The board of directors has become more important than ever in the age when digital transformation sets the pace for change across industries. Technology that corporate boards who bear the responsibility for overseeing a company and its top executives’ management or strategic plan, could ignore this technology trend. They have to “own” this instead, so that they get the necessary digital skills and a technological cultural understanding within their enterprise because only then will employees continue to be able to manage in today’s competitive environment.
Why Boards Must Take the Lead
Good board leadership is key to a company having strategic technological direction and being successful. The influence emanates both ways, with the macro effect steering digital accountability to respect and augment an in-depth focus on change and innovation as part of its organizational culture. To concretely indicate that a company really grasps the urgency of digital transformation… depending on where/how boards fit into other facets of an organization, they are owning (or else sponsoring) the agenda and thereby sending messages throughout the organization about what being digitally enabled means to business continuity.
The digital lead from the board tells everyone that technology is neither a tactical tool nor an emergent field on which to experiment and prove value, for it becomes integral to the heart-of-the-business strategy. These leaders maintain coordination and fit between technological actions and enterprise requirements.
Issues Boards Encounter in Technology Management
Despite the clear need for companies to become technology leaders, many boards struggle with technology issues. Common challenges include:
- Boards often rely on management or external experts on technology issues, which prevents them from independently monitoring and understanding these issues.
- Too few technology experts in many sectors. This makes it difficult for boards to make effective decisions about the company’s technology direction and initiatives.
- Without a clear governance structure, we may find that technology interventions are not aligned with strategic goals.
- The board needs effective, concise and appropriate information from management to understand the situation and make decisions.
- The board needs to clarify how the technology strategy is related to or contributes to the value creation of the company’s various strategic plans: this helps them understand the direction and contribution of technology.
Effective strategies for digital leadership
Boards should bear the following points in mind to overcome such challenges and boost their efficiency:
- Technological innovation training: The continuous learning and updating courses on current technological fashion and market updates are inevitable. They need to be well educated about what is happening around them. Specifically, training should focus on innovations that could influence the industry down the road.
- Enhancing tech competency: To have strong technological skills included in the composition of the board, there are different methods to do this. Examples are employing staff in certain areas or having advisors who can fill these roles with their expertise.
- Clear governance framework: Governance is effective if it sets up structures that stipulate how technology is supposed to be managed so that it aligns with business strategy and has accountability in place.
You might also be interested in our webinar: 3 Tactics to Overcome Resistance to Change in the Legal Department
Board Leadership in the Digital Environment
The role of the board in leading the organization has always been important. It is even more so in this digital environment.
There are four key areas that need attention:
- understanding the digital landscape;
- setting a clear digital vision and strategy;
- governing the implementation of the strategy;
- and acquiring the necessary digital knowledge and skills.
It can be challenging for traditional boards to adapt to these new requirements. But it is essential if they want their organizations to thrive in the digital age.
Boards must do more than just adapt when managing organizations in this digital era. Digital transformation is no longer an option but an intrinsic part of the board’s knowledge reservoir. As per Gartner, digital endeavors stand atop in the priority list for boards— considering that 89% of them already realize we are living in a post-digital age (where digital integration forms part and parcel of their growth blueprints). Many strategic directions lead down the path of drenched digitization, intertwining with customer satisfaction via technology’s umbilical cord.
Digital age boards need to reposition trust of society at technology plus data. This involves ensuring the privacy and security of data, and the effective utilization of technology. Both are key in sustaining stakeholder trust, as well as a conducive business environment.
Efficient tools to support the digital strategy
DiliTrust supplies tools that can help board members to deal effectively with digital developments. The DiliTrust Governance Suite and, above all, the Board Portal is equipped with features designed to increase productivity of decision-making at the level of the board. The DiliTrust Board Portal offers the entire board fully secure access to documents and communications relevant for board activities. It offers collaboration, enables the organization of meetings, and delivers governance tools. Real-time updates, document annotation, and secure messaging make it easier to work digitally as a board. DiliTrust solutions help boards of directors do their job better, keep up with technological progress, and contribute to successful digital transformation within their companies.
Preparing your organization for the digital world
In conclusion, the board plays a crucial role in guiding technological development. By focusing on digital skills and technological education, boards can prepare organizations for the digital world. Individuals who understand the strategic role of technology in business outcomes and take proactive steps toward future-proofing their enterprises will lead successful digital transformations.
By setting a clear digital vision and utilizing technologies like the DiliTrust Governance suite, boards not only drive innovation but also foster the development of strong, progressive organizations capable of meeting future challenges and goals.
To find out more about DiliTrust and the Board Portal solution, request your personalized demo!
