importance that we as organizations, individuals, and workers gain the ability to leverage digital literacy and technology in order to remain relevant during the forever changing times. CIOs need to adopt to a digital mindset and stop hindering their company’s performance by relying on outdated and archaic business models / strategies. On an organizational level, there is no refuting the importance of having digitally literate staff as they are the backbone which determines the firm’s agility and ability to adapt or shift in today’s world. However, you cannot forget the fact that your workforce is comprised of digital immigrants and natives with varying levels of skills and capacity to change. Remember, while it is the digital literacy of the workers which plays a large role in determining the success of the organization, the specific strategic initiatives taken to increase your levels of digital literacy must align to the beliefs, skills, and competencies of your workers as they will ultimately determine whether you thrive, survive, or die. The CIO has the responsibility to understand their current environment and identify signals, drivers, and trends which will mold the future in order to determine a strategy which will work for their unique situation. While the CIO is in a position capable to driving change, it is the responsibility of everyone else—Board of Directors, Managers, and workers— to ensure the CIO is moving the company in the right direction as well as doing their part in the transformation. This may not always be easy, but by leveraging the matrixes, insights, and guiding principles of this paper, one has the ability to not only ensure they are prepared for any challenge but their staff will have the skills necessary to push their organization towards prosperity. As a CIO you will face obstacle after obstacle, however, you must keep moving forward, the strategy of today is your downfall of tomorrow.

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Appendix

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Appendix A: Components of Digital Literacy Source: http://repository.jisc.ac.uk/7278/1/BDCP-DC-Framework-Individual-6E-110319.pdf

ICT (Digital) Proficiency Digital Proficiency

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Digital Productivity

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 

The use of ICT-based devices, applications, software and services The confident adoption of new devices, applications, software and services and the capacity to stay up to date with ICT as it evolves. The capacity to deal with problems and failures of ICT when they occur, and to design and implement ICT solutions An understanding of basic concepts in computing, coding and information processing The use of ICT-based tools to carry out tasks effectively, productively and with attention to quality The capacity to choose devices, applications, software and systems relevant to different tasks having assessed their benefits and constraints; and to adopt and (where necessary) adapt digital tools to personal requirements such as accessibility The capacity to work fluently across a range of tools, platforms and applications to achieve complex tasks An understanding of how digital technology is changing practices at work, at home, in social and in public life

Information, Data and Media Literacies (Critical Use) Information Literacy

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Data Literacy

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

Media Literacy

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

The capacity to find, evaluate, manage, curate, organize and share digital information The capacity to interpret digital information for academic and professional/vocational purposes, and to review, analyze and re-present digital information in different settings. A critical approach to evaluating information in terms of its provenance, relevance, value and credibility An understanding of the rules of copyright and open alternatives e.g. Creative Commons, and of the ability to reference digital works appropriately in different contexts The capacity to collate, manage, access and use digital data in spreadsheets, databases and other formats, and to interpret data by running queries, data analyses and reports. The practices of personal data security An understanding of: how data is used in professional and public life; legal, ethical and security guidelines in data collection and use; the nature of algorithms; of how personal data may be collected and used The capacity to critically receive and respond to messages in a range of media – text, graphics, video, animation, audio – and to curate, re-edit and repurpose media, giving due recognition to originators. A critical approach to evaluating media messages in terms of their provenance and purpose An understanding of digital media as a social, political and educational tool and of digital media production as a technical practice

Digital Creation, Problem-Solving and Innovation (Creative Production) Digital Creation Digital Research and problem solving

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

The capacity to design and/or create new digital artefacts and materials such as digital writing, digital imaging, digital audio and video, digital code, apps and interfaces, web pages An understanding of the digital production process and the basics of editing and coding The capacity to: use digital evidence to solve problems and answer questions; collect and collate new evidence; evaluate the quality and value of evidence, and to share evidence and findings using digital methods An understanding of digital research methods and of different data analysis tools and techniques

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Digital Innovation

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

The capacity to adopt and develop new practices with digital technology in different settings (personal and organizational, social and work-based). The capacity to use digital technologies in developing new ideas, projects and opportunities An understanding of innovation, enterprise and project management in digital settings

Digital Communication, Collaboration and Participation (Participation) Digital Communication

Digital Collaboration

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The capacity to: communicate effectively in digital media and spaces such as text-based forums, online video, audio and social media; design digital communications for different purposes and audiences; respect others in public communications; maintain privacy in private communications; identify and deal with false or damaging digital communications

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An understanding of the features of different digital media for communication and of the varieties of communication norms and needs The capacity to: participate in digital teams and working groups; collaborate effectively using shared digital tools and media; produce shared materials; use shared productivity tools; work effectively across cultural, social and linguistic boundaries An understanding of the features of different digital tools for collaboration, and of the varieties of cultural and other norms for working together The capacity to: participate in, facilitate and build digital networks; participate in social and cultural life using digital media and services; create positive connections and build contacts; share and amplify messages across networks; behave safely and ethically in networked environments An understanding of how digital media and networks influence social behaviour

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Digital Participation

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Digital Learning and Development (Development) Digital Learning

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Digital Teaching

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

The capacity to: participate in (and benefit from) digital learning opportunities; identify and use digital learning resources; participate in learning dialogues via digital media; use learning apps and services (personal or organizational); use digital tools to organize, plan and reflect on learning; record learning events/data and use them for self-analysis, reflection and showcasing of achievement; monitor own progress; participate in digital assessment and receive digital feedback; manage own time and tasks, attention and motivation to learn in digital settings An understanding of the opportunities and challenges involved in learning online – and of own needs and preferences as a digital learner (e.g. access, media, platform and pedagogy) The capacity to support and develop others in digitally-rich settings to teach, to work in a teaching or curriculum team, to design learning opportunities, to support and facilitate learning; be proactive in peer learning – all while making effective use of the available digital tools and resources An understanding of the educational value of different media for teaching, learning and assessment, and of different educational approaches and their application in digitally-rich settings

Digital Identity and Wellbeing (Self-Actualizing) Digital Identity Management

Digital Wellbeing

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 



The capacity to: develop and project a positive digital identity or identities and to manage digital reputation (personal or organizational) across a range of platforms; build and maintain digital profiles and other identity assets such as records of achievement; review the impact of online activity; collate and curate personal materials across digital networks An understanding of the reputational benefits and risks involved in digital participation The capacity to: look after personal health, safety, relationships and work-life balance in digital settings; use digital tools in pursuit of personal goals (e.g. health and fitness) and to participate in social and community activities; act safely and responsibly in digital environments; negotiate and resolve conflict; manage digital workload, overload and distraction; act with concern for the human and natural environment when using digital tools An understanding of the benefits and risks of digital participation in relation to health and wellbeing outcomes

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