The digital transformation (we need one definition) requires that organizations restructure many departments so that each department embraces and adopts new technology as it becomes established. Underlying this approach is an agreement, or a mandate from the leadership, that the digital transformation is, in fact, a benefit to the organization. Next, it is imperative that redundancy of function and silos be eliminated in a planned and thoughtful process as opposed to overnight. Changing people’s attitudes toward digitalization and technology is more difficult than implementing them. Unless their DNA specifically makes people thrive with change, nobody likes change.

It’s always about employees and turf. Paranoia sets in when change is looming. It’s worrying about how my role and status, not to mention employment, will be affected. I’m not into the layer cake analogy. Bakers are able to trim away the portion of cake or cakes that stick out or make the layer cake appear less uniform. I don’t advocate that approach for corporations, but it’s exactly that image that makes for employee anxiety and consequently resistance.

Reluctance or inability to adopt new technology to evolve the business is a marker for a much deeper and often fatal flaw: a closed mindset anchored in an outdated view of the world by the C-suite and board.

Change, especially when it touches the very core of any organization, can disorient and challenge not only hierarchies and turfs but the most accepted common sense. Technology is the canary in the coal mine.

While Peter Drucker is credited with the saying that culture eats strategy for breakfast and Marc Andreessen about software eating the world, what we have here is that culture eats software for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

An organizational culture that embraces technology is important for digital transformation success. However, from a store operations perspective, training is the most important driver of successful technology implementations. If store associates are not properly trained and do not understand the benefits of the technology, the technology will not be adopted and properly used.

For headquarters staff that are now expected to rely on AI to optimize their planning decisions, the key is to change their mindset. Many planners think their insights and experience are better than AI and they don’t trust the data. There is a lot of education needed to get planners to embrace AI.

Digital transformation is such a misnomer. No matter the amount of tech involved, it’s always about cultural change, which inherently introduces a headwind. As others have identified, it’s about mindset and how much people are willing to make the moves from the top on down. Most important, that’s where you see real leadership — not when the ships coordinates are already punched in, but when you need to move it in another direction.

Also not a fan of the layer cake analogy. It misses the entirety of the culture piece and most important, the constant change in the culture. An organization is fluid, not a static entity. Not only internally but also externally with the market, customers and more. An adaptive culture means thinking about culture in a more dynamic way.