BOOK REVIEW
Book Title: Future Ready: The Four Pathways to Capturing Digital Value
Authors: Stephanie L. Woerner, Peter Weill, Ina M. Sebastian
Publisher: Harvard Business Review Press
List Price: $30.00
Format: Hardcover, 256 pages
Publication Date: Oct 18, 2022
SBN: 9781647823498
Reviewer: Shauna Skolnick
Review Date: February 2023
Introduction
When research scientists from MIT co-author a book to share pertinent insights on digital transformation solutions and provide step by step instructions in a “how to” playbook, every C-Suite leader needs to get their hands on it!
“Future Ready: The Four Pathways to Capturing Digital Value” offers a clear understanding of why it’s so important to adopt a digital transformation strategy no matter the industry or product, and the impending risks of choosing not to. The book outlines four easy pathways to achieve success in building digital value and remain competitive. Digital business is here to stay, and customers are now expecting it across all industries and facets of life; banking, healthcare, education, automotive, retail, insurance, travel & leisure, real estate, you name it.
Woerner, Weill, and Sebastian, study how companies use technology, data and innovation to build enterprise enabling platforms. These more effective business models eliminate legacy processes and focus on enhancing the customer experience, yielding higher revenues and profitability. In addition to providing a comprehensive roadmap, the authors offer valuable tips on effectively managing organizational change, ensuring enterprise-wide buy in, and how to avoid common mistakes.
Overview of Book’s Structure
“Future Ready” begins by reinforcing the speed at which our current market moves, and the demands on businesses to acquire, engage and retain customers. The opening highlights what we already know to be true, we live in a world of immediate gratification and on-demand expectations. Customers today gravitate towards, and expect, an easier, digital way of doing business. We are in an era where the customer experience (CX) defines a business’ success.
The book illustrates the correlation between digital value and financial performance, pulling the reader in with thought-provoking, recognized examples that validate this link. Since “delighting the client” requires an established real-time partnership, “Future Ready” sets the tone of what’s to come, acknowledging the need to establish a playbook for something so complex.
Sharing data collected over years of collaboration with global executives, the team offers a complete framework, or playbook, on how to capture digital value no matter company size or industry.
Highlights
Being customer-obsessed, data-driven, agile and innovative is critical to maintaining a competitive edge. On this digital journey from theory, implementation, application and success, the most impactful highlights of “Future Ready” are undeniably the clarity provided for each of the four pathways to success.
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How to cite this work: Skolnick, S. (2023). Future Ready: The Four Pathways to Capturing Digital Value, book review, PM World Journal, Vol. XII, Issue IV, April. Available online at https://pmworldjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/pmwj128-Apr2023-Skolnick-Future-Ready-book-review.pdf
About the Reviewer
Shauna Skolnick
North Texas, USA
Shauna Skolnick is a Workforce Solutions leader with 20 years of experience managing critical business operations for enterprise clients. Her career has been focused on Strategic Delivery, Direct Sourcing, National Account Resource Planning, Recruiting Operations, Talent Acquisition and Advisory, Training, Coaching, and Performance Management. She is passionate about providing the right match between top-notch talent and Fortune 500 clients or Federal Government Secret/Top Secret Cleared engagements.
Shauna can be contacted at sskolnick@grandecom.net
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