Why Digital Transformation Doesn’t Equate to Dehumanization
There’s just no way around it: we have to welcome digitalization and automation. It’s just simple where the world is headed.
We may have an analog soul living inside a digital body, but modernization and progress really require digital transformation.
Digitalization has had tremendous impact and effect in the way we do business. That simply cannot be overstated enough. What facilitates our logistical operations? A digital platform. How do we go about our complex business processes? A highly sophisticated computer software runs it.
Even our HR management practices and principles are greatly dependent on the digital age. This transformation has been responsible for the advancements and conveniences that we enjoy today.
Let’s zoom in on the field of Human Resource and how automating processes has helped expedite accomplishments and increase the efficiency of work output.
Imagine this: HR practitioners painstakingly doing a manual counting of the days that an employee rendered services. Or requiring applicants to physically show up just to do preliminary screening then having to send them on their lonely way because they aren’t qualified.
Thankfully, these and other HR procedures are now automated and fully online. Employee attendance is recorded and computed through biometrics or entry in a specific employee portal. Meanwhile, job applicants can peruse through job openings online and submit preliminary requirements without leaving their very room.
Now, if our predecessors became resistant to these kinds of changes, then we would still be manually counting attendance, making mountains of errors in our records, and having to physically require applicants to come for a 10-minute interview where a three-part virtual questionnaire would have sufficed.
So if we will take a page out of the book of our predecessors, how should we embrace the impending automation changes and digital transformations that would further shape the field of Human Resource?
And how can we balance digital transformation in order to prevent dehumanization? How can humans make the most of these modernizations and still keep their soul — as they say?
Embrace Change Management, and Invest in It
Change management isn’t just a byword. It’s definitely something that we should look deep into and highly invest in.
Nothing in this world is constant except for change. So why not prepare for it? Why not do your best to manage it? To make sure that transitions and modifications are handled with the best care, always for the benefit of both the institution and the individual.
What’s most important about effective change management is how we communicate it so that the workforce will embrace it and even call it their own.
They should feel that they are part of the process, rather than a sorry casualty. They should know and understand their role in the digital transformation.
If they are insecure about their job — but they have no reason to be — let them know by properly communicating with them the parameters of the digitalization.
Help them to realize how the modernizations and automation enhance their work outputs rather than make their lives harder. It’s only at the beginning that you will be met with opposition. Once they understand their place and know their worth, your employees will be your willing allies in the digital transformation rather than insecure foes.
Set Your Goals
Don’t just automate things because you see other businesses doing it. Remember, every organization is unique in that it has its own dynamics, workforce, culture, vision, and purpose.
Why force a digital change that’s fit for a larger company if you’re still on the startup stage and are only 20 strong? Implementing such a large-scale digitalization can alienate your most important asset — your workforce.
Instead, set clear goals on which digital transformations to implement depending on what best fits your needs as a company. It’s important to know where you’re going; where you’ll take them.
Determine what it is that you want to change or do differently as compared to what you have done in the past? What are your expectations? By beginning to identify your desired outcome, you can now work in a reverse order and then include your employees in the process.
Doing this will nurture their morale and belief in the institution. If they haven’t yet, they will come to realize that the office is not just a place where they work 8 to 10 hours a day. It’s a place of collaboration and partnership.
Employing these simple principles will make your digital transformation smooth and efficient. Bear in mind that digital transformation or automation should be a concerted effort; it’s not a one-way process. By applying all your learnings and marrying them with your clear-cut expectations, you can facilitate a smooth and successful transition, digital and more.
