Article by Otto Acuna N. MBA, CMC, CSSBB 🇨🇷 🇪🇪 – Originally published in Linkedin on March 27, 2025
In today’s landscape, digital transformation presents an unavoidable challenge for organizations. However, many companies fall into the trap of implementing isolated initiatives that, despite their innovative appearance, fail to achieve the structural change their leaders anticipated. In international forums on automation and operational excellence, the recurring question remains: “Why aren’t our digital transformation initiatives taking off and why do they take so long?”
Part of the answer lies in understanding that real transformation requires a comprehensive and inclusive approach, involving all employees. Digital transformation should be a holistic process where technology serves as a bridge connecting people and processes across the board.
A common mistake is focusing efforts solely on administrative areas or certain organizational levels. For digital transformation to be genuine, it must also include janitors, couriers, warehouse operators, and plant personnel. Everyone should be part of the digitalization process.
I recall that during my years at Chiquita Brands, regional office staff were referred to as “the refrigerated ones” because operational divisions perceived that we didn’t understand the realities of fieldwork—exposed to sun, rain, and daily operational challenges. The disconnect wasn’t due to a lack of intention but stemmed from each group living in different worlds, with distinct tools and languages, making genuine collaboration difficult.
This is where digital transformation becomes meaningful. When all employees, regardless of their role, have access to the same digital tools, a truly collaborative environment is created. Communication flows swiftly, everyone shares the same language, and they can collaborate effectively to achieve organizational goals.
To achieve this, it’s essential to have a single platform that centralizes the necessary functionalities beyond core systems like ERP, CRM, WMS, or banking cores. Many companies attempt to address this need by using multiple environments: WhatsApp or Telegram for quick messages, email for formal communications, Zoom or Teams for video calls, Calendly for scheduling meetings, Office for document work, Slack for interaction with other offices, and so on. The result is technological dispersion that, far from enabling collaboration, fragments it.
REAL digital transformation is built on five key principles:
- Inclusivity: Everyone must be connected to the same platform.
- A Single Environment: Consolidating as many functions as possible in one place minimizes the learning curve and reduces licensing costs.
- Usability: It should be intuitive and accessible to all employees, from corporate offices to local operations.
- Accessibility: The platform must be available on mobile devices, like an app.
- Immediate Value: The tool must generate real and tangible value in each user’s daily activities. If it doesn’t positively impact their daily tasks, adoption will be limited.
Technology doesn’t replace the essence of work, but it does make it faster, more effective, and more efficient.
At EXYGE, we specialize in helping people work better. With over 140 projects and services delivered across the Americas and recenly in the GCC Region in the Middle East, we have an ecosystem of platforms that enable processes, organizational policies, and management styles through genuine technological empowerment. Technology doesn’t replace the essence of work, but it does make it faster, more effective, and more efficient.
In the context of this article, and with the goal of ensuring that no one is left behind in digital transformation, we highlight Bitrix24 within our ecosystem. This global platform, used by over 13 million companies, offers more than 35 integrated tools in a single environment. Its “all-in-one” model not only facilitates deployment but also optimizes costs: for a single fee, all employees and even external collaborators (contractors, suppliers, freelancers) can interact securely with limited functionalities, without compromising the company’s internal information.
At EXYGE, we don’t sell software: we accompany our clients to understand how they work, identify pain points and areas of opportunity, and then propose technological solutions that provide real value aligned with the organizational strategy. Software is merely a means to achieve this better, faster, and more cost-effectively.
I invite you to reflect on your digital transformation initiatives and redirect your efforts toward creating real value and achieving concrete objectives.
What has your experience been? Is your organization ready to ensure that no one is left behind in this transformation?
