What CIOs need to secure beyond tech to successfully transform

Digital transformation technologies alone don’t make digital transformation. CIOs know this well, even when they increase their IT investments. The Polytechnic University of Milan’s Startup Thinking and Digital Transformation Academy Observatories predict a 1.5% growth in ICT budgets specific to Italy, mostly in line with recent trends. And in the broader context of EMEA, IDC says digital transformation spend will exceed $1.2 billion in 2028, with a CAGR of nearly 16% over the 2024 to 2028 forecast period.

AI and cloud are driving double-digit CAGR, but digital transformation isn’t limited to technology investments. Training, communication, and change management are the real enablers.

Managing change and transformation

Paolo Sicca, group CIO of manufacturing company Industria Grafica Eurostampa, is an example of how his role is evolving. “Introducing business intelligence required a great deal of change management work, because from a data use that wasn’t very sophisticated and organized, and very do-it-yourself, we moved to a consistent and verified data warehouse,” he says.

The technical work of Sicca is typical of ICT in a distributed multinational. The products for digitalization are the same that many other companies adopt, including BI. But the difference lies in its accompaniment to innovation.

“The change management was complex, as it always is,” says Sicca. “The secret of success is the endorsement of the owners and top managers, who embraced the project and believed from the start in the usefulness of reliable reports.” The will of top management, in fact, allowed the transformation to be carried forward in a sustainable way, which further facilitates acceptance of change.

The proof lay in another project conducted by Sicca for Eurostampa of the paperless factory, or the transition from processes based entirely on paper supports, to being managed entirely on workflow and with digital documents.

“The change was even more complex,” Sicca says. “I’d already led a similar project in another company and I knew the transition from paper to workflows has a significant impact on users. In my experience, transformations of this kind aren’t easy. There’s always some resistance to change. But once the new way of doing things became ordinary, the paperless mode seemed irreplaceable, because it was much more efficient. Support also matured with the understanding of the advantages by users.”

For this reason Sicca has been involved in information and training activities on the new method, even if there are cases in which resistance remains.

“The projects have all been successful, but there are always some who yearn for the past methods,” he adds.

Why communication is essential

As part of change management, it’s important not to impose from above, but to study together with end users. Digital transformation must not be an imposition, but a convinced and unanimous choice.

“Digital transformation means creating a two-way dialogue between IT and business, and with people, the end users of technologies,” says Pablo Fernando Ambrosy Carrera, chief digital and innovation officer at law firm Portolano Cavallo. “The CIO must always take into account what the real needs are in using technologies and what problems need to be overcome. It makes no sense to create a product and propose it after a year of development and integration only to find out it’s not useful. IT must proceed based on the input that comes from internal staff on technologies and processes. The voice of the user is important.”

From a technological standpoint, Carrera is carrying forward digitalization already started by the firm, equipping itself with modern systems as a result. So his work must focus on ensuring operational continuity despite change. 

“I’m aware that, even as we implement new products for the digital evolution of the studio, people need to be able to work without penalizing interruptions,” he says. “It’s also important to keep people updated on what’s being done and how technology will improve everyone’s work. I insist on the value of communication and involvement.”

A focus on AI

The experience of Stefano Bombara, IT manager of technical systems services at Crédit Agricole Vita, isn’t dissimilar. For Crédit Agricole Insurance and Crédit Agricole Life, companies of the Crédit Agricole Group, digital transformation began a few years ago, involving both internal processes and those used externally by intermediaries and customers. Until now, digitalization has focused on streamlining and automating processes, but AI now requires a strong IT-business synergy and a structured training intervention to accompany innovation.

“This year we intend to introduce AI to digitalize the claims management process in the non-life branch,” Bombara says. “Even more than other technologies, AI is an innovation introduced not by IT alone, but together with the business — in this case, the claims department — ​​to identify the processes in which to apply it, or the use cases where we can produce real benefits of optimization and simplification for core activities. The entire project is accompanied by training on the methodology and the new cultural approach. This is very important because it allows us to align the expectations of the various business areas. Without common training, we can’t understand the potential or the constraints of AI.”

So CA Life and CA Insurance are evaluating gen AI methodology adoption, a roadmap that includes sharing of approaches, proposals of use cases from which the first pilot projects derive, and the accompanying training. 

“We plan to evaluate how to introduce AI in all its forms, from deep learning to gen AI, and we’ll define the best way to train and engage people, as well as identify use cases that are beneficial for the business,” Bombara says.

More companies are dedicating attention to AI, along with other digital projects, out of necessity, which highlights the need for change management. Carrera says training is essential, especially when introducing gen AI, and even when internal users already have strong digital skills, like at Portolano Cavallo. But it’s always necessary to provide support and governance. 

And while AI will be the technological theme of the next few years, it only makes sense, according to Sicca of Eurostampa, if it offers vertical solutions. “We aren’t interested in products that aren’t functional to our core business,” he says.

Too little training for managers

Technology remains, therefore, a means. Transformation is something bigger and is achieved continuously by managing change through processes, culture, and structuring training paths.

But it’s estimated that in Italy, less than 50% of managers and entrepreneurs benefit from training, says Claudio Rorato, director of the Digital Innovation Observatory in SMEs at Milan’s Polytechnic University. “And yet for those who develop strategies and decide whether and where to provide funding, the lack of training precludes the possibility to develop new visions,” he says. “Neglecting managers means not allowing those responsible to facilitate top-down and bottom-up transmission growth, hindering a more advanced organizational learning process.”

But thanks to the provisions linked to Italy’s recovery and resilience plan (PNRR), borne out of the global pandemic in 2020, as well as other initiatives, there are many funds available to companies to increase training. But another obstacle emerges from Milan Polytechnic Observatory’s research: the weak cohesion of the ecosystem that revolves around SMEs to create integrated training proposals. Trade associations, professionals, innovation hubs and financial institutions should collaborate more effectively to stimulate training demand from companies and guide them toward continuous adoption of this most important tool for digital transformation.