It began to be actively discussed in the Russian business community. Despite the fact that it has long been one of the most discussed: world research agencies and consulting companies are already actively holding numerous conferences on this topic. For example, the key theme of the World Economic Forum in Davos is the fourth industrial revolution - Industry 4.0. However, within the concept of digital transformation there are many terms, for example, Digitization (digitization) and Digitalization (digitalization). What is the difference between these terms is the topic of this post, based on reports at the Digital Enterprise Forum.

Digitization is the transfer of information from physical media to digital media. For example, converting a book into electronic form, scanning a document, digitizing a painting, recording a teacher’s video course. Within digitization(digitization) there are no changes in the structure of information, it simply acquires electronic form for subsequent processing in digital format.

Thus digitization) allows you to improve existing business processes by adding information in digital format. If we classify this approach, then it can be correlated with the 3rd industrial revolution, which lasted from 1969 to 2010.

Digitalization (digitalization)– this is initially the creation of a new product in digital form. For example, a dynamic training course with animation or an interactive document commenting system. This product cannot be transferred to physical media without significant loss of quality.

Therefore the key difference ddigitalization (digitalization) in creating a new innovative product, with new functionality and consumer properties. And if Digitization) is primarily aimed at improving existing business models and changing business processes, then ddigitalization (digitalization) allows you to get a significant breakthrough in business and new competitive advantages. It can be said that ddigitalization (digitalization) can be attributed to the 4th industrial revolution, which is often called Industry 4.0.

If we consider Russian specifics, then most digital transformation initiatives are aimed at digitization (digitization), for example, within the framework of ONLINE training, teachers are most often recorded or a webinar is held, which generally transfers the learning process to digital form, but does not transform the business model.

The use of Gamification approaches, interactive interaction of course participants, practice-oriented tasks in electronic format - these are examples ddigitalization (digitalization), which will help create qualitatively new products on the Russian ONLINE training market. And this is how we need to act in all industries, so as not to find ourselves out of the wave again. Industry 4.0

Digitalization of business: where to go to get a client, how to manage personnel using new technologies, where to start working on turning into a well-known online brand - Jose Estevez, professor of information technology at IE Business School (Madrid), who came to Moscow with a series of seminars, spoke about this. on business digitalization.

Why have we been constantly talking about business digitalization lately? Is it really that important for managing a modern company? Is it possible to work, as they say, the old fashioned way?

–IN It's very simple. Business always follows the consumer. If the client is on the Internet, then the business should be there. No company will digitalize on its own - only following its client. And modern consumers are already digitalized in terms of
Internet (Facebook, Twitter, other social networks), and in terms of various gadgets. Consumers have long been not only offline, they have changed their behavior, they are in the digital ecosystem. Companies that do not want to lose a client, to miss the opportunity to be present in such a large and important community as the Internet, also have to change - to digitalize.

The rule has always been that a company must be present in the same market and use the same channels as its customers. For example, about 1 billion 400 million people visit Facebook every day, and some companies still do not consider Facebook as a market. Although this is not just a market, it is a huge, international market. Or, for example, each of us uses a smartphone every day, but for some reason not all organizations still understand that a smartphone is an effective channel for interacting with consumers. Finally, today, when a huge number of users are actively searching for information on the Internet, many companies are still not there at all!

But do all companies need to look for clients online? For example, there are goods or services that people do not buy online.

There is another rule: “Search online, buy offline.” Imagine that you are selling cars. They may not buy a car from you online, but the decision to purchase yours or another car will be made online. The chain can be longer: the product (car or shoes - it doesn’t matter) will first be “tried on” in the nearest showroom, then found on the Internet at the lowest price, and then purchased offline. But the final purchasing decision is often made online. And every year more and more people do just that.

When talking about business digitalization, you mean companies entering a new market - the Internet. Isn’t automation of internal processes digitalization?

Let's put it this way: digitalization has several layers. Firstly, improving business processes, for example, transferring procedures from paper to electronic. And secondly, working with clients online. The first layer is important, but not the main one. Still, improving interaction with people and their positive consumer experience are more important. And from this point of view, Internet interaction will bring more profit than automation of some internal business process. But the goal of digitalization is still profit.

What should a company do first if it decides to initiate such changes?

You need to start with an understanding of what exactly needs to be digitalized. What needs to be done to ensure that the user has a positive experience with the organization. That is, they start not with technology, but with the existing problem. And only after realizing the problem do they decide how to change the technology. Only in this case will the changes bring profit to the company.

Let's give an example. Let's take a hypothetical small-town company that decides to take advantage of new technologies. Where should she start?

Elementary. First of all, update your Internet page, make it attractive, fresh, and relevant. Branding cannot be touched, but it is extremely important. The second is internal processes. It is necessary to make sure that employees do not do the same thing in the company, and to optimize work processes. Ensure that all employees can easily access the information they need in real time. And so on - go in this direction.

What opportunities does digitalization provide in the field of work with the company's personnel?

A lot of possibilities! Personnel management is a complex process. Let's take recruiting, for example. Firstly, how can you find a young specialist today without being included in digital communication? All young professionals are on Facebook, LinkedIn, in other words, on the Internet. Secondly, how to attract these specialists? If a company positions itself as a comfortable place to work, conveying a good attitude towards employees, the best of the best specialists will go to such a company themselves. But to do this, the organization must develop its employer brand online. Or, let’s say, take the process of employee training. Online trainings are much cheaper than offline ones, require only digital equipment and at the same time solve a lot of problems. Many companies today even have special online forms with which employees can independently plan their training.

Large companies today actively use mobile applications to make collective decisions and evaluate performance. Large amounts of data obtained with their help make it possible, for example, to identify the best employees and determine who is suitable for which position. Thus, a few years ago, Google took into account university grades when hiring, but after analyzing data sets, it came to the conclusion that these grades do not have much predictive power: excellent students did not always become the best employees. And Google no longer uses grades as a criterion, their approach to interviews has changed, now the attention is paid not to grades, but to knowledge and skills useful for work.

What qualities, in your opinion, should top managers have in order to successfully implement digital changes in a company?

As you know, there are different types of leaders. There are controllers and commanders. These people are often not very good at making effective changes in the organization. There are leaders who communicate well, interact, and know how to engage, inspire, and teach. These qualities will be very useful for the successful digitalization of the company. Finally, recent research suggests that a good leader must be an observer. He must understand what is happening in the world, in the market, in the industry, and change the company in accordance with these changes. I believe that the combination of such qualities is almost a guarantee of a successful turn of the company to the new possibilities of digital reality.

Business digitalization is in full swing. What do you think will change as a result of this? What will become the norm and what will disappear, for example, in 20 years?

Consider, for example, the banking sector. Modern banks are trying to reduce the cost of maintaining branches by offering their customers online banking. Fewer branches - fewer employees - less expenses. Operational processes in companies will either disappear altogether, or people will no longer be involved in them. Today, in many companies, data entry is successfully performed by robots. Social robots can take orders. In hospitals, robots take care of patients. After the computerization of processes on financial exchanges, there was no longer a need for thousands of brokers. Calculations took people a huge amount of time; now these calculations are performed by supercomputers. This does not mean that the person is not needed. It’s just that digitalization helps a person free himself from boring tasks and deal only with the most interesting thing - strategy.

* José Estevez, professor of information technology at IE Business School (Madrid).

Digitalization – transferring information into digital form. Digital transmission of information data encoded into discrete signal pulses is widely used in modern communication systems. In the United States, digitalization is seen as the path to the information society, further globalization and transnationalization of information connections throughout the planet. In Europe and other regions of the world, there is a different point of view on digitalization, related to the protection of terrestrial broadcasting as a means of preserving national-local characteristics and interests through their own information means.

Knyazev A.A. Encyclopedic Dictionary of Media. - Bishkek: KRSU Publishing House. A. A. Knyazev. 2002.

See what “Digitalization” is in other dictionaries:

DIGITALIZATION- (digitalization) the use of medicinal substances that include digitalis or one of its purified derivatives in patients suffering from heart failure, to saturate the heart tissue with these substances. At this stage, cardiac... Explanatory dictionary of medicine

Digitalization- the use of medicinal substances that include digitalis or one of its purified derivatives in patients suffering from heart failure, to saturate the heart tissue with these substances. At this stage, heart failure... Medical terms

Digoxin- (Digoxin) Chemical compound... Wikipedia

digitization- NDP. digitization digitalization Conversion of cartographic materials into digital spatial data models using semi-automatic and automatic technologies and data input devices. [GOST R 52438 2005] Inadmissible,... ... Technical Translator's Guide

Acquired heart defects- Heart defects are acquired organic changes in valves or defects in the septum of the heart resulting from diseases or injuries. Disorders of intracardiac hemodynamics associated with heart defects form pathological conditions... ... Medical encyclopedia

Forecast- medical (Greek prognōsis foresight) prediction of the likelihood of a disease or the nature of the course and outcome of the disease, based on knowledge of the patterns of development of pathological processes. Many provisions about P. and its meaning... ... Medical encyclopedia

Foxglove (Digitalis)- an extract from dried leaves of foxglove (Digitalis species), which contains various substances, including digitoxin and digoxin, which stimulate the activity of the heart muscle. Used to treat heart failure; ... ... Medical terms

Digitization- conversion of analog data into digital form, accessible for processing in a digital machine environment or storage on machine-readable media using digitizers. Synonyms: Digitization, Digitalization See also: Vector graphics Digitizers Financial… Financial Dictionary

Mosterin, Jesus- Jesus Mosterin Jesus Mosterin ... Wikipedia

Media reality- – reality that is produced, represented and isolated by the media. Researched by media philosophy. Contents 1 Structure of media reality 2 Nature of media reality ... Wikipedia

Books

• Digital logistics. Textbook for universities, Afanasenko Ivan Dmitrievich, Borisova Vera Viktorovna. Russia's transition to a digital economy is unthinkable without a revision of logistics supply systems. This textbook - and this is its advantage - digitalizes the functional areas of logistics...

Today, the digital world is embedded in every aspect of our lives, from how we spend our time to how we manage our money. It changes the usual way of communication, entertainment and obtaining new information. We are becoming digital consumers who search for products and services not in yellow page directories, but in search engines.

All information is now on millions of websites, replacing television, newspapers and magazines. We use email, social media and blogs to communicate and share important information with more people. Now the most important transformation of our time is taking place - the transition from offline to online mode or digitalization.

What is digitalization?

In simple words, this is the digitization of text, sound and video. It allows you to translate a huge amount of information into ones and zeros - a language that a computer can understand.

Digitalization is designed to simplify our lives. For example, by combining information about a person’s location and search queries, a smartphone will be able to determine the user’s preferences (leisure options, etc.). In addition, it will fundamentally change business by reducing production costs and increasing labor productivity.

Business digitalization

The process of digitization has affected all areas of business: from how you get and retain new customers, to how you represent and manage your company's reputation on the Internet.

Whereas in the past it was as simple as building a store using mortar and bricks, consumers now want to see what you have to offer before making a purchase. So there is no way to do without a digital presence. Before the advent of the Internet, a newspaper ad column could attract new customers, but today the target audience consumes more and more digital data.

Every day you need digital advertising to attract new consumers. Cold calling and greeting cards have been replaced by digitalization, allowing digital consumers to manage their personal and professional relationships online.

Before the digitization of data, the offline mode represented the transfer of information by word of mouth. But now consumers, through their social media pages, instantly spread information to hundreds and thousands of people. This metamorphosis will soon lead to the fact that the entire business will retain and manage customers 100% digitally. And this, in turn, has the following advantages:

• high competitiveness;
• simplification of work with information;
• affirmation of a positive image;
• improving customer loyalty to the brand;
• saving money.

The education sector is also undergoing irreversible changes. The most important trend in our time is obtaining additional education.

Bitkom, Germany's digital association, conducted a survey in which three out of four respondents complain that they do not have enough time in the workplace to gain additional knowledge. This is due to the rapid development of information technology. Therefore, in such an era, it is important to constantly be “learnable.” Moreover, you need to be able to combine individual components of information, approach problem solving creatively and quickly respond to requirements.

The main vectors of education development are:

• Speed ​​- learning keeps up with the times, because the usual accumulation of knowledge has long lost its relevance.
• Enthusiasm and motivation are fundamental principles in education, where teachers become facilitators, guiding students online and offline.
• Availability of materials in real time, which simplifies the process of acquiring new knowledge.
• Interdisciplinary content is a direction that erases rigid boundaries between production, business and other areas, and therefore requires combining knowledge from different spheres of life.

Among the new trends in the post-Soviet space, we should highlight the great interest in online education Coursera. It is gaining momentum, gradually establishing ties with higher educational institutions. The most popular specializations are data analysis, machine learning, financial instruments, programming and others.

Digitalization of professions

Digital processes are challenging traditional workplaces. This applies to HR specialists. Digitalization of this field reduces the burden of recruiting and training trainees.

Thanks to new tools, specialists can communicate with candidates through mobile applications, social networks and cloud technologies. For example, before an interview, a person fills out not the usual paper form, but an electronic form. Thus, the employer quickly receives and processes information.

Automation is firmly established at all stages of recruitment and training:

• video presentations that replaced the group presentation;
• completing a quest instead of interviews;
• training through special portals.

Digitization in the field of HR gives excellent results, namely reducing the load on recruiters and researchers, reducing staff turnover, and improving the hiring funnel.

At the same time, digitalization has affected not only the HR sphere. Experts predict that in 5-10 years the following professions will be popular:

• IT specialists;
• virtual reality architects;
• Big Data model developers;
• intellectual property appraisers;
• virtual lawyers;
• designers of “smart houses”, etc.

Moreover, whether you will be a virtual lawyer or a Big Data model developer in the future, you will need to study all your life. And changing 8-12 professions will be considered the norm.

Digitalization of the economy

Here we can highlight two main directions in which digitalization is moving - increasing productivity and creating “digital enterprises”.

Digitization of data in business reduces costs, increases profits and increases the pace of economic development. Once companies become digital, they realize that they are able to advance their technologies across different sectors of the economy. This, in turn, requires less effort, because Digitalization helps to overcome barriers and enter a new segment of the economy.

With the digitization of data, marketing is also undergoing significant changes. Nowadays, many small companies have the opportunity to become leaders with minimal costs.

Now let’s talk more about the second direction – “digital enterprises”. They are created thanks to cloud technologies and consist entirely of remote work groups. In this economy, it is becoming increasingly difficult to survive unless you are a “digital business.” This is why more and more companies are turning to cloud services.

Digitalization of the market

The IT solutions segment dominates and is expected to reach $798.44 billion in 2025. This trend can be explained by the rapid development of new technologies.

In the next seven years, we will see an increase in the share of the service sector at 19.5%. Regarding the analytics segment, growing demand is expected due to the synthesis of large volumes of data and the increase in the number of devices and applications with built-in artificial intelligence (AI).

Experts expect the professional services segment to grow by 19.9% ​​over the next 7 years. The rise of digital technologies is driving demand for higher education programs to prepare the existing workforce to successfully adapt to evolving technologies.

The healthcare sector will achieve the highest growth - 19.5%, all thanks to increased demand for electronic devices with built-in AI and the ability to monitor the general condition of the patient online.

The share of small and medium-sized businesses will increase by 20.1% by 2025. The phenomenal growth can be attributed to factors such as falling device costs and increased focus on cloud and edge computing.

Over the past few years, the banking system has undergone great changes. The focus on delivering digital services and exceptional customer experiences has been driven by financial market reshaping, particularly the development of cryptocurrency, bitcoin and blockchain.

We present 3 main directions of the modern banking system in the context of digitalization:

1. Digital transformation of bank transfers. This process is becoming automated: now, to complete a transaction, bank personnel are not needed.
2. Rethinking the banking business model. A good example is the use of blockchain technology (from English “blockchain”), which helps reduce fraud in the banking sector. It is already used in such operations as payments, direct investment transfers, management of trade, expense, mortgage, credit reports, etc.
3. Cloud technologies in the banking sector. By providing network access, banks face many new opportunities: collaboration with partners to develop digital products, optimization of business processes, implementation of AI.

Digitalization of society

Digitalization has begun to dictate new principles in all sectors of our lives, from the banking system to healthcare. Society itself was no exception.

Some scientists suggest that the role of humans in the future will be insignificant, and they will be replaced by robots. But this is not true: in the digital economy, power is in the hands of the individual. Companies promote their products and services on the Internet and social networks, and to do this they need to understand the interests and behavior of their target audience.

Another trend is the decentralization of cooperation. Now shopping and many other tasks can be done while connected to the Internet. For example, the use of cryptocurrency, which replaced checks and cash, or a “smart” home.

There is a merger between the digital and physical worlds. What does it mean? Bringing AI to devices found in millions of homes across the planet. We'll also likely see the traditional computer replaced by more efficient tools and interfaces that only require voice commands.

The key question for production owners is how quickly and flexibly they can respond to market changes and customer needs. To this end, they are increasingly seeking to make the development phases of new products parallel. This requires the consistent implementation of all digitization options - from the first idea to the commissioning of the production machine.

Another promising area is network production. Sinumerik Integrate provides the industry with a wide range of solutions for networking machines and connecting them to high-level IT systems.

Networked machines, production monitoring and innovative concepts with multi-touch displays allow companies to optimize their production processes. Intelligent Operations introduces an innovative package for workplaces that want to take the first step towards digitalization. Operators use the device to view many graphic formats at once, in particular pdf and dxf. All data necessary for production is available on the company's network.

Digitization has not ignored the productivity and quality of manufactured parts. Siemens introduces multi-tasking technologies such as turning, a combination of milling and turning using grinding technologies. Thanks to this clear focus, digitalization at Siemens offers a complete solution for machine tool production: digitalization - automation - technology.

Experts from PwC, which provides consulting and audit services, believe that the digitization of the financial market is caused by two factors:

1. Full adaptation of generation C to the digital environment. Consumers are constantly ready to share their personal experiences, impressions and experiences on social networks.
2. Emergence of new economic benefits. Digitalization has shifted capital to social networks and websites.

Financial and accounting calculations require highly qualified IT specialists who can optimize business processes. Now more and more financial companies are investing in digital technologies to improve the efficiency of their operations and also generate additional profits.

Digitalization trend

What are the digitalization trends in 2018? Forbes experts note the main directions in which digital technologies are developing:

1. Development of IoT - Internet of Things. According to IDC, the total global investment in IoT by 2021 will be 1.4 trillion. US dollars.
2. Analytics revolution. Microsoft, IBM, SAS and SAP are actively investing in Google Analytics, especially IoT Analytics, because... see prospects in promoting new business ideas.
3. 5G connectivity. The transition won't happen overnight, but we're already seeing Gigabit LTE (the step between LTE and 5G), which helps interoperate with Samsung and Sony devices.
4. Blockchain will find its niche. The financial industry has been an early adopter of this amazing tool, but many others, from healthcare to hospitality, will not be left behind. It is predicted that by 2020, 20% of trade finance will use blockchain.
5. Mass introduction of artificial intelligence. We are already seeing successful examples such as IBM Watson, SAP Leonardo and Salesforce Einstein.
6. Development of edge computing. Leading companies such as Cisco and HPE have made a huge number of hardware, software and service bets to enable edge computing. Already, autonomous vehicles, UAVs and other AI-powered devices require instant connectivity to the IoT. Therefore, the issue of sending data to the cloud will become extremely impractical.
7. Culture remains a barrier. If a company cannot overcome its established culture in the face of digital transformation, it will be very difficult for it to remain in the market in 2018.

Examples of digitalization

There are quite a few striking examples of the implementation of digitalization in industry, medicine and other areas in the world. Successful ones include:

• online sportswear store 21sportsgroup;
• forklift manufacturer STILL;
• cloud platform SAP HANA;
• rubber products company Trelleborg.

Back in 2011, 21sportsgroup almost went bankrupt with an annual turnover of 6 million euros. But just a year later, this figure suddenly rose to 12 million euros.

This result was achieved thanks to digitalization. Jörg Mayer, founder and CEO of the online retailer, recalls: “21sportsgroup’s new system had to keep pace with its impressive growth, while simultaneously achieving even greater synergies between online sales channels and local stores.” Thus, the company has developed biomechanical and biometric technologies that help customers select shoes.

After introducing innovations on May 1, 2015, 21sportsgroup began to occupy leading positions on Amazon.com and eKomi.

The Hamburg company STILL decided to create a forklift that independently accepts and fulfills orders. The solution was the development of the cubeXX concept truck. To integrate orders and vehicles, the company uses the SAP HANA Cloud Platform, which processes a huge amount of information and makes order data available online.

Today, the humble forklift has become not only an autonomous vehicle, but also a service that fulfills orders without human intervention. Logistics managers only monitor the operation of the machines and make adjustments if necessary.

Another example is SAP HANA to support patients with chronic diseases. In collaboration with SAP, Roche Diabetes Care has focused on preventing diabetes in people at risk (high blood pressure, overweight or high blood lipids).

The company has invented special Accu-Chek Aviva Connect glucose meters that immediately transmit information via Bluetooth to a smartphone. Such a system simplifies the work of the doctor, who at any time can see the patient’s blood sugar level, as well as other parameters, be it the number of steps taken or blood pressure.

Rubber products company Trelleborg has introduced artificial intelligence robots to its production sites. The manufacturer managed to reduce the number of people in production: now there are not three, but one worker per 8 machines.

In times of rapid change, the economy and society cannot function according to the old model. Our world is beginning to understand what digitalization is and is accepting new rules of the game. Digital technologies will ensure more comfortable and faster interaction between the client and the company. This transformation will improve the quality of products and services, automate production and simplify internal and external communications. So if you are a company owner, a simple consumer or a freelancer who wants to explore a new niche, it’s time to take the path of digitalization!