EHS & Sustainability: EHS&S
How to Approach Digital Transformation, According to Our Customers
Digital transformation is a complex and challenging process, but it can be incredibly rewarding. For our clients, knowing where to start first when embarking on a new digitalization journey is key to success.
Here are two key strategies we share with clients looking to modernize their outdated spreadsheet-reliant, pen-to-paper-process by transitioning to a customized digital approach.
1. The best organizational transformations are slow and steady
The “Big Bang” approach to digitalization is not adequate. This approach involves everyone starting to use all the modules at once, which often leads to unwieldy projects that fail to gain traction and do not achieve the desired outcomes. Instead, a personalized approach is necessary—one that takes time to get right.
Our client, Avangrid Renewables, learned this first-hand. This organization chose SAI360 for its EHS&S digitalization vision, and in doing so, quickly realized a one-size-fits-all approach was not going to work for them. Instead, they decided to pursue a bespoke, phased digital transformation approach.
This strategy involved starting with a few key priority modules, such as incident and action management. Once these modules were up and running, they could then add on new additional modules as time went by.
This slow and steady approach was very successful for Avangrid Renewables. It allowed them to quickly realize the ROI of their digital investments, increase user adoption rates, and improve workforce engagement—in a way that worked according to their unique needs and wants.
As EHS Director at Avangrid Renewables, Kristy Abel, told SAI360, “Change management and training are an essential consideration in a successful implementation.”
“It’s one of the most critical things, but one that you’re going to do right to succeed, and all efforts into this should never be underestimated or overlooked,” Kristy added.
2. Transformation demands staying adaptable and flexible
Critical to one of our clients, Imerys, looking for an out-of-the-box risk and compliance software module was training and awareness.
Imerys specifically needed its learning content to be available in nearly 60 different languages. Each translation needed to address both local and cultural nuances. Therefore, a singular approach would not have proven beneficial to ensure their communication needs were effective and efficient.
“When we reached out to training providers in the market, we knew we needed short virtual training courses that would have a global approach, be available in multiple languages, and be customizable. SAI360 Learning ticked those boxes,” said Ioannis Lagiopoulos, Group DE&I Manager for Imerys.
“SAI360 also fits within our Learning Management System. We can customize SAI360’s off-the-shelf training courses to ensure continuity with our internal content and communications. Finally, we save time and resources on translations,” Ioannis added.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, many lessons can be learned from the experiences of Avangrid Renewables and Imerys, and beyond. It is critical to approach digitalization via a phased approach, rather than a “Big Bang” approach. Also imperative is to customize the digitalization process over time to meet the specific ongoing needs of an organization.
