Introduction:
Imagine a mid-sized e-commerce player. The company wants to improve the customer journey, streamline logistics and provide better insight to customers through personalization. They have already invested in a number of IT systems to meet the need for flexibility and rapid adaptation in an industry where customer needs and market conditions are constantly changing. The challenge lies in getting organization and technology to work seamlessly together.
To help businesses in such a situation, we share three pieces of advice that can ensure that technology and organization work together to create the necessary flexibility and adaptability.
Download Forte Pulse here.
From silos for interaction
A common approach to digital transformation is to create product teams. For example, our hypothetical e-commerce business might set up product teams for customer service, marketing, and logistics. But product teams alone are rarely enough. Without a clear strategy for how teams work together, and how they connect to both business goals and technology, you risk creating more silos than you remove.
A common approach to digital transformation is to create product teams. For example, our hypothetical e-commerce business might set up product teams for customer service, marketing, and logistics. But product teams alone are rarely enough. Without a clear strategy for how teams work together, and how they connect to both business goals and technology, you risk creating more silos than you remove.
For an e-commerce business looking to deliver a seamless customer experience, this can become a real challenge. Let's say your marketing team uses one platform for customer data, while your logistics team uses another inventory solution, without good integration.
<>The result? The customer sees items as "in stock" that are actually out of stock, or marketing misses because data about the customer's past purchases isn't available across the systems. The solution is to make sure that both teams and systems interact effectively.
From left: Eivind Trædal and Endre Dingsør
Flexibility – the key to staying relevant
A strong organizational structure is more important than the IT architecture, Because it is the structure that determines how the systems adapt to change. This is crucial in an industry where customer preferences and market trends change rapidly, such as with new requirements for fast delivery, personalized product recommendations, or sustainable solutions.
To achieve this, teams need to have clear responsibilities and a structure that allows them to focus on their tasks without unnecessary complexity. In an e-commerce business, this can mean that the teams working on customer data and personalization are tightly connected to the logistics systems.
This enables product recommendations based on stock status and expected delivery time, so customers have a smooth experience without delays or misunderstandings.
Reduce complexity
If a team has too much responsibility, the quality of the work will suffer, and it may be difficult to achieve success. When the company's mission is clearly defined, it becomes easier to identify which tasks are important – and which are not.
For our e-commerce company, this means asking questions such as: Why do we exist? Which customers should we serve? How can we do this better than the competition? With clear answers to these questions, the company can more easily prioritize, set realistic goals, and ensure that both teams and individuals focus on what really matters.
For example: If the goal is to "build a car," the result can be anything from a Ferrari to a radio-controlled jeep. But if the goal is to "build the world's fastest car," it sets a clear framework that helps the team prioritize correctly and deliver better results.
Introduction:
Imagine a mid-sized e-commerce player. The company wants to improve the customer journey, streamline logistics and provide better insight to customers through personalization. They have already invested in a number of IT systems to meet the need for flexibility and rapid adaptation in an industry where customer needs and market conditions are constantly changing. The challenge lies in getting organization and technology to work seamlessly together.
To help businesses in such a situation, we share three pieces of advice that can ensure that technology and organization work together to create the necessary flexibility and adaptability.
Download Forte Pulse here.
From silos for interaction
A common approach to digital transformation is to create product teams. For example, our hypothetical e-commerce business might set up product teams for customer service, marketing, and logistics. But product teams alone are rarely enough. Without a clear strategy for how teams work together, and how they connect to both business goals and technology, you risk creating more silos than you remove.
A common approach to digital transformation is to create product teams. For example, our hypothetical e-commerce business might set up product teams for customer service, marketing, and logistics. But product teams alone are rarely enough. Without a clear strategy for how teams work together, and how they connect to both business goals and technology, you risk creating more silos than you remove.
For an e-commerce business looking to deliver a seamless customer experience, this can become a real challenge. Let's say your marketing team uses one platform for customer data, while your logistics team uses another inventory solution, without good integration.
<>The result? The customer sees items as "in stock" that are actually out of stock, or marketing misses because data about the customer's past purchases isn't available across the systems. The solution is to make sure that both teams and systems interact effectively.
From left: Eivind Trædal and Endre Dingsør
Flexibility – the key to staying relevant
A strong organizational structure is more important than the IT architecture, Because it is the structure that determines how the systems adapt to change. This is crucial in an industry where customer preferences and market trends change rapidly, such as with new requirements for fast delivery, personalized product recommendations, or sustainable solutions.
To achieve this, teams need to have clear responsibilities and a structure that allows them to focus on their tasks without unnecessary complexity. In an e-commerce business, this can mean that the teams working on customer data and personalization are tightly connected to the logistics systems.
This enables product recommendations based on stock status and expected delivery time, so customers have a smooth experience without delays or misunderstandings.
Reduce complexity
If a team has too much responsibility, the quality of the work will suffer, and it may be difficult to achieve success. When the company's mission is clearly defined, it becomes easier to identify which tasks are important – and which are not.
For our e-commerce company, this means asking questions such as: Why do we exist? Which customers should we serve? How can we do this better than the competition? With clear answers to these questions, the company can more easily prioritize, set realistic goals, and ensure that both teams and individuals focus on what really matters.
For example: If the goal is to "build a car," the result can be anything from a Ferrari to a radio-controlled jeep. But if the goal is to "build the world's fastest car," it sets a clear framework that helps the team prioritize correctly and deliver better results.
