TECH INVESTMENTS WON’T ALONE DRIVE VALUE. IF NOT COUPLED WITH VALUE CREATION, IT CAN ALL LEAD TO BUYERS’ REMORSE.

The thing about the technology market is it is as disorderly as it gets. Gauging the market- buyer dynamics is critical for positioning your brand well. But that begins with how well you know your customers- their goals, preferences, patterns, and desires.

As per Deloitte’s Global Technology Leadership Study, tech spending, as a revenue percentage, was at 3.28% in 2016 and grew to 5.49% in 2022. Tech budgets are increasing across almost all verticals and industries. But doubling down on tech investments won’t boost business outcomes unless tech leaders back it up with clear goals and customer-centric strategies.

The Spending

Brands around the world are increasing spending on their transformation efforts. The digital transformation efforts were up 65% in two years (from 2020 to 2022). Tech governs strategy now, but measuring the ROI has been a pestering issue for tech leaders. Moreover, A Gartner Survey revealed that 60% of tech buyers involved in renewal decisions experience regret.

The decision won’t be easy unless it’s all aligned with customer needs. There’s power in intention. If business leaders don’t break down the silos within their organizations, they’re leaving money on the table. Before making any tech investments, the first thing is to demonstrate how it impacts the end user/customer. If it’s not possible to articulate the value of a tech investment, it’s not worth the effort. If technology investments are not helping businesses enter a new market, building new capabilities, or leading innovation, tech leaders must step back to recalibrate their investment efforts.

Tech success can only happen if tech supports overall business objectives, and that can’t pan out well if we don’t know our customers as well as we should.

Conveying Value

Tech leaders, it’s time to steer away from the traditional approach of communicating the impact of your team. Stop looking at these investments as a cost center and start zeroing in on value creation. If a technology costs X dollars, what’s the value the business is getting it? What is its impact on the bottom line? The demonstration needs a hard reset.

Ask your stakeholders, what results they’d expect out of a particular investment. If we can’t tie it to revenue growth or how it’s helping our people perform better, we won’t be able to translate how tech is a strategic driver of business success.

The higher the budget gets, the more will be the stakeholder expectations. It’s all about showcasing how well these transformation efforts fit into business strategy and plans.

Taking Stock

There’s a jarring disconnect between adopting new technologies and the impact of that tech adoption. Tech success isn’t about how many new technologies you’ve onboarded, it’s more about how much of the tech stack you’re utilizing.

The key is being deliberate with each investment. Change capability, tech aligned to business strategy, and digital roadmaps all have to co-exist and reinforce one another. Get close to your tech- why does it matter? Do you have the right resources? Is your team equipped with the optimal skillsets to use these technologies? Are there any gaps you should bridge before you make this purchase?

Succeeding with tech innovation boils down to assembling all the right components and figuring out how they fit the best. Intention combined with execution- that’s the only way to make sense of it all.