Digital Transformation: Make People Awesome

00:07 Another of our company's motto is "Make people awesome." Isn't that incredible? Well, I believe the period of managerial knowledge superiority is ended.

00:19 Knowledge is becoming obsolete at a faster rate than ever before as a result of digitization and the introduction of new tools daily.

00:28 What I learned about Instagram marketing a year ago is now obsolete, and we feel that the winners are those that adapt the most quickly.

00:39 I've provided examples for you on two separate levels, one at the organizational level and one at the team level.

00:46 We'll begin at the organizational level.

00:48 One of the approaches I value the most is reverse mentoring.

00:54 When it comes to mentoring, the senior management typically shows the younger how to do something correctly.

01:03 Reverse mentoring works exactly the other way around, with the junior, trainee, or intern serving as a mentor to managers or staff.

01:15 As a result, the topics are never the same.

01:18 What matters to me about my workplace? What new tools are there? How does our target audience communicate? We started organizing this internally at our company, but then we realized, "Okay, but we still have interns; they are already in their twenties, and the future is actually a bit younger." We found a fantastic school near Frankfurt that will help us with this.

01:43 They come to our company once a quarter, and the students basically instruct us on how to do it right. And let me tell you something: it's extremely depressing when a 14-year-old tells you, "Yes, so your YouTube campaign, I click it away, because it's not very interesting." That is not something anyone wants to hear.

02:05 However, this is precisely the truth that we need to hear to progress.

02:10 This is another example, and I'm sure many other businesses have it as well.

02:14 So here are a few concrete suggestions.

02:17 The Digital Academy that we established — what I learned, what was good, was the ability to immediately inspire a large number of people about a topic.

02:28 That's exactly what we did.

02:30 We were able to motivate around four thousand people in four days.

02:34 It was dubbed "Digital Inspiration Days." And we answered the question, "What does digital actually mean?" back then.

02:44 Again, I must emphasize that the method was something we had to relearn.

02:49 Unfortunately, we sat down again, secluded ourselves in a room, and pondered the following question: "What could our employees require?" That, however, was the incorrect strategy.

03:00 We then created an inspirational board with personnel from all levels, from clerks to high management, as well as from all departments, ranging from controlling to supply chain and marketing.

03:12 And they truly told us what they needed, and we received regular input from this tiny group on whether the notion was on the correct road.

03:20 And that's fine. It is acceptable to ask for assistance proactively.

03:24 It's great to have such an uplifting session.

03:27 That's excellent, but it won't help you because it's also out of date.

03:31 And after six months, nothing but a feeling remains.

03:35 So, in order to make it last, we did two things that I'd like to tell you about.

03:41 One such example is the so-called Digital Breakfast.

03:45 We invite all staff to a one-hour discussion once a month.

03:49 The topic could be something like, "How do we actually develop business models?" How can we innovate our service as a food firm with a lot of product experience but no experience with digital services? How does e-commerce function, and so on, such that people are always inspired? What I gave you were two examples of inspiration.

04:15 I haven't used them in everyday situations yet.

04:18 We established the Digital Acceleration Team to make it work.

04:21 It consists of digital consultants who assist individual departments on the task.

04:29 This means that I go to a department and then perhaps have a project, such as: Hey, I'd want to make an app, but I'm not sure how or where to start.

04:37 I require assistance.

04:38 Then I get aid, and the project is back on track in 100 days – numerous examples at the organizational level.

04:46 I am confident that you can still impact it, at least in terms of inspiration, no matter what level you are now on.

04:54 Let's go back to the team level.

04:57 We are accustomed to assigning duties and projects based on the terms of each individual's contract.

05:04 I feel that assigning project assignments based on people's strengths allows everyone to contribute their all.

05:11 I don't want anyone to leave half of their personality outside the door before entering the company; rather, I want everyone to come in with their entire potential and individuality. And I believe we excel at what we are already good at.

05:27 However, this means that we are already quite familiar with our coworkers and teams at our organization.

05:35 These are just a few instances of what we've done.

05:39 We assigned the so-called Chinese picture to every employee.

05:43 You ask your coworkers, friends, family members, and relatives here.

05:49 What would I be if I were an animal, a city, a musical instrument, or a car? This offers folks a really positive impression of you, and it's a pretty hilarious approach to introducing oneself to others.

06:05 For instance, I was frequently informed that if I were a musical instrument, I would be a clarinet or a piano.

06:12 I don't play a musical instrument for whatever reason, but the backdrop was because I'm more of a generalist and play multiple keys.

06:19 That is far more endearing than if I had articulated it in my own words.

06:24 Another thing you may do is question your coworkers or team members about your hidden skill. Some questions to consider include: Who is your favorite customer? What do others frequently compliment you on? What allergens do you have? What actually irritates you? What happens in a room when you enter it or join a meeting, and what does it all indicate about your inner genius and inner strength? Because I can only assign tasks based on strengths if I know my colleagues and team, and if they know themselves, and these are a few measures to consider.

07:13 Change management entails establishing a continual discussion as well as channels for communication and learning.

07:21 What we do in our team is that we set aside two hours every month to learn as a group.

07:28 We call this the "Grow Team," and each time we discuss a different issue.

07:33 It's an adventure. Initially, I frequently introduced themes or invited experts.

07:39 And today, it begins so slowly that a mutual inspiration occurs, and members of the team say, "Hey, I'd also like to share some knowledge." "How do I actually communicate via WhatsApp?" is one example.

07:53 If I feel compelled to share something, make it possible for your team, coworkers, and company to learn at any time by enabling, promoting, and rewarding mutual inspiration as well as learning outside of their own team.

08:14 Because only those who learn faster than their competitors will prevail.