Guidelines: Managing the Digital Transformation smartly, securely and sustainably

CEC European Managers, representing around one million managers at EU-level, has published its Guidelines for Managing the Digital Transformation. The publication gives managers both an overview on the technological and political framework conditions of digitalisation, as well as the practical tools for setting up and implementing a digital strategy. These Guidelines are a necessary complement to make the European Union’s upcoming digital strategy work in practice. Its first proposal has been presented by the European Commission also on 19 February.

At macroeconomic level, the ongoing digitalisation has not been able to offset the steady decline of productivity growth in industrialised economies. A decentralised market structure, the predominance of SMEs and the absence of “digital champions” is what marks the European digital landscape today. Gains from digitalisation did not spread evenly across firms. Particularly companies in the ICT sector have made great productivity gains, making some of them the most valued companies on global stock exchanges.

The manager able to make a success of the digital transformation facilitates the development of people, ideas and processes. She/He supports individual and organisational potential within a collaborative organisational ecosystem, connected digitally. – Maxime Legrand, Secretary General

For businesses, digitalisation can lead to productivity gains, better work-life balance and higher customer satisfaction. New challenges such as global warming and growing social inequalities add to the new business opportunities digital technologies can unleash. On the downside, digital tools can lead to an over-exposure to screens and an overflow of information and potential distractions that can contribute to psychosocial troubles and reduce workers’ ability to focus.

Please find our Guidelines on Managing the Digital Transformation here.

You may also be interested in reading the report on the state of implementation of Artificial Intelligence.