LONDON and LIVERPOOL, England, June 8, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --
Digital roll-out success comes
down to creating the right culture at work with 29
per cent of UK businesses still not bringing in digital
technologies
Businesses hoping that their digital woes will be solved by a
surge in Millennials joining the workforce are in for a shock. New
research commissioned by Cisco, in partnership with the Institute
of Cultural Capital (ICC), has found that creating a positive
digital culture at work and encouraging worker confidence in
digital tools are the most important factors in ensuring digital
roll-outs are successful.
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Based on a survey of more than 3,000 UK workers, the findings
outline the most important factors to determine whether businesses
will succeed with digital roll-outs. Research has found that
different organisational cultures lead to contrasting rates of
digital adoption. Company digital culture ranked far above an
employees' IT experience, company size or the sector in which they
operate, when determining attitudes to digital roll-outs.
Digital vision vs reality
British workers are largely optimistic about their experiences
with digital technologies, with more than two thirds (67 per cent)
stating that digital technology has had a positive impact on the
way they work. Yet there is still work to do. A concerning 29 per
cent of businesses are still not bringing in digital technologies.
Research also revealed a disconnect between what employees and
businesses at large thought was a successful digital roll-out.
Around a quarter (26 per cent) of workers suggested a digital
technology to leadership that they thought would benefit the
organisation, but nothing came of it.
Employee confidence in leadership when it comes to digital
technology is also mixed. Whilst a quarter (24 per cent) of workers
are confident in the digital vision put forward by senior
management, just under half (45 per cent) are undecided and around
a fifth (19 per cent) stated that they are actively concerned about
their company's digital future. The research also found that 29 per
cent of employees believe that their leadership team is struggling
to push through new digital ways of working, with the same number
stating that culturally their organisation is not ready to embrace
digital solutions.
Phil Smith Chief Executive,
Cisco UK & Ireland:
"There's no doubt that organisations today
face a digital double-edged sword. On the one hand new
technologies are continuing to re-invent what is
possible in the workplace and it is clear business
leaders and employees alike understand the potential benefits
digital technology can bring. But our research reveals that without
first fostering the right culture in the workplace and following a
few golden rules when engaging with employees, it's
possible for digital roll-outs to go off-track. Employees
are craving clear digital leadership to drive the
organisation forward and the boardroom must ensure digital delivers
on its promise to help drive productivity and organisational
effectiveness."
Getting digital culture right
There are clear lessons to be learnt from those organisations
getting digital roll-outs right. Employees that demonstrated the
most positive attitudes to digital technology revealed that there
are four key areas for businesses to address for success.
- Clear digital leadership - Demonstrating a
clear digital vision is important but so is taking the time to
ensure that workers are on board and equipped to undertake the same
digital journey. Research found that 40 per cent of workers stated
that the digital technology wasn't explained effectively to them by
their employers.
- Fostering positive attitudes to digital
technology - The more time organisations spend
consulting staff, and building a culture that nurtures an
acceptance of change, the more effective implementation of digital
technology is in the workplace. A concerning 64 per cent of
workers stated that they weren't consulted prior to the provision
of new digital technologies.
- Limit organisational barriers - Prior to
roll-out, organisations must assess their structure to highlight
any potential barriers to success. This could include addressing
out-of-date internal processes, removing restrictive legacy
technology systems, or resolving a pre-existing negative digital
culture. Employees do value digital technology, with 58 per cent
believing its implementation can make their organisation more
productive.
- Good communications - Employees
appreciate traditional forms of communication around digital
roll-outs. This includes face-to-face interaction, dedicated
training on the new tools and a clear articulation of how the new
digital technology will impact their role at work. Research found
that 57 per cent of employees stated that they would have liked
more information on how to use new digital technologies.
Simeon Yates, Director,
Institute of Cultural Capital: "The UK is one of
the most digitally engaged nations in the world with 87 per
cent of the population online. Despite this,
there are few nationally representative
studies on the uptake of technology by the
UK workforce. At a time when digital technologies are bringing
disruption to many sectors, our research has found that that
digital access at work (71 per cent) is lower than at
home. This report has found that the key to
successful digital roll-outs are the
intangible characteristics of culture and leadership, more
so than the tangible factors of having access to the
right technology. It consequently means that
organisations' ability to become digitally ready
is firmly in their own hands."
Notes to Editors
The survey was commissioned by Cisco in partnership with the
Institute of Cultural Capital (ICC), and is based on more than
3,000 UK workers.
Workers' attitudes to digital
technologies
- They're digitally
engaged: 83.6 per cent stated that they have confidence in
their home use of digital technologies. They are also inclined to
accept digital technologies in the workplace with 45 per cent
stating that at least half of their working day is spent using
digital technology of some kind. More than two thirds (67 per cent)
stated that digital technology has had a positive impact on the way
they work, with 56 per cent saying it had made their job quicker
and 50 per cent saying it has made their job easier.
- They're pragmatic about
digital: Workers have balanced expectations around what
technology can do for them. Most (65 per cent) thought that the
number of new digital services that had been rolled out in the past
two years was 'just about right' and respondents that had
experienced between three and five roll-outs were the most
positive. They also understand why their employers are implementing
these services, with 58 per cent stating it was to make the
organisation more productive, 51 per cent to cut costs and 47 per
cent to automate tasks.
- They want a dialogue on digital: 64 per cent
weren't consulted prior to the provision of new digital
technologies and 57 per cent would have liked more information on
how to use new digital technologies. 40 per cent stated that the
digital technology wasn't explained effectively to them.
About Cisco
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About the Institute of Cultural Capital
The Institute of Cultural Capital conducts collaborative and
interdisciplinary research that critically examines the role and
value of cultural interventions. Established in 2010, this leading
centre of cultural policy research is a strategic collaboration
between the University of Liverpool and
Liverpool John Moore's University. Our research is structured
around five core themes:
- Cultural Policy
- Cultural Leadership
- Digital Culture
- Cultural Assets and Social Value
- Culture and Collaborative Practice
The institute is led by a core team of internationally acclaimed
researchers and draws upon the considerable expertise of partner
institutions and a global community of cultural policy
experts. The digital culture strand is led by the Institute
Director (Prof. Simeon
Yates). Prof Yates work has been on all aspects of the
social and cultural impacts of digital technologies, this has
included: work on digital inclusion and exclusion; gender and
technology use; mobile and online social interaction; and digital
arts as well as the organisational challenges of digital technology
use in policing.