Becoming a more digitally focused organization is a top priority for many tribal governments of all sizes. If your tribal organization is still relying on paper files and siloed service departments to serve your members, it’s time to think about evolving.
In this blog post, we’ll show you how to accelerate your digital transformation and provide a better quality of service to your tribal members.
Accelerate Your Digital Transformation in Five Steps
Successful digital transformations are about more than technology, they are about people first and foremost. Here are some steps you can take right now to accelerate your digital transformation by putting people at the center of it all:
1. Start With What You Have
Successful digital transformations do not start by tearing down your existing systems and starting from scratch. The systems and processes your organization relies on have been built over several years and possibly generations. Instead of transforming them completely, think of ways that technology can be used to improve and refine them for both your employees and tribal members.
Some of the initial steps you can to accelerate digital transformation within your tribal organization may include the following:
- Converting paper documents into digital files that can be stored and accessed through a document management system.
- Using workflow automation to reduce the manual effort your employees must spend on tedious and repetitive tasks.
- Create a content hub that connects all your departments and systems
Digital transformation is not a tip and replace process. It’s about gaining efficiencies and making daily tasks easier to manage. Start small and build as the rate of adoption increases among staff and members.
2. Acknowledge The Technology Gap
While starting small is a great way to test the waters and get your team warmed up to the idea of a digital transformation, you need to have a vision and a roadmap in place if you want to get anywhere fast.
This means taking stock of your technology stack and acknowledging where the gaps are that need to be filled. For example, if your organization consists of multiple departments that don’t communicate effectively, looking for a CMS or central hub to store your data and unite the different service departments can help close the gap.
3. Use Cloud Technology To Harness Real-time Data
Storing your data on the cloud allows your organization to make changes that will be reflected instantly to all users. For example, important data around applying to grants, building permits, and even adoption requests can be updated and instantly available to relevant users on any device from any location.
With analytics right at your fingertips, you can create custom reports and dashboards that evaluate governmental processes and have the potential to drive new efficiencies and improve your quality of service.
4. Focus on The Customer Experience When Deploying New Technology
When deploying new technologies and revamping old systems, it’s easy to get lost in the day-to-day work and lose sight of why you began your digital transformation in the first place.
The adoption of new technologies will almost always revolve around customer’s needs and expectations. Everything you do should be aimed at delivering an improved customer experience for your tribal members.
Keeping this mind will also help to increase adoption among your internal staff. Similar to a mission and vision statement, educating your employees on the why behind your digital transformation will help to create alignment and get more people on board with your initiatives.
5. Make It About People First
Of course, the best way to accelerate your digital transformation is to put people at the center of it all. Don’t get caught up chasing the latest and greatest technology solutions; educate your members and your employees on the benefits of any new technologies and processes to increase adoption rates.
Involving your people at the very start of your digital transformation and maintaining open communication throughout the process can accelerate your digital transformation and turn your organization into a winner.
Transform Your Tribal Operations
While change is inevitable, becoming inefficient or outdated doesn’t have to happen. Our mission is to provide tribal governments with the solutions they need to better serve their members and improve the quality of life. The software systems we provide help tribes keep track of members and gain efficiencies to run smoother and manage their daily tasks in a way that’s easier.
To learn more about how to have a successful digital transformation, download your free digital transformation checklist below.
