EADA's Third Digital Management Level Report in Spain
Digital transformation is no longer a direct responsibility of Human Resources, Marketing or ICT departments, and now reports to General Management. According to EADA’s Third Digital Management Level Report in Spain, 54% of organisations delegate digital transformation leadership to the managing director. The study, prepared based on a survey answered by 400 managers from different sectors and enterprise sizes, reveals a significant shift in trends over the last three years, where technological progress has forced companies to view this issue as something entirely strategic.
Three years ago, companies viewed digital issues in the same way as digital marketing, to a certain extent. In fact, it was the area of marketing which led digital transformation in enterprises (36%), followed by Business & Technology (27%), with a vision based on applications and platforms.
Managerial digital maturity
EADA’s Third Digital Management Level Report in Spain also analyses Spanish managers’ level of digital maturity. The average grade drawn from the study is 5.9, equalling that obtained in 2017, a low score considering that the managers are grading themselves. However, according to Ramon Costa, director of EADA's Digital Transformation Postgraduate Programme and author of the report, “we shouldn't interpret this as stagnation, but instead an increase in digital awareness, a reality check enabling greater knowledge of the complexity of the transformation our enterprises are undergoing.”
Areas to improve
According to the study, the most noteworthy weak points for managers are found in the application of new technologies for the creation of new products and services. For example, managers don't know how to interpret new opportunities afforded by the Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence, augmented reality or the Internet of Things. There is also a lack of awareness of the importance of the brand’s digital reputation, particularly social media presence. For instance, managers don’t value the long-term work involved in monitoring the digital brand. On the other hand, they have been able to use digital channels to enhance networking in virtual environments.
Most valued skills
The managers stand out in terms of more operational skills in their daily tasks (7.0), in team-work focused skills (6.0) and areas encompassing the whole organisation (5.1). This means they score highly in skills related to leadership, communication and productivity. This also includes all areas involving team management and motivation, in-person and online leadership, use of tools and communication channels, and application of personal and team-based productivity tools.
