Seeking a digital future is complex. Organizations that successfully use digital technologies for new growth operate with a different set of rules and capabilities. Incumbents not only have the right to play by the new digital rules, but also the ability to redefine them to their competitive advantage. Seven “no-regret” capabilities manage digital disruption and help organizations grow. Explore how business leaders must sense and interpret disruption and experiment to develop and launch new ideas faster. Data, digital skills, and partnerships will all be vital. And, companies must not only organize for speed but also design a delightful customer experience.

1. Being digital
Seven essential
no-regret capabilities

2. Seeking a digital future is
complex
Prime time to be digital
Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved. 2
Organizations that successfully use digital
technologies for new growth operate with
a different set of rules and capabilities.
Incumbents not only have the right to
play by the new digital rules, but also
the ability to redefine them to their
competitive advantage.
of business leaders say
developing the right digital
skills and capabilities is a
priority in the next three
years*
88%
*Source: Accenture Strategy Executive Research 2015

3. “No-regret” capabilities manage digital disruption and help organizations grow
Seven capabilities are essential
Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved. 3
1. Sense and interpret disruption
2. Experiment to develop and launch new ideas, faster
3. Fully understand and leverage data
4. Build and maintain a high digital quotient team
5. Partner and invest for all non-core activities
6. Organize for speed
7. Design a delightful customer experience

4. Being highly sensitive to a fluid market is not easy
1. Sense and interpret disruption
Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved. 4
Knowing how to sense and interpret
disruption is not intuitive. Look beyond
your own back yard to determine which
trends will matter—judging when they will
impact the business is critical.
Digital winners:
• Create an ecosystem of relationships
• Develop a team that is consciously
mining and analyzing the information
*Source: Accenture Strategy Executive Research 2015
of business leaders say
new entrants are
emerging with new
business models*
51%

5. Innovation is a consequence, not a goal
2. Experiment to develop and launch new ideas, faster
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Most digital disrupters do not see themselves as
“innovating”—they are solving specific customer
problems the best way they know how.
Solving customer problems requires two actions:
experimenting more and learning to self-disrupt.
Digital technologies enable a new way of
experimenting at almost an unlimited scale.
*Source: Accenture Strategy Executive Research 2015
of business leaders
identify innovation to be a
key benefit of adopting
digital technologies*
79%

6. Businesses are grappling with almost unimaginable amounts of data
3. Fully understand and leverage data
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Mastering the art of exploiting data—
either turning it into useful information
or using it to develop new products
and services that bring value to their
customers—will be fundamental to
how businesses run in the future.
*Source: Accenture Strategy Executive Research 2015
$
of business leaders are
implementing a strategy to
make money from their data
in the next 12 months*
36%

7. The time is ripe for “DQ”—a measure of the digital savviness of corporations
4. Build and maintain a high digital quotient team
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While IQ and EQ measure intellectual and
emotional intelligence, organizations now
need to measure and rapidly build their
teams’ digital quotient—not least among
their senior members.
Programs must be put in place to build or
“acqu-hire” digital skills through acquisitions
or relationships with start-ups.
*Source: Accenture Strategy Executive Research 2015
of workers say their
leaders are ready to
adapt to the new
advances in digital
technologies*
48%

8. Digital leaders understand the digital journey should not be taken alone
5. Partner and invest for all non-core activities
Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved. 8
Aligning with an ecosystem of partners is
critical to digital progress. The more they
invest in others, the more organizations
extend the team that is as vested in their
success as they are.
Forming new partnerships, especially
unorthodox ones, requires an open mind-set
that will be critical over the next few years.
*Source: Accenture Strategy Executive Research 2015
of business leaders say they will
increase their partnerships and
alliances to boost digital growth
in the next three years*
78%

9. New structures are emerging to help organizations respond more quickly
6. Organize for speed
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Two elements are essential to organize
for speed: first, CEO-level support and a
dedicated central team to drive the new
digital growth.
Second, a team of “fixers”—those at the
center of operations who are independent,
respected and can draw on the right skills
at the right time.
New metrics that measure value creation
are essential to assess the momentum
that leads to monetization.
of executives say they
want to be a digital leader
in their industry*
39%
*Source: Accenture Strategy Executive Research 2015

10. Digital technologies have reset expectations
7. Design a delightful customer experience
Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved. 10
Today, a banking customer using a mobile
banking app does not compare it with
apps from other banks, but against their
best mobile user experiences for usability
or functionality, whatever the industry.
Customers’ primary motivation
for repeat business is the quality
of their experience

11. Being a digital business means adopting
new ways of behaving and operating
Where next?
Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved. 11
Keep the following factors in mind:
• Identify the capability gaps
• Determine competitive priorities
• Take the strategic choices to realize your digital goals

12. 12Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.
About the research
Accenture Strategy interviewed 700 business leaders in the United States,
China, Japan and the European Union to understand how they can take
advantage of digital technologies to accelerate growth and competitiveness.
We also sought the views of more than 2,500 European employees in five
countries on the impact of digital technologies on the future of work.
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Read other reports in the “Being digital” series:
• Fast-forward to the right digital strategy
• Embrace the future of work and your people will embrace it with you

13. 13Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.
Learn more at www.accenture.com/digitaltransformation
About Accenture
Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services
and outsourcing company, with approximately 323,000 people
serving clients in more than 120 countries. Combining unparalleled
experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and
business functions, and extensive research on the world’s most
successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help
them become high-performance businesses and governments.
The company generated net revenues of US$30.0 billion for the fiscal
year ended August 31, 2014. Its home page is www.accenture.com.
About Accenture Strategy
Accenture Strategy operates at the intersection of business and
technology. We bring together our capabilities in business, technology,
operations and function strategy to help our clients envision and
execute industry-specific strategies that support enterprise wide
transformation. Our focus on issues related to
digital disruption, competitiveness, global operating models,
talent and leadership help drive both efficiencies and growth.
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